MIAMI, Aug. 3 (UPI) — The Miami Marlins agreed to trade catcher/first baseman Liam Hicks to the Tampa Bay Rays for three prospects, a league source told UPI on Monday.
The Rays agreed to send pitcher Jacob Kisting and infielders Brayden Taylor and Adrian Santana to the Marlins in the swap.
Hicks hit .282 with 14 home runs, nine doubles, a triple and 62 RBIs through 101 appearances this season. The 27-year-old infielder hit .247 with six homers, 13 doubles, a triple and 45 RBIs over 119 appearances in 2025.
He joined the Marlins through the 2024 Rule 5 Draft. Hicks is not arbitration eligible until after the 2027 season.
Taylor, 24, was the Rays’ No. 16 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. The No. 19 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft hit .284, with 17 home runs, 16 doubles, three triples, 56 RBIs and 20 stolen bases over 88 appearances this season for the Triple-A Montgomery Biscuits.
He hit .235 with 50 homers, 61 doubles, 16 triples, 176 RBIs and 77 stolen bases over the first 335 minor league appearances of his career.
Kisting, 23, was the Rays’ No. 26 prospect. The right-handed pitcher went 6-0 with a 1.67 ERA over 18 starts this season for the Bowling Green Hot Shots, a High-A affiliate of the Rays.
The 14th-round pick by the Minnesota Twins in the 2024 MLB Draft joined the Rays in a November trade. He posted a 2.65 ERA over the first 48 minor league appearances of his career.
Santana was the Rays’ No. 27 prospect. The Miami native joined the Rays as the No. 31 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. He hit .311, with three home runs, eight doubles, a triple, 24 RBIs and 23 stolen bases over his first 54 minor league appearances this year.
The 21-year-old shortstop hit .263, with two homers, 13 doubles, two triples, 43 RBIs and 47 stolen bases over 89 appearances last year for the Hot Rods.
The Marlins have the eighth-best batting average (.250) so far this season, led by shortstop Otto Lopez’s .321 mark.
Elevated play by first baseman Kyle Stowers (.234 with a team-high 16 homers) and catcher Joe Mac (.245 with 11 homers) gave them flexibility to trade Hicks for the trio of prospects.
The Marlins (58-55) won six of their last seven games, including their last three, and sit in third place in the National League East, 9.5 games behind the division-leading Atlanta Braves (67-45). They are 1.5 games back in the National League wild card race.
The Braves will host the Marlins at 7:15 p.m. EDT Tuesday in Atlanta.
The Rays (65-46) have the top batting average (.258) in the American League and are tied with the Pittsburgh Pirates for the second-best mark in baseball, trailing only the Los Angeles Dodgers (.262). They hold a 2.5 game lead on the second-place New York Yankees (63-49) in the American League East.
The Rays will play the Colorado Rockies (45-67) at 8:40 p.m. Monday in Denver.