Breaking Down the Prospects from the Phillies in the Jesus Luzardo Trade

Just before Christmas the Phillies and Marlins completed an intra divisional trade which saw Jesus Luzardo for two prospect. I'll be breaking down the hobby impact on this trade for the prospects involved.

After several years of speculation Jesus Luzardo was traded within the NL East Division from the Miami Marlins to the Philadelphia Phillies. / https://www.si.com/mlb/phillies-jesus-luzardo-marlins-trade

Just prior to Christmas the Phillies and Marlins completed a trade that sent Jesus Luzardo and backup catcher/first baseman Paul McIntosh to Philadelphia for Starlyn (Jesus) Caba and Emaarion Boyd. Of the two prospects Caba was the only one ranked in the top 100 ( 54 overall per Baseball America, 84 overall per MLB Pipeline). As part of a continuing series I’ll be taking a look at the hobby impact of this trade specifically for Caba. 

Starlyn Caba SS 

Starlyn Caba covers second base on a stolen base attempt. Ranked 54 overall per BA's top 100 prospects and third overall in the Phillies farm system rankings Caba was the centerpiece of the return the Marlins received for Jesus Luzardo. / baseballamerica.com

Caba was part of the Phillies 2023 international signing class where he secured their largest bonus. After spending most of the 2023 season recovering from injury Caba had a nice bounce back season in 2024 where he showed off a strong batting eye at the rookie league level walking more times (51) than striking out (34). As a switch hitter he possesses a significant hit over power profile with more gap to gap power as opposed to over the fence power (think 10-15 home runs being his peak). He also showed above average speed which should help him continue to steal bases at a higher rate as he progresses. Caba really shines on the defensive end though with elite skills and athleticism at shortstop. Many scouts feel his defensive skills rate as the best in the minors with the chance to be a perennial gold glove winner when he reaches the majors.  

Starlyn Caba's (Listed as Jesus Caba) first Bowman Chrome Sapphire gold card. At the time of publication Caba has not had his first Bowman auto in any products. / https://www.sportscardinvestor.com/

Starlyn Caba is now the fourth top 100 prospect to change teams this offseason. Making his debut in Bowman Chrome 2023 under his birth name Jesus, Caba was one of the players who had a Bowman 1st card without a corresponding autograph (a most recent example is Sebastian Walcott). As such the only sales on 130 Point with autographs were those that were hand signed by Caba. As far as how this trade will impact his hobby value, my current take is that it will be more on the negative side as opposed to positive. While I do expect Caba to have more of a clear path to the majors which should improve his value a little, it won’t be enough to offset him going from a more prestigious hobby team in the Phillies to a less prestigious one in the Marlins. Also not helping Caba is that he profiles as a much better MLB player vs a hobby chase. Caba’s elite tools are his glove and bat to ball skills as he’s not projected to have much more than average power at best at his peak. The best recent MLB comparison would be Orlando Cabrera. That said on a more positive note, his current market does reflect his projections and is very reasonable. I would expect it to continue to hold at that value once his first autograph cards debut. Furthermore he just reached A ball for the first time last year as an eighteen year old so there is still room to grow beyond his current projections.