Marlins nab Neidert in trade with Mariners

Jerry DiPoto was wheeling and dealing again Thursday.
The Mariners general manager sent Seattle's second-ranked prospectNick Neidert to the Miami Marlins in exchange for two-time All-Star infielder Dee Gordon and $1 million in international slot money. Seattle's No. 7 prospect Chris Torres and right-hander Robert Dugger also headed to Miami in the swap.

"We know where we're at; we need to get better," Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said. "We need to add depth. We need to do things to give us an opportunity to build an organization we feel can win consistently. In this deal, we took a very good player, an All-Star-caliber player, in Dee Gordon and were able to add three very talented pieces to our Minor League system."
Neidert started the season with Class A Advanced Modesto, where he went 10-3 with a 2.76 ERA, 17 walks and 109 strikeouts in 104 1/3 innings over 19 starts in the hitter-friendly California League. The 2015 second-round pick struggled somewhat in his final six outings after he was called up to Double-A Arkansas, finishing 1-3 with a 6.56 ERA over 23 1/3 frames in the Texas League.
Neidert was ranked as Seattle's top pitching prospect by MLB.com. The 21-year-old received a plus grade of 60 on MLB Pipeline's 20-80 scouting scale for his changeup, as well as grades of 55 for fastball and command. Scouts see him as a potential No. 3 starter in the big leagues.

Torres was signed by the Mariners as an international free agent in 2014 and spent nearly all of this season with Class A Short Season Everett. Lauded by scouts for his speed and fielding ability, the 19-year-old shortstop batted .238 with six home runs, six triples, eight doubles, 22 RBIs and 13 steals in 48 games with the AquaSox.
Dugger, an 18th-round pick in the 2016 Draft, worked as both a starter and reliever in the Minors this year. The 22-year-old hurler finished 6-6 with a 2.75 ERA, 32 walks and 116 strikeouts over 117 2/3 innings across 31 appearances -- 18 starts -- between Class A Clinton and Modesto. He also converted two of three save opportunities while holding opponents to a .233 average.

Gordon has spent the past three seasons with the Marlins after breaking into the big leagues with the Dodgers in 2011. The 29-year-old appeared in a career-high 158 games this season, hitting .308 with two homers, 33 RBIs and a Major League-best 60 stolen bases. The Florida native earned All-Star nods in 2014 with Los Angeles and 2015 with Miami. 
"This offseason has been an interesting one," Hill said. "There's obviously been a lot of conversations on a lot of our players. Dee is a talented player. We know what he can do offensively. We know what he can do defensively. It just worked out that we were able to find the right fit with Seattle."
The Mariners have said they plan to deploy the career infielder in the outfield. Gordon has never appeared at the position, logging 523 games at second base and 163 at shortstop in his big league career.