Buehrle: ‘I was lied to'

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The Marlins and Blue Jays turned the baseball world upside down last week with the megadeal that sent a slew of veterans north of the border just one year after they were signed in South Beach.

And one player is not too happy about how things went down.

Former White Sox ace Mark Buehrle, who signed a four-year deal prior to the 2012 season, let his frustrations fly Wednesday.

"I'm upset with how things turned out in Miami," Buehrle said in a joint statement with his agent, Jeff Berry, according to the Sun Sentinel. "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."

The Marlins inked Buehrle, shortstop Jose Reyes and closer Heath Bell to lucrative, back-loaded deals in free agency last winter and now all three players are gone after just one season. Manager Ozzie Guillen also lasted only one year, having been fired in late October.

Guillen was a driving force in Buehrle signing with Miami, as the veteran pitcher was famously intent on joining a team only if the geographic location matched his and his family's interest. Now, Buehrle has no choice, given that his contract with the Marlins included a no-trade clause.

"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," Berry said in the statement. "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."

Buehrle's deal was worth 58 million over the four years, but the Marlins ended up paying him just 14.5 million for one year, while the Blue Jays are now on the hook for the remainder of that salary. Reyes was due 106 million over six years and Bell was owed 27 million over three years.

While the Blue Jays made the move in an attempt to challenge the Yankees and Rays in the competitive AL East, a big reason why the Marlins made the deal was to shed the lofty salaries owed to Buehrle, Reyes and Josh Johnson.

Given how things turned out this offseason -- Bell was also traded on Oct. 20 -- how will the Marlins ever convince a veteran free agent to sign a long-term deal with them in the near future?

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