The Marlins have signed 32-year old lefty swinging 3B/1B Greg Dobbs to a minor league deal. Dobbs played in 88 games for the Phillies last season and he was 32 of 163 (.196 avg, .583 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 5 homers, 15 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 555 games in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 283 of 1,089 (.260 avg, .718 OPS) with 119 runs scored, 31 homers, 162 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. This was a nice low risk/decent reward pickup for the Marlins as Dobbs has been a solid pinch hitter so far in his career.

The Marlins went out and signed 30-year old righty swinging John Buck to take over as their starting catcher in 2011. Buck played in 118 games for the Blue Jays last season and he was 115 of 409 (.281 avg, .802 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 20 homers and 66 RBIs. The batting average, runs scored, homers and RBIs were all career highs for Buck, so the Marlins are taking a risk with him. He has a career average of .243 with a .722 OPS in his first 7 years in the majors (702 games), so the Marlins hope last season was not a mirage for Buck. Buck made 5 errors and he had 4 passed balls in 112 games behind the plate for the Blue Jays. He threw out 15 of 65 (23.1%) runners trying to steal against him last season and Jays’ pitchers had a 4.62 ERA with him behind the plate.

The Marlins would be ecstatic if 30-year old lefty swinging John Baker is ready to start the 2011 season on time. He is recovering from Tommy John Surgery so it might be a little while before he can let a throw rip. Baker played in 23 games for the Marlins last season and he was 17 of 78 (.218 avg, .589 OPS) with 7 runs scored and 6 RBIs. Baker has a .273 avg with a .763 OPS in his first three years in the majors (196 games) so the Marlins expect his bat to rebound in 2011 as long as he is healthy. Baker had 2 errors and 1 passed ball in 21 games behind the plate last season and that just isn’t good enough to get the job done. He threw out 5 of 28 (17.9%) runners trying to steal on him last season and Marlins’ pitchers had a 4.04 ERA with him behind the plate.

28-year old righty swinging Brad Davis will compete with Brett Hayes for the #2 catching job in 2011 for the Marlins if Baker isn’t ready to go. Davis played in 33 games for the Marlins last season and he was 23 of 109 (.211 avg, .647 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 3 homers, 16 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Despite showing some power, Davis often looked overmatched at the plate as he whiffed 37 times for the Marlins. Davis made 4 errors and he had 1 passed ball in only 32 games behind the plate and that’s not too impressive. Davis threw out 7 of 26 (26.9%) runners trying to steal against them and Marlins’ pitchers had a 3.92 ERA with him behind the plate.

26-year old righty swinging Brett Hayes played in 26 games for the Marlins last season in which he was 16 of 77 (.208 avg, .635 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 homers and 6 RBIs. Hayes also whiffed 26 times last season as he looked like he had a hole in his bat at times. Hayes didn’t make any errors and he had 1 passed ball in 24 games for the Marlins last season. He threw out 5 of 19 (26.3%) runners trying to steal against him last season and Marlins’ pitchers had a 4.01 ERA with him behind the plate. Hayes is probably the best defensive catcher the Marlins have but he’s also the worst hitter.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MARLINS CATCHERS IN 2011: C

The Florida Marlins have signed 29-year old righty starting pitcher Shawn Hill to a minor league deal. Hill pitched in 4 games (all starts) for the Blue Jays last season and he was 1-2 with a 2.61 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. He has now pitched in 44 games (all starts) in parts of six years in the majors and he is 9-18 with a 4.74 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. Hill will get a chance to compete for the #5 starter job this spring and I really like this signing for the Marlins. Hill has been held back by injuries to this point in his career but he has the stuff to be a successful starter in the show.

The Marlins have signed 27-year old lefty swinging outfielder Alex Romero. Romero played in 61 games in AA+AAA-ball last season and he was 57 of 223 (.256 avg, .660 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 2 homers, 21 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. He last played in the majors in 2009 with the D-Backs. Romero has played in 144 games in parts of two years in the majors and he is 67 of 280 (.239 avg, .619 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 2 homers, 30 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Romero will get a shot this spring to make the Marlins off the bench in 2011.

The Marlins have signed 31-year old righty swinging outfielder Jorge Padilla to a minor league deal. Padilla played in 98 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 111 of 345 (.322 avg, .824 OPS) with 58 runs scored, 6 homers, 49 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. His only major league experience came in 2009 with the Nationals. Padilla played in 29 games in 2009 and he was 3 of 25 (.120 avg, .274 OPS) with 3 runs scored and 8 whiffs. Padilla will get a shot to make the Marlins as a backup outfielder this spring, but he will be a longshot.