Veteran first baseman and free-agent Michael Morse signed with the Miami Marlins on Tuesday.
According to ESPN, Morse signed a two-year, $8 million contract. This year he made $6 million. He could earn more through performance bonuses. The deal hasn’t been finalized yet because there it is pending a physical.
It is expected that the Marlins will have Morse place first base. He will replace Garrett Jones. Jones had one year left on his contract. This past season Jones hit .246 and had 15 homeruns and 53 RBIs, Fox Sports notes. There is a possibility that Jones could go to an American League team.
Morse is from Broward County, Florida so signing with the Marlins means that he is coming back home. He has played for the Seattle Mariners, Washington Nationals, Baltimore Orioles, and the San Francisco Giants. This past season Morse hit .279 and had 16 homeruns and 61 RBIs and won the World Series with the Giants, according to the Associated Press. In the playoffs he hit .300 and had four RBIs in the World Series. He has a career batting average of .281 and has 99 career homeruns and 333 career RBIs.
The Marlins had pursued Adam LaRoche earlier this offseason but he signed with the Chicago White Sox. They also tried to make a deal with the Colorado Rockies for Justin Morneau, but were unable to make a deal. Morse is the latest addition to the Marlins this offseason. They resigned Giancarlo Stanton, and acquired second baseman Dee Gordon and right-handers Mat Latos and Dan Haren in trades.