Marlins deal Lee to Cubs
The breakup of the Florida Marlins has begun.
The World Series champions traded first baseman Derrek Lee to the Chicago Cubs yesterday in a cost-cutting measure, getting Hee Seop Choi and a minor leaguer to be named.
More deals could follow.
"There were two main reasons for the move. One is, obviously, we need to achieve our goal of operating within our payroll," Marlins general manager Larry Beinfest said. "Two, we want to make sure we have the appropriate allocations to retain our core pitching."
The Marlins insist their offseason changes won't be as drastic as the ones after they won their first World Series title in 1997. That team wasn't just broken up, it was blown up, with the best pieces stripped and sold to the highest bidder like so many spare parts.
Lee hit .271 with 31 homers, 92 RBIs, and 21 steals last season and had a slugging percentage of .508. He has 20 homers in each of his last four seasons and 40 steals over the last two years -- the most by any first baseman in the majors. On the opening day roster for the first time this year, Choi was hitting .244 with seven homers and 22 RBIs when he had a scary collision with Kerry Wood June 7. Choi was on the disabled list for three weeks with a concussion, and struggled to regain his hitting stroke when he returned.
Smoltz stays in 'pen
John Smoltz will remain in the Atlanta Braves' bullpen instead of returning to the starting rotation. Smoltz, who had elbow surgery in October and can't throw until January, had expressed interest in returning to his former role as a starter . . . Gary Sheffield had an informal meeting with the New York Yankees, who have expressed interest in signing the free agent outfielder. Sheffield met with several Yankees officials, including team president Randy Levine and general manager Brian Cashman, at the Buccaneers' game against the New York Giants Monday night in Tampa, Fla. . . . Former Indians manager Mike Hargrove was hired by Cleveland as a senior adviser to the team's baseball operations department.
