Marlins' Jazz Chisholm Jr. Landing Spots amid MLB Trade Rumors, Luis Arraez to Padres

It's not even Memorial Day yet, but the Miami Marlins have already written their 2024 season off as a loss. Last week's trade of Luis Arraez leaves no doubt about it.

As for who might be next, the signs point to Jazz Chisholm Jr.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today implied as much on Sunday, which followed Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix refusing to commit to keeping the center fielder for the remainder of the year on Saturday:

It's not just that the Marlins are 10-28 and in last place in the National League East. They also have a weak farm system even after the Arraez trade, which brought a surprisingly light return.

All this settles the question of why Chisholm might be next to go, but what about his trade value and potential suitors?

Ahead, we'll discuss the former and speculate on the latter.

By reputation, Chisholm is one of the brighter stars in Major League Baseball.

His accolades include an All-Star selection in 2021 and the cover of last year's version of MLB The Show. He's also averaged 28 home runs and 32 stolen bases per 162 games during his five-year career.

The reality of Chisholm's career isn't as appealing, though.

He's missed a bunch of time with injuries, notably playing in only 59 percent of Miami's games between 2021 and 2023. He's also been just three percent better than the average hitter, and defensive metrics suggest he's not as good in center field as he was at second base.

Still, this doesn't mean the Marlins have to take the first offer they get for him. If they could get two of the San Diego Padres' top 10 prospects for Arraez, they should do at least as well in a Chisholm trade.

He still has above average power and speed, and it isn't just his youth—he turned 26 on Feb. 1—that would make an upside play on those things worthwhile. He's also making just $2.6 million this year, with two additional years of arbitration-eligibility in 2025 and 2026.

The best fits for Chisholm are teams that are trying to win now and later, and have needs at center field and/or second base.

Ahead, I've ranked 10 of them as potential fits for Chisholm and pitched trade proposals for the top five.

Note: All farm system and prospect rankings are courtesy of B/R's Joel Reuter.

10. St. Louis Cardinals

Record: 15-21, 5th in NL East

Current Center Fielder: Dylan Carlson

Current Second Baseman: Nolan Gorman

The Cardinals are only getting a .362 OPS from center field and a .547 OPS from second base, so on-paper fits for Chisholm don't get any better than this. But with St. Louis threatening a second straight last-place finish, the timing for a deal this big isn't quite right.

9. Tampa Bay Rays

Record: 19-18, 4th in AL East

Current Center Fielder: Jose Siri

Current Second Baseman: Amed Rosario

The OPSes the Rays are getting from center field (.654) and second base (.612) are not good, and it just feels like they need another bat in general. But the timing here is likewise suspect. If anything, they are a potential seller this summer.

8. Minnesota Twins

Record: 20-15, 2nd in AL Central

Current Center Fielder: Willi Castro

Current Second Baseman: Edouard Julien

It was worth throwing the Twins in here because Byron Buxton, who's on the injured list with right knee inflammation, still isn't a viable everyday option in center field. But given his own injury history, Chisholm isn't the best solution for this dilemma.

7. San Francisco Giants

Record: 16-21, 4th in NL West

Current Center Fielder: Jung Hoo Lee

Current Second Baseman: Thairo Estrada

The Giants just plain need a bat, as they're below even the Marlins with an average of 3.7 runs per game. Defensively speaking, though, Chisholm would be an awkward fit in San Francisco. Lee and Estrada are good at what they do in center and at second, respectively.

6. Seattle Mariners

Record: 20-16, 2nd in AL West

Current Center Fielder: Julio Rodríguez

Current Second Baseman: Jorge Polanco

The Mariners also just plain need a bat. Their average of 3.8 runs per game is dangerously low for a would-be World Series contender. But they're also another team that's set at center and second, making the Chisholm fit less than perfect.

Record: 26-11, 1st in NL East

Current Center Fielder: Johan Rojas

Current Second Baseman: Bryson Stott

Why the Fit Works

This, to be clear, has nothing to with Stott.

If anything, he's one of the more overlooked players in MLB. The bat is solid, and he's coming off a 2023 season in which he ranked third among second basemen with 17 Outs Above Average.

It's Rojas who's the problem in this picture. He's been the starter in center field for 29 of the Phillies' 37 games and the bat simply isn't playing. He's hitting .210 with one home run.

Obviously, Rojas' porous bat isn't keeping the Phillies from winning games. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski likes stars and big trades, though, and making a move for Chisholm would certainly check both boxes.

Trade Proposal: Philadelphia Phillies get CF Jazz Chisholm Jr.; Miami Marlins get OF Justin Crawford (Phillies No. 3, MLB No. 56), C Eduardo Tait (Phillies No. 8)

It's hard to imagine the Phillies moving either of their prized right-handers, Andrew Painter or Mick Abel. Ditto for third baseman Aidan Miller, who's hit .308 since going to the Phillies at No. 27 in last year's draft.

As he's taken some lumps since moving up to High-A, a trade of Crawford is easier to imagine, but only slightly. And that's to say nothing of how reluctant Dombrowski might be to move him to an NL East rival.

Record: 25-13, 1st in NL West

Current Center Fielder: James Outman

Current Second Baseman: Gavin Lux

Why the Fit Works

The Dodgers may lead MLB in scoring, but suffice it to say the bottom half of their lineup is weaker than the top half.

That's where Outman and Lux are typically found. Mash their production together, and you get a .529 OPS and four home runs.

But whereas the Dodgers now have Andy Pages to platoon with Outman, second base really only gets a boost when Mookie Betts takes occasional turns there. Lux definitely isn't earning his keep with his bat, as he's hitting .191 and just got his first homer on Tuesday.

If the Dodgers want to leave nothing to chance, this is where Chisholm should interest them. And besides, the whole vibe of this team is that there's no such thing as too much star power.

Trade Proposal: Los Angeles Dodgers get CF Jazz Chisholm Jr.; Miami Marlins get C Dalton Rushing (Dodgers No. 1, MLB No. 71), RHP Maddux Bruns (Dodgers No. 10)

Catcher has been a problem for the Marlins ever since they traded JT Realmuto in 2019. Hence the appeal of adding Rushing, who's blocked by Will Smith in Los Angeles anyway.

There are doubts about Rushing's defensive chops, however, and Bruns is more likely to end up in a bullpen than in a starting rotation.

Record: 16-20, 5th in AL East

Current Center Fielder: Daulton Varsho

Current Second Baseman: Cavan Biggio

Why the Fit Works

If the question is why the Blue Jays are underachieving, look no further than the offense.

Any team with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and George Springer has no business scoring 3.6 runs per game, much less with as many home runs as the Marlins. Yet that's the reality of the situation.

Chisholm wouldn't fit the Blue Jays in center field, where Varsho (.797 OPS) has been getting more starts over Kevin Kiermaier (.520 OPS) of late. But there'd be a spot for him at second base, where Biggio is hitting just .232 with one homer in 21 games.

Besides, the Blue Jays need Chisholm's energy. If we're talking sheer charisma, he's up there with any player in MLB.

Trade Proposal: Toronto Blue Jays get CF Jazz Chisholm Jr.; Miami Marlins get RHP Alek Manoah, SS Arjun Nimmala (Blue Jays No. 3), IF/OF Addison Barger (Blue Jays No. 5)

It just keeps getting clearer that Manoah needs a change of scenery. In this case, he'd get a homecoming. He's from Homestead, which is only about a 45-minute drive from Miami.

He'd certainly be a project for the Marlins, however, and neither Nimmala nor Barger is a can't-miss type. They would be better off prying loose left-hander Ricky Tiedemann or infielder Orelvis Martinez, and it's hard to fathom Toronto letting either go.

Record: 16-19, 4th in NL Central

Current Center Fielder: TJ Friedl

Current Second Baseman: Jonathan India

Why the Fit Works

There was a time in the not-too-distant past when you could look at the Reds' offense and get very excited, but not anymore.

They're scoring a modest 4.4 runs per game, and it's frankly shocking how many weak spots they have in their lineup. Notably, they're getting just a .578 OPS out of center field and a .653 OPS out of second base.

Friedl's return should boost Cincinnati's fortunes in center, but the keystone is more of a conundrum. The Reds waiting on India to get going is a familiar story, unfortunately. The 27-year-old's returns have greatly diminished since he won the NL Rookie of the Year in 2021.

Chisholm is a potential upgrade in this respect, and let's also acknowledge that him and Elly De La Cruz could be a highly exciting and thus highly marketable pairing.

Trade Proposal: Cincinnati Reds get CF Jazz Chisholm Jr.; Miami Marlins get RHP Rhett Lowder (Reds No. 2, MLB No. 46), RHP Ty Floyd (Reds No. 10)

It's not ideal that the Reds' No. 1 (Noelvi Marte) and No. 3 prospects (Edwin Arroyo) are out because of a PED suspension and shoulder surgery, respectively.

So, Lowder is the best prospect the Reds can offer the Marlins right now, and trading him would be especially hard while he's working on 2.49 ERA for High-A Dayton.

Record: 21-16, T-2nd in NL Central

Current Center Fielder: Kyle Isbel

Current Second Baseman: Michael Massey

Why the Fit Works

The Royals are a new contender on the block, but that's not stopping them from thinking big.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, they were "in contact" with the Marlins about Arraez before he went to San Diego. Their interest was presumably in upgrading a second base spot that has posted a .681 OPS.

Though a trade for Chisholm could do the same trick for the Royals, it's really their outfield that needs a savior.

It's produced an MLB-low .563 OPS and just 0.0 rWAR. Chisholm could only help, and the net negative of adding his defense could be negated somewhat by having Isbel, a gifted defender, standing by on the bench.

Trade Proposal: Kansas City Royals get CF Jazz Chisholm Jr.; Miami Marlins get 3B Cayden Wallace (Royals No. 1), LHP Frank Mozzicato (Royals No. 2), C Blake Mitchell (Royals No. 3)

This might look like an overwhelmingly strong package for Chisholm at first, but keep in mind that A) Kansas City's system is relatively weak and B) none of these guys is a top-100 talent.

It might even be easier to imagine the Royals being the ones to say no here. These are their three best prospects, after all, and one of them (Mitchell) was a top-10 draft pick just last year.

Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant.