Luis Ayala Upset After Being Designated For Assignment by Marlins

September 1 always brings roster moves for big league clubs, so it's no surprise to see the Marlins shuffling things up today. Well, it's no surprise to anyone not named Luis Ayala. Ayala, the 31-year old reliever, was designated for assignment by the Marlins today after making just appearance since his call-up on August 29th and he was not pleased. This is what he told the South Florida Sun Sentinel:

"It was terrible what they did," Ayala said. "I don't know why they called me up if they were going to do this. I think it's a lack of respect. I know it's a business, but for me, it's something they've handled poorly."

In his place, the Marlins announced the call-up of Rick VandenHurk.

It's easy to see why Ayala's upset. VandenHurk last pitched on August 27, so when the Marlins wanted a pitcher two days later, he wouldn't have been available. Couple that with the September 1 date to expand rosters, and they obviously just wanted a guy for a few days to give some depth. Now that Ayala gave them that, he's gone.

Of course, it's also worth remembering that Ayala's been pretty bad this year, both for the Marlins and Twins. The Twins dropped him back in June and since then, he's put up an 11.74 ERA in 10 appearances with the Marlins. He did throw 10 scoreless innings with their Triple-A affiliate in New Orleans, but since it's now after the date that playoff rosters must be set, it seems unlikely he'll attract any interest until the offseason.

In addition to dropping Ayala and calling up VandeHurk, the Marlins also called up rookie Cameron Maybin for the stretch drive. Maybin struggled with the Marlins early in the year, but he's hitting .319/.399/.463 in 83 Triple-A games and should at the very least give them some outfield depth in the final weeks of the season.