5:35 p.m. EST update: Marlins president David Samson said there’s no truth to this at all; that Ramirez didn’t ask for his contract to be restructured and that there will be no trade.
4:30 p.m. EST update: Andy Mota, Ramirez’s agent, told the Miami Herald’s Clark Spencer that Olney was way off with his report. He says Ramirez did not ask for a restructured contract and that the team is not exploring trades. “Not even close,” Mota said.
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A source tells ESPN’s Buster Olney that the Marlins will look to trade Hanley Ramirez after the disgruntled infielder requested a restructured deal from the team.
Ramirez is upset about being asked to move to third base from shortstop to make room for Jose Reyes, but he doesn’t have a leg to stand on here. He’s already guaranteed $46.5 million over the next three years, and his play the last two seasons certainly doesn’t warrant any new considerations. Ramirez looked like he’d be a perennial MVP candidate after an awesome three-year run in his mid-20s, but his OPS has dropped from .954 to .853 to .712 since 2009.
Olney speculates that the Marlins, knowing that they would shed Ramirez’s salary, could sign Prince Fielder and either C.J. Wilson or Mark Buehrle in the next few days. They’ve already made a six-year offer to Wilson and a four-year proposal to Buehrle.
The Red Sox and Tigers are two of the teams that could be interested in taking on Ramirez’s contract.
