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After the November fire sale trade with Toronto, Miami made one thing clear: Yunel Escobar was not the Marlins' shortstop of the future.
Once the deal was complete, the Marlins made it known that they were actively trying to trade Escobar. One of the primary reasons was because of the acquisition of Adeiny Hechavarria, the shortstop prospect who was also sent to Miami in the trade with the Blue Jays.
It took time, but eventually the Tampa Bay Rays called and proposed a deal that was accepted. Second base prospect Derek Dietrich would be sent to Miami in exchange for Escobar.
Although Miami's group of scouts were fond of Dietrich, he wasn't thought to be the second baseman of the future. He wasn't expected to make his major league debut in May, either.
Due to the fact that both Donovan Solano and Chris Valaika were injured, Dietrich made his debut on May 8. Since then, he has been nothing short of productive for Miami.
"He's done a really nice job," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said in an interview with MLB.com. "I think all of us, when he came up, we weren't sure just what to expect both offensively and defensively. He's proved he can play second base, and play it well."
Dietrich has reached base in all of the 14 games he had played in as of Saturday and is batting .250 with seven runs batted in. His on base percentage is over .300 at .304. Before Solano went on the disabled list, his OBP was .333.
Redmond is so impressed by Dietrich that he has consistently placed him in the three spot of the lineup. He can provide power, evident by his three home runs over just the 14 game span.
Defensively, Dietrich has shown that he has the range to be an everyday second baseman. He has yet to make an error in any of his starts in comparison to the six Solano made in just over 30 starts before going on the disabled list.
Once Giancarlo Stanton and Logan Morrison return in June, Dietrich may not find himself batting third. However, if he continues to play well, Solano may become the team's utility infielder.
"[Dietrich's] done a really nice job," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "I think all of us, when he came up, we weren't sure just what to expect both offensively and defensively. He's proved he can play second base, and play it well."