What happens when your franchise bets everything on one arm, and that arm starts to falter? For the Miami Marlins, the future they once envisioned is now clouded in doubt. Once seen as the cornerstone of a rebuild, one of their aces’ inconsistent form might force even the most interested suitors like the Yankees and the Dodgers to second-guess. Now, the former Marlins’ president has sounded the alarm with a brutally honest reality check.

Yes, the spotlight is on none other than Marlins 2022 NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara. It has been a tough season for him as he returned after missing last year due to an elbow injury. Ever since his Tommy John surgery, he hasn’t been the same, and it’s evident. Despite that, the 29-year-old has been the subject of much trade discussion with both Yankees and Dodgers being reportedly interested in him. However, the former Marlins’ president David Samson is of the view that Alcantara’s form is not good enough for the interested parties to break the bank for him.

Samson didn’t sugarcoat his words on his show – Nothing Personal with David Samson. “He is pitching like the worst pitcher in Major League Baseball,” he said about Alcantara. Samson also predicted that the Marlins wouldn’t want to take any chances.

“There’s going to be a stalemate between what the Marlins want for Sandy and what the market’s willing to give, which will lead to no trade — because no trade is better than a bad trade,” he added.

Most of Alcantara’s outings this season have been poor. The most recent? He pitched four innings against the Padres on Wednesday, and he finished it with six earned runs, four walks, seven hits, and zero strikeouts. Alcantara currently holds an ERA of 8.47. In the 11 games he has started, only one has been a quality outing.

With this stat, it’s unlikely that any of the 29 teams would go for the kind of trade the Marlins hoped to pull off, let alone the big teams like the Yankees and the Dodgers.

This isn’t the first time Samson has shed light on the potential Alcantara trade. He talked about it earlier this month too, but with a bit more hope. “We believe in him as a player and performer, and we cannot afford to trade him at the low,” Samson said on his show.

Alcantara is still owed $17 million next year, with another $2 million guaranteed in 2027. That makes him a struggling trade prospect with $19 million locked in.

Well, let’s be honest, the Marlins are definitely not competing for the postseason this year; they are sitting at the bottom of the NL East with 22-32. So, trading Alcantara is the most logical next step, but if he fails to perform in the next few weeks, his value will sink even lower. And it seems like, out of everyone, he knows the gravity of the issue himself.

Sandy Alcantara confronts trade rumors

Alcantara is nowhere close to what he’s been his whole career. He has 29 walks and 40 strikeouts over the 51 innings he’s pitched this season. When compared to his Cy Young year, it’s almost like looking at two entirely different players. And now, with rumors swirling around his trade amid the slump, he’s responded with rare honesty.

In a recent conversation with Sam Blum and Dennis Lin of The Athletic, he seemed confident about a comeback. “I’m here to play baseball. I don’t have to pay attention to what they say. I play for the Marlins. If they want to trade me, they’ll trade me. I’m just going to keep competing, day by day. And we’ll see what happens,” he said. Alcantara definitely needs to fix the post-surgery mirage, and that too, as soon as possible.

The speed at which he can flip the season around will make all the difference. “We’d all love for it to happen sooner than later, but it’s going to happen when it happens,” said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough. But the manager must know: if they want a full set of prospects, the only chance is a Sandy trade. And for that to happen, Sandy is going to have to prove that he can deliver both quality and consistency. Can he do that?