The Marlins made franchise history on Tuesday when they traded Cameron Maybin to the Seattle Mariners. For the first time ever, they acquired international bonus pool money as part of a trade — $250,000 was the reported amount — rather than give some of it up, which had been their habit.
It was a significant development in a couple of respects.
One, it put the Marlins in an even stronger position to make a competitive run at Cuban outfielder Victor Victor Mesa (yes, his name contains two “Victors”). Mesa is considered by many to be the top amateur talent internationally, and the Marlins are believed to be one of the frontrunners to sign the young star once he is declared eligible by Major League Baseball and becomes a free agent.