The Miami Marlins have been the early stars of the offseason rumor mill, with legitimate interest in two of the top free agents on the market in Albert Pujols and Jose Reyes. But even though they have interest in those players, it does not mean they are willing to exceed $100 million in payroll, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel.
“The way we’re doing business is different,” (Marlins President Dave) Samson said. “We still have to be smart. We still can’t make up for injuries. We’re definitely going to have a higher payroll, but we need the players to perform and we need them to be good. The way we’ve done business is trying to get by with our revenue streams, and now our revenue streams are higher. We have a larger pool of talent available to us than we’ve ever had."
If the Marlins were to add both Pujols and Reyes they would almost certainly exceed $100 million. Those two players along would probably have about $40 million in committed salary a year.