The previous Rafael Soriano-to-Miami Marlins rumors were believable, but it was unknown if they would ever amount to anything. Now that Steve Cishek is no longer the closer for the Miami Marlins, it's possible a deal will be reached soon.
Manager Mike Redmond announced on Tuesday that Cishek is out as the team's closer after the right-hander blew his fourth save of the season on Monday night. He served up a three-run walk-off home run to Los Angeles Dodgers' outfielder Scott Van Slyke and the Marlins lost 5-3.
"Shrek [Cishek] has done a tremendous job for us, but at the end of the day, it's about winning games," Redmond told Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.
"It's tough to win in the big leagues, and when you get late leads, you've got to be able to lock them down ... To have a lead in the ninth, you've got to be able to finish them."
Cishek maintained a 2.73 ERA and amassed 73 saves in 2013 and 2014 before starting this season 1-4 with a 10.32 ERA in just 13 games.
As a result of his struggles, it's been rumored the Marlins were talking to free-agent reliever Rafael Soriano. Frisaro tweeted last night that the Marlins were "very much engaged in discussions" with the right-hander, but he wasn't sure how talks would progress. Frisaro noted earlier on Tuesday that the club reached out to Soriano and that "there has been some dialogue between the team and agent Scott Boras."
Since 2009, Soriano is 15-16 with a 2.82 ERA and 191 saves. He went 4-1 with a 3.19 ERA and 32 saves in 64 games with the Washington Nationals last season. However, many teams perhaps backed off on the idea of signing him because he had a poor second half last year and he's said to have a poor clubhouse reputation. Additionally, his agent is Boras, so the negotiations are unlikely to be pleasant.
"The signing price likely won't come cheap, and whether a deal gets done will depend on if Miami believes Soriano is the right closer option for the price," adds Frisaro.
Redmond implied he will probably use a closer by committee system for the time being with a combination of A.J. Ramos, Bryan Morris and Mike Dunn, but it's unknown how long that will last.
We'll be keeping updates on the talks between the Marlins and Soriano.
UPDATE: Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports the Marlins are no longer considering Rafael Soriano.
