Juan Carlos Oviedo--formerly known as Leo Nunez--has avoided arbitration with the Marlins with a one-year, $6 million deal.
Oviedo earned $3.65 million last season while saving 36 games, so he would have been in line for a sizable raise via arbitration.
However, paying $6 million for a setup man is awfully expensive, particularly since the Marlins gave new closer Heath Bell a three-year, $27 million deal.
When the Marlins decided to tender a contract to Oviedo back in mid-December it seemed like an odd move in light of the Bell signing and the assumption was that they felt confident about being able to trade him to a team looking for a closer.
Of course, the closer market has been so buyer-friendly this offseason that far superior guys like Ryan Madson are stuck taking one-year deals, so it’s hard to imagine much interest in Oviedo for $6 million. He threw 64 innings with a 4.06 ERA and 55/21 K/BB ratio last season, giving him a 4.34 ERA in 357 career innings at age 30.