Marlins Activate Edward Cabrera From 60-Day IL

The Marlins announced this morning that they’ve activated right-hander Edward Cabrera from the 60-day injured list ahead of his start against the White Sox this afternoon. To make room for Cabrera on the club’s active and 40-man rosters, Miami has designated right-hander Matt Andriese for assignment.

Cabrera, 26, was placed on the injured list in early May due to a shoulder impingement. It was the righty’s second trip to the IL of the year due to the issue, as he opened the season on the shelf but was activated in mid-April. The lingering shoulder woes may have contributed to the righty’s struggles on the mound across five starts this year, as he posted a 7.17 ERA (38% worse than league average by ERA+) across five starts despite a decent 4.20 FIP and an impressive 32% strikeout rate. Prior to his injury-marred 2024 campaign, Cabrera appeared to be an exciting up-and-coming rotation piece for the Marlins in recent years. The righty made 36 appearances (34 starts) for Miami between 2022 and 2023, and in those starts impressed with a 3.73 ERA and 4.50 FIP in 171 1/3 innings of work. While he struck out a strong 26.6% of batters faced during that time, his work also featured notable struggles with control as the righty walked 13.7% of batters faced during that time, including 15.2% of opponents last year.

Those control problems haven’t stopped Cabrera from commanding plenty of interest on the trade market when healthy, and it’s certainly possible that the righty could continue to attract the attention of buyers ahead of the trade deadline later this month if he can show that his injury woes are behind him in the coming weeks. The righty’s youth and length of team control as a player who won’t become a free agent until after the 2028 campaign make him an unusual trade candidate, but the Marlins have made clear that they have virtually no untouchable players as they look to rebuild under new president of baseball operations Peter Bendix.

That same youth and team control makes it easy to understand why teams would have interest in Cabrera, even with the control and injury concerns. Cabrera’s minimum salary this year and length of team control could make him a plausible trade target even for clubs just coming out of their own rebuilds or teams operating under tight budget restrictions. The Pirates, Reds, Brewers, and Guardians are among the teams that fit one or both of those descriptions and could benefit from the addition of a starting pitcher this summer, with Pittsburgh even having been connected to Cabrera this past winter. Of course, the right-hander would have to prove himself healthy and effective before he becomes a realistic trade candidate. He’ll get a relatively soft landing as he returns from the IL and attempts to do so, with his first start back coming against the White Sox at home later this afternoon.

As for Andriese, the 34-year-old journeyman was selected to the roster earlier this week. The righty has a 6.00 ERA across six innings of work with the Marlins this year, and the club will now have one week to either work out a trade involving the righty or attempt to pass him through waivers. If he clears waivers, Miami could outright him to the minors as non-roster depth, although Andriese would have the right to reject such an assignment in favor of free agency. The veteran has pitched in parts of eight majors league seasons and also spent the 2022 campaign pitching in Japan of Nippon Professional Baseball’s Yoimuri Giants. In 221 career games in the big leagues, Andriese has posted a 4.65 ERA and 4.23 FIP in 515 innings of work.