Blowing in the Wind 2058.9: Jacksonville Active At Trade Deadline, Moves Two

[aaronweiner]

The Jacksonville Hurricanes sent two players out of town this week. Juan Marroquin got his wish to be traded to a contender, swapped to Charlotte for an outfield prospect. And Luis Gonzales, shortly after being added to the trade block, was traded to Valencia for relief pitcher Luke Sneddon.

"We had a lot of guys who were asking out, and tops on that list were Marroquin and Gonzales," said Weiner. "It's understandable that both players would choose to seek greener pastures. We respect both players' wishes and wish them well."

Marroquin's desire to leave Jacksonville was a fairly high-profile situation, as the veteran righty was a near certainty to opt out of the last two years of his deal with the Hurricanes. The team had been trying to move him, per his request, since nearly the beginning of the season.

"It'll be great to pitch for a contender," said Marroquin. "I've been a stalwart player for Jacksonville for the last three years, and I've gotten used to pitching in October."

Gonzales, one of the league's best defensive catchers, is an odd choice to be traded, as he had another year of cost control and won't represent much savings for the Hurricanes. However, he had recently lost his full-time job to Roy O'Donnell, who since coming up from the minor leagues has been one of the best hitting catchers in the BBA. There were insider reports that Weiner never warmed to the veteran backstop, who was the last first round selection of the previous regime before Weiner took over as GM.

"Baseball is a business, and that's the way things go sometimes," said Gonzales. "I'm sure that Valencia will welcome me with open arms and I hope to be there a long time."

Additionally, Jacksonville's return on the catcher is likely to be helpful to the team long-term. Seddon, a classical late bloomer, is experiencing the most success he's had in the major leagues at age 28, and still has three years left of cost control. With Jacksonville likely to lose as many as four members of their bullpen this offseason, they will have to remake the pen.

"I've been assured that I'll have a big role in the pen here," said Seddon. "It's all I could really have asked for in a trade, and it's kind of amazing to be traded for a former first round pick. I'll try to do my best here."

With these two moves, it is likely that Jacksonville is done moving, unless they can find a taker for top righty platoon bat Natsume Kondo. Jacksonville called up former backup catcher Johan Jorgensson in response to the moves, and will activate Hayden Bennion (5-6, 4.43 ERA) from the IL to take Marroquin's spot in the rotation.