Marlins' first multi-year free agent deal since Jeter took office

Corey Dickerson (Topps A&J 2018)

Derek Jeter became the Marlins’ CEO after completing the deal in 2017. Jeter has his idea to build the team, however the Marlins had two disappointing seasons in 2018 and 2019, ranked 5th in NL East for 2 consecutive seasons and in total only won 120 games in 2 years. In January 2020, Marlins signed free agent Corey Dickerson, who was on the top 50 free agents list, a 2-year contract. The contract is the first multi-year free agent deal under the new Marlins ownership. Corey Dickerson batted 7th in the 2017 All-Star game starting lineup, the game was played in the Marlins Park. He was an all-star in 2017 and also won the gold glove in 2018. Is signing Dickerson a good deal? 

Looking back at the last 3 seasons (2017-2019), Corey Dickerson hit .293/.330/.499. His batting average ranked 8th in 2018 and in the last 3 seasons, his BA was on the top 20. He’s one of the great hitters in the league.

Rank	Player	BA (2017-2019)
1	Jose Altuve	.321
2	J.D. Martinez	.313
3	Charlie Blackmon	.312
#
20	Corey Dickerson	.293
21	Xander Bogaerts	.291
22	Ketel Marte	.290

Dickerson’s wRC+ was 127 in 2019. In the last 3 seasons, his wRC+ was 118 and was higher than Machado and Avisail Garicia, an outfielder that the Marlins showed interest in.

Rank	Player	wRC+ (2017-2019)
1	Mike Trout	184
2	J.D. Martinez	158
3	Aaron Judge	157
#
62	Josh Bell	118
63	Eric Thames	118
64	Khris Davis	118
65	Corey Dickerson	118
66	Manny Machado	117
67	Avisail Garcia	117
68	Yasmani Grandal	117

Meanwhile, Corey Dickerson had 161 extra base hits, ranking 54th. However, he only played 363 games, the same as Rhys Hoskins. If injury doesn’t bother him, he will hit with power in the Marlins.

Rank	Player	XBH	Games (2017-2019)
1	Nolan Arenado	239	470
2	Francisco Lindor	237	460
3	Charlie Blackmon	234	455
#
51	Rhys Hoskins	164	363
52	Marcell Ozuna	163	437
53	Kyle Seager	161	415
54	Corey Dickerson	161	363
55	Brian Dozier	161	438
56	Eric Hosmer	161	479
57	Joey Votto	161	449
58	Edwin Encarnacion	160	403
59	Kyle Schwarber	160	421

Dickerson didn’t walk much, however, he had a relatively low strikeout rate in the last 2 seasons(Min PA:800).

Rank	Player	K% (2018-2019)
1	Andrelton Simmons	7.9%
2	Joe Panik	8.7%
3	Michael Brantley	9.9%
#
49	Corey Dickerson	16.7%
50	Manny Machado	16.9%
51	Adam Jones	17%
52	Starling Marte	17%

Corey Dickerson missed a few months in 2019 due to injuries. Nonetheless, looking at fielding percentage between 2017 and 2018, Dickerson’s Fielding Percentage was at the top 5, only 2 errors and won the gold glove in 2018.

Rank	Player	FP (2017-2018)
1	Jon Jay	1.000
2	Mike Trout	.998
3	George Springer	.996
4	A.J. Pollock	.996
5	Corey Dickerson	.996
6	Max Kepler	.995
7	Nick Markakis	.995
8	Michael Brantley	.995

In addition, Dickerson’s UZR was 11, which ranked 13th between 2017 and 2018. In different defensive stats, Dickerson seems to be comfortable in left field.

Rank	Player	UZR (2017-2018)
1	Mookie Betts	38.2
2	Alex Gordon	21.3
3	Giancarlo Stanton	15.5
4.	Brett Gardner	15.5
#
12	Kole Calhoun	11.3
13	Corey Dickerson	11.0
14	Ender Inciarte	10.1
15	Starling Marte	9.4
16	Tommy Pham	9.3

Dickerson could be very useful for the Marlins. His 127 wRC+ was top among free agent outfielders last year. He didn’t draw too many walks, but his strikeout rate was relatively low. Meanwhile, he can also hit with some power as we saw he had 161 extra base hits in the last 3 seasons. Besides, he seems to be more comfortable in the left field since he won the gold glove in 2018. As such, Dickerson could be the core of the Marlins lineup and also contribute to the Marlins defense in the left field.