The Marlins have signed 35-year old righty reliever/starter Gary Glover to a minor league deal. Glover last pitched in the majors way back in 2008 with the Tigers and Rays. Glover has pitched in 263 games (47 starts) in his first 8 years in the majors and he is 29-26 with 3 saves, a 5.03 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. Glover will be a long shot to win the long man role in the bullpen for the Marlins in 2012.

The Florida Marlins have loaded up this winter as they prepare to start playing in their shiny new stadium in 2012. It all started with the signing of Jose Reyes, but they have added a lot more than just him. Most of the focus has been on tightening up the pitching staff both in the rotation and the bullpen, which they have done very successfully so far this winter. Here is a look at the new guys the Marlins have brought in so far this winter:

In the field: The Marlins hit a homer right off the bat when the signed shortstop Jose Reyes. He will really improve the defense at shortstop where Hanley Ramirez toted an iron glove. Ramirez isn’t happy about it, but he is starting to warm up about playing the hot corner. The Marlins have also added Aaron Rowand to compete for a backup job in 2012 and he is a Ozzie Guillen favorite from their days together in Chicago. Nick Green was also signed to compete for a backup infield job this spring.

On the mound: The Marlins really helped the starting rotation by signing lefty Mark Buehrle (another Guillen favorite) and trading for righty Carlos Zambrano. The Marlins now have one of the best starting rotations 1-5 in the major leagues. The Marlins also have signed closer Heath Bell to make late leads stand up and he’s really good at his job. Lefty starter/reliever Wade LeBlanc came over in a deal with the Padres and he will likely get a shot to be the Marlins’ long man in the pen in 2012. LeBlanc will have to beat out righty Chad Gaudin for the role of the long man in the pen this spring.

Overall: I think the Marlins have done an outstanding job of improving the team over the winter and they might not be done quite yet.

28-year old righty swinging outfielder Ryan Patterson to a minor league deal. Patterson played in 99 games in Independent ball last year and he was 141 of 434 (.325 avg, .928 OPS) with 95 runs scored, 20 homers, 90 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. He has now played in 731 games in his first 7 years in the minors and he is 852 of 2,973 (.287 avg, .817 OPS) with 466 runs scored, 120 homers, 504 RBIs and 52 stolen bases. Patterson will likely start the 2012 season in the minors for the Marlins.

The Marlins have designated 25-year old righty starting pitcher Elih Villanueva for assignment. Villanueva pitched in 1 game (1 start) for the Marlins last year and he was 0-1 with a 24.00 ERA and a 3.33 WHIP. That was his major league debut. Villanueva also pitched in 28 games (all starts) in AAA-ball for the Marlins last year and he was 7-11 with a 5.35 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. He has now pitched in 95 games (87 starts) in his first four years in the minors and he is 33-29 with a 3.54 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Villanueva might not make it through waivers.

UPDATE: (1/13/2012) - Elih Villanueva has cleared waivers and he has accepted an outright assignment to AAA.

The Marlins have acquired 30-year old righty starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano and $15 million bucks for 25-year old righty starting pitcher Chris Volstad. The Marlins will only be on the hook for $3 million of the $18 million bucks owed to Zambrano for 2012. Zambrano pitched in 24 games (all starts) for the Cubs last year and he was 9-7 with a 4.82 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. He has now pitched in 319 games (282 starts) in his first 11 years in the majors and he is 125-81 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Zambrano is also a really good hitter for a pitcher. He is 159 of 659 (.241 avg, .646 OPS) with 72 runs scored, 23 homers, 69 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He goes up to the plate hacking as he has whiffed 232 times in his major league career while only walking 10 times. Zambrano has been selected to the N.L. All-Star team three times in his career so far and he has also won 3 Silver Slugger Awards. Zambrano has always been a good starting pitcher, but his temper consistently got him into trouble in Chicago. Marlins’ manager Ozzie Guillen thinks he can handle him, and if he can…..the Marlins made a good deal here. Chris Volstad pitched in 29 games (all starts) for the Marlins last year and he was 5-13 with a 4.89 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. He pitched in 103 games (102 starts) in his four years with the Marlins and he was 32-39 with a 4.59 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. Volstad had been a disappointment since his very solid rookie year.