As the Winter Meetings inched closer, the Miami Marlins were said to have a desire to reach a resolution on the Giancarlo Stanton trade front prior to the annual event beginning. That appeared a plausible scenario as the Marlins agreed to trades with the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals.
Of course, that was contingent on Stanton waiving his full no-trade clause to join either team. On Friday, the Cardinals and Giants were informed by the 2017 National League MVP he would not approve a deal.
So it left the Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees as the final four teams Stanton reportedly was willing to join. The Dodgers were long considered somewhat of a favorite due to being his hometown team.
However, it was the Yankees who quickly began to emerge as a threat to trade for Stanton. That evolved to a deal all but being final, according to Joel Sherman of The New York Post:
Source: Stanton from #Marlins to #Yankees is “virtually done.” Close to finish line. Hear #Marlins will get at least Starlin Castro plus good but not top prospects if completed. Again physical review can still be part of this so nothing final, but close.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) December 9, 2017
A previous report indicated the Yankees were attempting to unload Jacoby Ellsbury, which the Marlins were resistant to. Similarly, Miami was said to not be interested in taking Adrian Gonzalez from the Dodgers in a potential trade.
With the Marlins on the verge of acquiring Starlin Castro and Yankees prospects, the return trumps the reported Giants’ package that was headlined by Joe Panik. The Cardinals reportedly were willing to part with at least one of their top prospects in a trade for Stanton.
In addition to Marlins CEO Derek Jeter having ties to the Yankees, so too does Miami vice president of player development and scouting Gary Denbo. He spent the past three seasons as the Yankees’ vice president of player development.
