The Miami Marlins made a few moves at this year’s MLB trade deadline, and not all of them landed the same way.
Their deals sending Liam Hicks to the Tampa Bay Rays and Braxton Garrett to the Chicago Cubs were not big surprises. But the one that drew the sharpest reaction came in a quieter swap with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and it’s the kind of move that left Jim Bowden of The Athletic scratching his head.
Bowden called the Marlins’ trade of reliever Lake Bachar to Pittsburgh the “weirdest trade” of the deadline.
“Bachar was having a solid season for the Marlins, but they traded him for three players who all have less value than Bachar,” Bowden writes. “For a team that's still contending, it was a puzzling decision.”
Miami sent Bachar to the Pirates for right-handed pitcher Brandon Bidois, infielder Hyun Seung Lee, and outfielder Brian Sanchez.
The surprise isn’t that the Marlins were willing to sell. Their move involving Hicks already signaled a willingness to shake things up. What makes this one stand out is the return - and the fact that Bachar had been giving them reliable innings.
Bachar is 31 and under club control through the 2030 season. He has posted a 3.84 ERA in 2026 across 58.2 innings in 38 games, working as both a long reliever and a spot-starter.
His big league track record has been steady as well. Bachar’s ERA+ has never dropped below 106, including this season so far. That’s why the deal felt so strange: Miami moved a dependable reliever with years of control left for a package that Bowden viewed as lighter than what they gave up.
For Bowden, that was enough to make it the deadline’s most puzzling swap.
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