Report: Miami Marlins Agree to Trade With AL Playoff Contender

The Miami Marlins have gotten off to an early start ahead of the MLB trade deadline, as they have reportedly agreed to a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Christian De Nicola of MLB.com has revealed that the Marlins will be trading catcher Nick Fortes to the Rays in exchange for outfield prospect Matthew Etzel.

With Miami now having catchers Agustin Ramirez and Liam Hicks on the roster, there wasn't much room for Fortes anymore, even if Ramirez has spent plenty of team as the Marlins' designated hitter.

Fortes reached the big leagues with Miami back in 2021 and has always been a strong defensive backstop, although he has never offered much in the way of offense. He is slashing .240/.288/.349 with two home runs and 10 RBI over 141 plate appearances this season and owns a lifetime slash line of .225/.277/.344. His best year came in 2022, when he registered a .696 OPS.

Etzel is a 23-year-old prospect who had been playing for Tampa Bay's Double-A affiliate. In 56 games this season, he is slashing .230/.360/.347 with five homers and 34 RBI across 239 trips to the dish.

The University of Southern Mississippi product was originally selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 10th round of the 2023 MLB Draft. The Orioles dealt him to the Rays last season in a deal that landed them pitcher Zach Eflin.

Etzel owns a career .267/.365/.418 slash line on the minor-league level and stole 45 bases back in 2024, so the Marlins may have come up with quite a steal here.