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Buehrle in a statement said: “I’m upset with how things turned out in Miami. Just like the fans in South Florida, I was lied to on multiple occasions. But I’m putting it behind me and looking forward to moving on with my career.”

Jeff Berry, co-head of CAA baseball and Buehrle’s agent, added: “In an off-season of change and uncertainty, the overriding factor in Mark’s signing with Miami was Ozzie Guillen and the level of comfort his presence provided Mark and his family. While the Marlins were the highest bidder, baseball had already made Mark a wealthy man, so money was far from the most important factor in his decision. Throughout the recruiting process, the Marlins made repeated assurances about their long-term commitment to Mark and his family and their long-term commitment to building a winning tradition of Marlins baseball in the new stadium. This was demonstrated by their already completed signings of Ozzie, Heath Bell and Jose Reyes.

“At the same time, given the Marlins history, we were all certainly aware of and voiced concern about the lack of no-trade protection. This is unquestionably a business, and signing with the Marlins was a calculated risk. Mark held up his end of the bargain; unfortunately, the same can’t be said of the Marlins. That said, Mark is a consummate professional and is looking forward to joining his new teammates in Toronto.”

Chris Leible, one of Reyes’ agents said his client was, “More surprised than anything else. He didn’t see that one coming, but he understands it’s part of the game.”

Like Buehrle, both Reyes and his representatives were repeatedly told during the season he would not be traded.

Asked about any verbal assurances the Marlins gave the two players, President of Baseball Operations Larry Beinfest said: “Speaking for myself, I’m not aware of any assurances. I will tell you if they came from me they would be in writing in a no-trade clause. I can’t speak to it other than I’m not aware of it. Generally with these types of deals, when you’re talking about the money and with the sophistication of agents today, most everything that is pertinent is in writing.”

This fan base took yet another knee to the gut Monday when it learned Commissioner Bud Selig approved the trade that is sending Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, Jose Reyes, Emilio Bonifacio and John Buck to the Blue Jays. Some out there believe this move means it’s only a matter of time before Giancarlo Stanton is hitting mammoth homers for someone else.

Call it blind optimism, but I still thing Stanton’s next several seasons will be as a Marlin. Sunday, he made strong statements to Peter Gammons of MLB.com about his disappointment with the trade and the club’s direction. President David Samson last week and Beinfest on Monday said Stanton had not been contacted. Not sure why the Marlins don’t feel it’s a priority to allay the concerns of their franchise player.

“I know this is an emotional time,” Beinfest said. “I know he had relationships with these guys. I don’t know that I have an appreciation for it. These guys live together, dress together, play together under the spotlight every night and they build a different kind of bond. I’m sure it’s been tough for him. Our feeling was to maybe let the dust settle a little bit, maybe let some of the emotion go away and we can get to Giancarlo and talk about getting to spring training with some of his new teammates. I hear it. I hear the frustration. It’s not unexpected.”

I asked Beinfest what he’d say to fans who are convinced Stanton will be traded at some point.

His answer: “I think we can only speak to our actions now. I understand the pause that our fans have with the instability in our roster and instability in our manager and general instability in a time that we were hoping to be very stable in the new building and winning a lot of games and having a lot of fun here at Marlins Park. It did a 180 on us and it’s just not a lot of fun.

“I’m not real big asking for patience. This is the major leagues and this is a major league ballpark and people expect major league entertainment for their dollars. I’m not going to say, ‘Hey, be patient with us and let’s wait for this guy and this guy to be ready.’ Our expectation is we’re going to provide major league entertainment right off the bat. Hopefully we’ll win a bunch of games. Hopefully our young players will grow up quickly into the types of players we’re hoping they will be. I’d love to be able to say the catch things, hang in there with us. I’m not sure we’re there right now. I understand the emotion here. I understand the things that have been percolating over the last week. Now we just need to go out and demonstrate what we’re about.

“I’ve been here a long time. I’ve had ample opportunity to put together good ball clubs. Some have been very good. Some have been very bad. I’m on a two-year streak [finishing in last place], so it’s time we start to get things better and that’s what this is all about. Hopefully it will happen. We ask that the people support us and come to love their new players and hope we bring winning baseball back here to Miami.”

No specific mention of Stanton. Honestly, the Marlins could sign Stanton to a 10-year, $200 million contract tomorrow and plenty of folks still would assume — perhaps rightly so — they still planned to trade him eventually.

While Beinfest acknowledged the team might have a unique set of challenges attracting free agents as a result of this trade, he doesn’t foresee a change to the club’s policy of not giving no-trade clauses.

“I understand there may be some disdain in the market place,” Beinfest said. “It’s not going to be my recommendation we change our view of no-trade clauses. It was certainly not the intention, and I’ll speak for Jeffrey [Loria] on this, when we signed these guys to be where we are today and to go out and not play good baseball last summer and to be where we are right now. It is what it is and we’re dealing with it.

“We won’t know until we get into those negotiations with free agents or until we show over a sustained period of time that we operate in a certain matter. It’s definitely not great for the club and we’re going to have to deal with it.”

OF Kyle Jensen: .330 (30-for-91)/.390/.593 with seven doubles, a triple, five homers and 19 RBI

OF Christian Yelich: .301 (28-for-93)/.343/.387 with six doubles, a triple, no homers and 11 RBI

3B Yordy Cabrera: .286 (18-for-63)/.308/.349 with a double, a homer and six RBI

C JT Realmuto: .222 (8-for-36)/.349/.361 with two doubles, a homer and four RBI

OF Jake Marisnick: .314 (22-for-70)/.380/.457 with three doubles, two triples and a homer and eight RBI

With the exception of Marisnick, who represented the Blue Jays on the Salt River team, the Marlins’ prospects played for the Phoenix Desert Dogs. Marisnick will become a member of the Marlins’ organization once the blockbuster trade with the Marlins is finalized. Marisnick actually had jerseys for both team in his locker Saturday in case the trade was finalized at some point.

The pitchers:

Brian Flynn (seven starts): 1-3, 3.63 with seven walks and 18 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings

Scott McGough (9 appearances, 2 starts): 0-0, 1.13 with six walks and eight strikeouts in 16 innings

Michael Brady (9 relief appearances): 1-1, 2.25 with three walks and nine strikeouts in 12 innings

Grant Dayton (10 relief appearances): 0-0, 3.75 with seven walks and 18 strikeouts in 12 innings

“Jose, Bonifacio, Hanley … all three are gone now. I had people warn me that something like this could happen, but it runs against the competitive nature every athlete has, that nature that everything is about winning. This kind of thing is what gets talked about all the time around this team. Former Marlins come back and they warn us. It gets talked about during the stretch, in the clubhouse, after games, on the road. Again, I do not like this at all.”

Stanton goes on to make more pointed comments.

Dan LeBatard asked team president David Samson about Stanton’s angry tweet earlier this week. Samson dismissed it, saying he understood players are bound to have emotional responses. He added that he didn’t feel a phone call to Stanton was necessary.

Time to pick up the phone, David.

When the Marlins signed Delgado to a four-year, $52 million free agent contract before the 2005 season, Sloane wasn’t thrilled that the offer was back-loaded and did not include any no-trade provisions. Unconvinced Delgado would be a Marlin for the duration of that contract, he insisted on a unique clause that would allow Delgado to recoup whatever money he lost as a result of being traded to a team whose players are subject to state income tax. The Marlins after one season traded Delgado to the Mets, but he didn’t take a financial hit the way this current batch of soon-to-be ex-Marlins will.

Robert Raiola, the sports and entertainment group manager at Fazio, Mannuzza, Roche, Tankel and LaPilusa, a New Jersey-based tax, accounting and advisory firm, told the Wall Street Journal Marlins players will lose a combined $8.4 million. According to the article, a tax rate hike for high income earners in Ontario is set to come online soon.

To the best of Sloane’s knowledge, that Delgado contract was the first and only one to include protection from unforeseen state income taxes. Considering the club’s history, wouldn’t be surprised if representatives of future Marlins’ free agent targets insist on similar provisions. Of the 11 players this Marlins ownership group has signed to contracts of three or more years, five were traded after the first season (Delgado, Paul Lo Duca, Reyes, Buehrle, Heath Bell). Three others — Buck, Mike Lowell, Luis Castillo — were traded after two seasons.

Sloane offered some thoughts on his blog.

Since the trade news broke this week, Morrison has maintained he has no reason to get mad over something he can’t control.

“I’m next anyways,” Nolasco said.

Nolasco is one of 11 players this ownership group has signed to contracts of three or more season. He also is the only one that has not been traded — yet. Nolasco’s expectation and that around the game is that he’ll be elsewhere in 2013, not at the top of the Marlins’ rotation.  Nolasco is due $11.5 million next season, the final year of a three-year, $26.5 million contract he signed.

Shouldn’t be impossible for the Marlins to find a team to pick up all of Nolasco’s freight. Despite his declining strikeout/walk ratio and rising hits per nine innings, Nolasco is good for 185-plus innings. He’d make a decent No. 4 on a competitive team in need of starting pitching depth. Some reports include the Rockies and Yankees among the interested clubs.

Escobar will make $5 million in 2013. Hechavarria, a Cuban defector who the Blue Jays landed with a four-year, $10 million deal, will make $1.75 million. Escobar doesn’t have a good reputation around the game. The Braves traded him to the Blue Jays for ex-Marlin Alex Gonzalez in part because they deemed him a toxic clubhouse presence. His immaturity on and off the field irked teammates and opponents alike.

The Blue Jays suspended Escobar for three games last season after he took the field with a homophobic slur on his eye black patches.

This pending trade may force the Marlins to revisit that policy at some point. Since December 2003, the Marlins have signed 11 players to contracts of three or more seasons. The only one they have not traded is Ricky Nolasco, and nobody would be surprised to see him go before the start of next season.

With that track record, how exactly do the Marlins convince a coveted free agent or even one of their homegrown guys (Giancarlo Stanton) to ink a long-term deal? If the Marlins stick to their no no-trade clause guns, they’re going to have to grossly overpay to beat out teams willing to include no-trade provisions in contracts.

The Marlins better be ready to do some serious sweet talking to Stanton. Let’s be clear about one thing…they are not in any immediate danger of losing him. Stanton is under team control through the 2016 season. As upset as he may be with the current state of affairs, he has no leverage to force a trade at this point. MLB is not like the NFL. Players don’t hold out.

My guess is the Marlins at the very latest wait until after the 2013 season to present Stanton with a lucrative six-year offer. That would give them cost certainty during his three arbitration years and it buys out three years of free agency. How lucrative? Depends on how many homers he hits and whether the Marlins are able to surround him with enough players to where he believes he can win here.

Bottom line, the Marlins’ money will continue to be as green as that of all the other clubs. In spite of all the South Florida allure, they’ll probably find themselves having to pay premium prices when they’re back in position to compete for marquee free agents.

The most disappointing part of the trade is that the Marlins didn’t deem it prudent to keep Reyes and Buehrle. They’re basically telling fans, not only do we not think we’re going to compete in 2013, we don’t see Reyes (signed through 2017) and Buehrle (signed through 2015) as key cogs of the next contender.

San Francisco-based agent Matt Sosnick confirmed the Marlins signed third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff and right-handed reliever Jordan Smith to minor league contracts with invites to big league camp.

A sixth round pick of the Cleveland Indians in 2003, Kouzmanoff can boast 2,679 career big league plate appearances. He made his major league debut for the Indians in 2006 and earned instant fame when he hit a grand slam on the first pitch he saw.

Kouzmanoff, 31, also has spent time with the Padres, Athletics and Rockies. He opened 2012 in the Royals’ system before landing with the Rockies. He totaled just 108 plate appearances in the majors for Colorado and hit .255/.315/.398.

“Kevin had an absolutely terrible year,” Sosnick said. “He had a bunch of nagging injuries. He just had a bad mental and physical year and it all came together horribly. Kevin and I both believe strongly he’s going to come back and have a good year, and hopefully play a lot of third base in the big leagues for the Marlins.”

The Kouzmanoff signing likely is an indication the Marlins are looking to have a competition for the job this spring, similar to the one they had a couple of seasons ago with Jorge Cantu, Jose Castillo and Dallas McPherson.

“We’d like to find a really good guy that we know is the guy, but if we have to go that route, sure,” President of Baseball Operations Larry Beinfest said. “Look, is there going to be competition in right field? No. [Mike Redmond and the coaching staff] want to have that fresh slate. They want to see competition. They want to make their own evaluations in conjunction with us.”

Smith, 26, was the Reds’ sixth round pick in 2006. He made his major league debut in 2010 and over his first 54 major league appearances (2010-11) has a 4.94 ERA with 19 walks and 39 strikeouts in 62 innings. Smith spent all of 2012 at Triple-A Louisville, where he went 3-3 with a 4.76 ERA, 16 walks and 36 strikeouts in 56 2/3 innings.

McClendon managed the Pirates from 2001-’05 and compiled a 336-446 record. Their best single-season finish was in 2003 (75-87) , good for fourth place in the National League Central. McClendon told the Detroit Free Press he was pleased how the interview went. In the same piece, former Marlins manager Jim Leyland said McClendon was ready for another opportunity.

“There’s no question he’s very qualified to be a big-league manager,” Leyland told the Free PressWednesday. “Sometimes you worry about guys like him getting a second chance because Pittsburgh was a tough place in those days. He did a heck of a job there. He just didn’t have the players.”

A native of Gary, Ind., McClendon’s big league career spanned eight seasons. He played for the Reds, Cubs and Pirates. He turns 54 in January.

A source following the club’s managerial search said the Marlins “100 percent” would like to have their man in place by the General Managers’ Meetings, which begin Nov. 7 in Palm Springs, Calif.

Here is a transcript of the interview:

John Dewan, co-author of the book and owner of Baseball Info Solutions, revealed his annual Fielding Bible awards this week. Buehrle changed leagues without suffering a drop off in glovework. He’s now won four consecutive Fielding Bible awards.

The winners are chosen by a 10-person panel, including Peter Gammons, Bill James, Joe Posnanski, Doug Glanville, and Dewan.

“We ask them to use all the tools at their disposal to make their picks: both scouting and sabermetrics, and then we tell the world how they voted on each position,” Dewan said. “None of baseball’s other awards reveal who the voters voted for. The Fielding Bible Awards do.”

Buehrle, Alex Gordon (left field) and Yadier Molina (catcher) were the only players to receive a perfect 100 points in the balloting.

Lowell via email wrote: “Mike Redmond is a man who maximized his talents as a player, communicated well and was leader. I believe he is the man to lead the Marlins back to playing at a championship level. I’m Mike Lowell and I approved this message.”

No doubt the Marlins would have loved to speak with Lowell about the job. A handful of fans on Twitter sent me messages saying they would love to see the Coral Gables High School and Florida International University product back in a Marlins uniform. The timing just isn’t right for Lowell, who retired after the 2010 season and doesn’t appear ready to commit to the 162-game grind again just yet…

Also had a chance to catch up with Adam Greenberg, who before getting his one at-bat with the Marlins last month, played for Team Israel and manager Brad Ausmus. The Marlins are believed to have interest in speaking with Ausmus, but it’s uncertain whether they’ve sought permission from the Padres yet. Ausmus is a special assistant for them.

Both the Red Sox and Astros interviewed Ausmus for their vacancies. The Red Sox ultimately pursued and landed their former pitching coach, John Farrell, who was managing the Blue Jays. Ausmus took himself out of the running for the Astros’ job, which went to former Marlins’ third base coach Bo Porter.

“Brad is an amazing leader with a knack for baseball,” Greenberg said. “As a catcher, he understands the game in and out, offensively, defensively and from the pitching side. What I got to experience down in Florida during the two weeks I got to spend with him, he’s not your rah-rah guy but he demands respect and he’s very professional, and he knows how to lead. Everyone from Shawn Green, who came out of retirement, to the young guys, he doesn’t put everybody in the same category. He deals with each person one-on-one and all coming together to form a team and that’s ultimately what you need at the big league level, managing personalities and talent. He was always up front and has great communication skills.”    

Greenberg characterized his life since his one at-bat with the Marlins as a whirlwind. He’s begun working on a book and has regular speaking engagements at high schools and synagogues. Greenberg in addition to working on his business (www.lurongliving.com) also continues to train with the hope of getting an invite to a team’s big league camp next spring. He said he’d love for that opportunity to be with the Marlins.

gracias a mi familia y a mis grandes amigos por el gran apoyo a mis hijos mi esposa y mis panas por su apoyo

Thank you to my family and my great friends for the wonderful support, to my sons and my wife, and my countrymen for their support

a los fanaticos que me apoyan y los que estan felices tambien mi gran respeto y carino a todos

To the fans that support me and to those who are happy as well, my respect and affection 

en la vida hay cosas peores y e vivido malos momentos en mi vida este es otro mas que lo supero con el apoyo de los mios

In life there are worse things and I’ve lived bad moments in my life. This is one more that I will overcome with the support of my own [family, friends]

vendran cosas mejores o peores pero vendran gracias de nuevo por su apoyo en este momento malo pero no el peor

Better things or worse things may come, but thanks again for your support in this bad moment, but not the worst

estoy tranquilo con los mios con mi cabeza en alto bien alto

 I am calm with my own, with my head held high, real high

Flips is another term hitters use for soft toss. Someone tosses baseballs toward a batter, who swats them into the netting or toward the opposite end of the batting cage. In 2003, Redmond put a distinctive spin on the drill. Hoping to get the Marlins out of a losing streak, he headed into the cage wearing nothing but sox and spikes and batting gloves, and proceeded to take what became known as “naked flips.”

The Marlins won that night. Per the unwritten rules of baseball, Redmond continued the practice until the team lost again…

Left-hander Mark Buehrle pitched for manager Ozzie Guillen the last nine years, including 2012 with the Marlins. Here was his reaction to Guillen’s firing: “Obviously, I am surprised with the news about Ozzie. He has become close to my family and I over the last nine years. I can only thank him for the things he’s done for me over my career and wish him nothing but the best with whatever lies ahead of him.”

When Bell told Dan Sileo of WQAM he found it difficult to respect Guillen, several team members publicly and privately came to Guillen’s defense. Justin Ruggiano and Brett Hayes did so through Twitter. The players’ most telling, collective act: Making Bell sit at his Turner Field locker while Guillen’s weekly radio interview with Dan Le Batard on 790 The Ticket blared from the stereo.

If bashing Guillen was Bell’s way of trying to get Guillen fired, it appeared to backfire. 

Perhaps that was faulty logic on my part. After all, winning a head-to-head popularity contest with Bell in last season’s Marlins’ clubhouse isn’t much of a victory.

Then there was this…Two days before season’s end, owner Jeffrey Loria sat in Guillen’s office and the two discussed the future. Loria sough Guillen’s feedback about next season, what had to change, what they needed. It’s no wonder Guillen left for his vacation in Spain confident he would be back in 2013. Maybe Loria at that point had no intention of firing Guillen.  A change of heart three weeks later is a head-scratcher.

CBSSports.com reported the two sides have not engaged in anything resembling serious discussions about a Rodriguez trade. Another report detailed how Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria and Yankees President Randy Levine joked back in April about the possibility of making a deal. MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) Tweeted a quote from Yankees general manager Brian Cashman saying: “I’ve had no discussions whatsoever with the Marlins.”

A source in regular contact with the Marlins’ front office called the Rodriguez to the Marlins speculation laughable.

Rodriguez, 37, still has five years and $114 million remaining on his contract. Of course, the Marlins wouldn’t have to take on all that money. Can’t imagine the Yankees are going to eat all but the league minimum the next five seasons either, plus take back dead weight off the Marlins payroll (Heath Bell).

Forget about the financial component for a minute. Does it make baseball sense? Most of the “pros” of such a deal would seem to have more to do with a potential attendance bump. Rodriguez is a hometown guy. He has several home run milestones in his future. How could fans not flock to Marlins Park? How about because this fan base does not come out for individual players. The only Marlin I can remember making a slight impact at the box office was Dontrelle Willis.

If fans don’t fill up the place to see Giancarlo Stanton, why would they come out for a way-past-his-prime Alex Rodriguez? Stay tuned. This story is far from over…

The Marlins on Wednesday announced a few roster moves. The Toronto Blue Jays claimed outfielder Scott Cousins off waivers and the Boston Red Sox claimed right-hander Sandy Rosario. In addition, the Marlins outrighted infielders Donnie Murphy, Gil Velazquez and Nick Green to Triple-A New Orleans.

Logan Morrison announced the particulars of his third annual Camp for a Cure. It will take place Jan. 12-13 at the ELEV|8 Sports Institute, an elite athletic development center, in Delray Beach.

The camp, which had been held at the club’s spring training complex in Jupiter, has raised more than $66,000 for the American Lung Association’s Florida chapter.

Attendees of the camp will receive first class professional baseball instruction, a camp t-shirt, an autograph session, and various prizes. For more information about the event, visit: www.lomo4lungs.org.

Guillen wasn’t thrilled about speaking in the interview room. “Ugh, I hate that seat,” said Guillen, referencing the spot from where he apologized for his Fidel Castro comments in April.

As for Greenberg, he’s hoping Tuesday’s at-bat was a beginning. His next goal is to garner a spring trainining invite from a major league team. President David Samson did not say one way or the other Tuesday afternoon whether the Marlins would give him that opportunity.

“I want to show I’m a ballplayer and I have major league baseball ability,” Greenberg said.