8.50 pm: The Fathers also showed interest in Cooper, Mish tweets, who adds that “there is no shortage of teams” called the Marlins over him following the Duvall agreement. Swapping for Cooper would be the last notable off-season move by the Fathers, who aggressively tried to chase their division rivals Dodgers during the winter.
7:34 pm: The Marlins are adding Adam Duvall to its external field, and that pickup could push Garrett Cooper outside Miami. Cooper’s status with the team is in question now that Duvall is boarding, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Dodgers already asked about Cooper, Craig Mish from SportsGrid reports.
It is not known whether Miami would seriously consider negotiating with Cooper, but it may consider it redundant because of Duvall’s signature. Both players are right-handed hitters, able to line up in the outer corner, and although Cooper was primarily a first-baseman, the Marlins have another right holder there in Jesus Aguilar. If there is no universal DH by 2021, Cooper could end up elsewhere.
Cooper, who turned 30 on Christmas Day, has been a productive and accessible part of the Marlins offense for the past two years. He was certainly among his best hitter last season, in which he cut 0.283 / 0.353 / 0.500 (134 wRC +) with six home runs in 133 plate appearances. His history of mixing a respectable offensive (114 wRC + career) with defensive versatility, not to mention his remaining three years of team control and a $ 1.9 million salary in 2021, would make him a quality exchange chip for Miami.
The Dodgers are known for giving high value to players who can line up in various positions, so Cooper seems to fit in with the current World Series champions. He might be able to see time on first base with people like Max Muncy, Cody Bellinger and Edwin Rios, and would join Bellinger, Mookie Betts, Chris Taylor and AJ Pollock as veterans with outfield capabilities on the Dodgers list.