Should Marlins target Yoán Moncada in free agency?

[Kevin Barral]

The veteran infielder should be in the Marlins' price range and he might benefit from better health and a change of scenery.

Once viewed as a can't-miss prospect, Cuban infielder Yoán Moncada is about to become a free agent for the first time. In parts of nine MLB seasons, he had a 106 OPS+ overall and maxed out at a 140 OPS+ in 2019, but injuries have disrupted his career since then. Limited to 12 games this season, it's a lock that the Chicago White Sox will decline his $25M club option.

Likely to be available for a low-dollar amount, how would he fit with the Miami Marlins in 2025?

 

Yoán Moncada overview

* Previous teams: Boston Red Sox (2016) and Chicago White Sox (2017-24)

* MLB career: .254/.331/.424/.756 and 13.9 fWAR in 747 games

* 2024 season: .275/.356/.400/.756 and 0.3 fWAR in 12 games

* Entering age-30 season in 2025

 

 

More factors to consider

Injury history: While with the White Sox, Moncada had 10 separate stints on the IL. He missed time with hamstring, shin, back and oblique issues, most recently dealing with a serious left adductor strain. However, he is currently healthy and scheduled to play for his native Cuba in the Premier12 baseball tournament in November.

High upside: When Moncada was only 24 years old in 2019, he slashed .315/.367/.548/.915 with 25 home runs, 79 RBI and a 140 OPS+. Third base was a stacked position in the American League, otherwise he would have been an All-Star that season. Even since then, he has produced above-average exit velocities that show there is still the potential for good power. His skill set could be valuable to the Marlins who ranked 27th among MLB teams in home runs and runs scored in 2024.

Swing-and-miss issues: One of the negatives with Moncada is his strikeout percentage. For his career, the switch-hitter has posted a 29.2 K%, including 31.7% from the right side of the plate. In 2018, Moncada led Major League Baseball with 217 strikeouts.

Short-term commitment: Somebody in Moncada's position will be searching for a one-year deal to re-establish himself. The Marlins have been burned in recent offseasons by signing the wrong free agents to multi-year deals, but the risk would be lower in this case.

Defensive position: Moncada has been a full-time third baseman over the last six seasons. What would that mean for Connor Norby, who the Marlins tried to convert to third base after acquiring him at the trade deadline? Norby struggled a lot at third in a small sample, according to both defensive runs saved and outs above average. The Marlins could move Norby to left field instead (where he has some minor league experience), allowing Moncada to take over 3B, with Norby available to return to the infield if Moncada suffers another injury. 

 

Alternatives to Yoán Moncada

Unless the Marlins believe strongly in Moncada's bounce-back potential, they could simply put trust in the infielders who are already within the organization. Maybe Norby gets another audition at third base to begin the 2025 season, or they'll have Deyvison De Los Santos, Jonah Bride, Javier Sanoja and Vidal Bruján compete for playing time.

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[One Regend]

We don't have a third baseman. At all. Norby isn't a third baseman. Neither is De Los Santos. And Otto Lopez is a bench player at best who's likely to play SS instead.

Yoan Moncada wouldn't be a bad signing. He's a low risk signing, and if we accidently'd elite production out of him, we can flip him at the deadline to acquire more prospects. We reached rock bottom in 2024, so we can't get that much lower than we did.

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

Give the roster spots and the ABs to the players we already have. Moncada is another Anderson, and not just because he comes from the ChiSox. An overpriced guy on the downturn with a low motivation quotient, it appears to me. I simply cannot see an upside to bringing this guy in. 

[One Regend]

15 hours ago, THOMAS JOSEPH said:

Give the roster spots and the ABs to the players we already have. Moncada is another Anderson, and not just because he comes from the ChiSox. An overpriced guy on the downturn with a low motivation quotient, it appears to me. I simply cannot see an upside to bringing this guy in. 

Who are we playing at 3rd base?

Jake Burger is third baseman in name-only. Connor Norby was a disaster at 3rd base. De Los Santos is a first baseman period. And playing Otto Lopez at 3rd Base means you're playing Xavier Edwards at Shortstop which is just as terrible. What do you think are our internal options at 3rd base? Because I sure don't see them.

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

On 10/26/2024 at 5:50 AM, One Regend said:

Who are we playing at 3rd base?

Jake Burger is third baseman in name-only. Connor Norby was a disaster at 3rd base. De Los Santos is a first baseman period. And playing Otto Lopez at 3rd Base means you're playing Xavier Edwards at Shortstop which is just as terrible. What do you think are our internal options at 3rd base? Because I sure don't see them.

I think Norby is the lock for the job and will be fine defensively. In any case, his bat outweighs any minimally subpar defense. He wasn't bad jumping into the new position. Edwards at short and Lopez at second keeps everyone in the lineup.