Diamondbacks get: LHP A.J. Puk
Marlins get: INF Deyvison De Los Santos, OF Andrew Pintar
Tim Britton: It’s possible the Marlins had three of the five or six best left-handed options on the trade market in Puk, Tanner Scott and Andrew Nardi. While the ill-fated move to the rotation drags down Puk’s overall numbers this year, his relief numbers since the start of last season are strong: a 3.31 ERA and 31.2 percent strikeout rate. He comes with two more years of team control, meaning he can be a central figure late in games for a while for Arizona — in the mix with Kevin Ginkel to replace impending free agent Paul Sewald. It’s a move that helps the present and future.
The years of team control aren’t as valuable in a reliever as they are at other positions, and moving Puk and other members of their surprisingly strong bullpen makes sense for the Marlins. For a team that needs offense now and forever, De Los Santos has a real chance to mash. If he gets to his power, Pintar could do so at a premium position.
Marlins: B
Diamondbacks: A-
Chad Jennings: When you enter that rough-and-tumble world of trade grading, it’s with the dream of one day evaluating the swap of a left-handed reliever for a former Rule 5 pick. Keep the kids away from this trade deadline. It’s red hot!
But honestly, this deal is more interesting than its surface-level descriptions. Puk had terrific under-the-hood metrics last year — lots of big red bars on his Baseball Savant page — and he’s been excellent this season since returning in mid-May from a shoulder issue (he opened the year in the rotation, which didn’t work at all). Lefties have never hit Puk much, and that’s big for the Diamondbacks, who currently have only one left-handed reliever in Joe Mantiply. Arizona solves one short-term issue and gets to keep Puk under control for two more seasons. That control cost them De Los Santos, who played in the Futures Game, has huge power, and spent spring training as a Rule 5 pick under the tutelage of José Ramírez and the Cleveland Guardians before being returned to Arizona. He could help the Marlins almost immediately, while Pintar has the potential to join him eventually at one position or another up the middle.
Marlins: B
Diamondbacks: B+
Britt Ghiroli: While Marlins closer Tanner Scott has dominated trade rumors, Puk is another solid lefty option whose reputation was perhaps most hurt by a terrible start to the season as a starter. Puk as a reliever, though, has been excellent, he’s throwing harder, his walk-to-strikeout ratio is among the best in baseball and he has seemingly gotten better as the season has progressed, with nine scoreless outings in July. Better still, Puk is under team control through 2026. He makes Arizona’s bullpen better now and figures to be part of the later innings for the next few seasons, giving them a much-needed left-on-left weapon.
The Marlins began the process of rebuilding months ago and figure to be one of the most active sellers at this year’s deadline. For the Marlins to come away with a controllable, dominant left-handed reliever without giving up one of their top-tier prospects is a win. There is upside in De Los Santos, who was Cleveland’s Rule 5 pick who didn’t stick and returned to the Diamondbacks this spring, flashing great power but lacking plate discipline. Pintar is a fringy top-30 guy. Like all prospects, the pair are lottery tickets and the Marlins will collect as many as possible as they enter another rebuild, hoping they get lucky on a few.
Marlins: B-
Diamondbacks: A
(Photo: Jess Rapfogel / Getty Images)
