Former Chicago Cubs closer Carlos Marmol released by Miami Marlins

It seems that despite that albatross of a sculpture behind the left-center field wall at Marlins Park that has a somewhat theme-parkish feel to it, Miami just isn’t the place for the now-released Marmol Coaster, also known as former Chicago Cubs’ closer Carlos Marmol, who saw his time in South Florida come to an end this week.

In 15 appearances with the Marlins, the erratic right-hander posted an 8.10 ERA with 10 walks in 13 innings of work – similar to the issues that led to his departure from the Windy City last spring.

Marmol, still just 31 years old, signed a one-year, $1.25 million deal with Miami this February, but after passing through waivers unclaimed, he reached the end of the line after his aforementioned struggles. Now, it appears likely he’ll land on another organization’s roster, although a minor league deal is now a virtual guarantee given his struggles in the past two seasons.

In eight seasons in Chicago, the right-hander went 23-32 with a 3.50 ERA, notching 703 strikeouts in 542 1/3 innings of work. With that in mind, he also issued 395 base-on-balls during that stretch. His tenure with the Cubs came to a close after a rocky start to the 2013 season, when he blew several save opportunities, going 2-4 with a 5.86 ERA in 31 appearances.

Marmol spent the rest of the 2013 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he pitched to the tune of a 2.53 earned run average in 21 appearances. He did, however, walk 19 batters in just 21 1/3 innings of work for Don Mattingly‘s club.