He reignited playoff hopes and won a batting title. Can this offensive spark plug return to Miami and rekindle their championship dreams?
Miami Marlins fans haven't had a lot to cheer about in the franchise's 33-year history.
Initially, it didn't seem that way.
The Marlins won a World Series less than five years after playing their first game, and it seemed as though this franchise was destined to have good things happen to it.
Then, Miami shed many key players who made that World Series possible, lost 108 games the next year and had four more losing seasons after that, making it look like 1997 was an outlier. In 2003, Miami again won the World Series, making it two in the team's first 11 seasons. Again, it looked like luck was on the Marlins' side.
This time, the Marlins kept most of their roster intact for the next season.
But for one reason or another, Miami didn't return to the playoffs until 2020-- when COVID limited the season to 60 games.
In January 2023, the small-market Marlins did something they rarely do -- trade for the defending batting champion.
Miami acquired Luis Arráez from the Minnesota Twins. Arráez was coming off a year in which he led the American League with a .316 clip.
With the Marlins, he was even better, hitting .354 -- the highest mark in the National League since Chipper Jones hit .364 in 2008 in Atlanta -- and became the third player in league history to win a batting title in both leagues.
With Arráez's help, the Marlins made it back to the playoffs.
But like most good things with this franchise, it didn't last. The Marlins lost 100 games in 2024 and traded Arráez to the San Diego Padres that May.
In San Diego, Arráez has continued to hit: .318 in 2024, winning another batting title, and .292 last season. This year, he's a free agent for the first time in his career.
Miami could use more experience (the average age of its projected lineup is 26; Arráez will be 29 in April) and runs (Miami finished 16th in the league in scoring last year), and Arráez can help with both.
Since leaving Miami, Arráez's position has changed from second base to first, and considering Miami's current projected first baseman, Connor Norby, has yet to play a full season, Miami could use a first baseman.
Arráez is old enough to provide wisdom to a young team, but still a much younger option than, say, Paul Goldschmidt, who is on the market at 38.
Top first-base options such as Pete Alonso, Josh Naylor and Ryan O'Hearn are gone, so if Miami wants to upgrade at first, they have to look at secondary options, and Arráez might be a good one.
But he might not be, either.
Arráez can hit for a high average, but aside from that, his abilities are limited.
He isn't a great defender, which is why the Padres moved him from second base to first.
He doesn't hit for power, as evidenced by his having 36 career home runs in seven big-league seasons.
Arráez doesn't take a lot of walks, with his on-base percentage only .393 the year he hit .353 with the Marlins.
All of this might be acceptable if Arráez could still consistently hit above .300, but here's how Arráez's past three seasons have gone.
2023: .353 batting average
2024: .314
2025: .292
If this trend keeps up, Arráez will never win another batting title.
But although Arráez comes with flaws, Marlins fans should ask this question: Is he a better option for 2026 than Norby?
It's hard to argue that he isn't, and for that reason, the Marlins would be wise to pursue a reunion.
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