The Miami Marlins are trading catcher and first baseman Liam Hicks to the Tampa Bay Rays for infielder Brayden Taylor, shortstop Adrian Santana and right-hander Jacob Kisting, according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman.Hicks became expendable after rookie Joe Mack emerged as Miami’s primary catcher, but the Marlins received a solid package for one of their best hitters.The 27-year-old is batting .282/.363/.432 with 14 home runs and a team-leading 62 RBIs. His production represents an immediate upgrade over Tampa Bay’s current catching tandem of Nick Fortes and Hunter Feduccia.Tampa Adds Offense, Miami Adds UpsideLiam Hicks during batting practice before the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectStatcast shows why Tampa Bay valued Hicks. He rarely strikes out and consistently puts pitches in the zone into play, giving the Rays a player who can consistently put the ball in play. His quality of contact creates some concern. Hicks owns an 85.2 mph average exit velocity, 29.5% hard-hit rate and 3.7% barrel rate. His expected batting average and slugging percentage also trail his actual production, suggesting that his stats could see some regression. On the other side, Miami received an intriguing return.Taylor, Tampa Bay’s former first-round pick, headlines the package after batting .284 with a .384 on-base percentage, 16 home runs and 20 stolen bases in the minors this season. He entered the deadline ranked No. 16 in the Rays’ system.Kisting has posted a 1.67 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 96 strikeouts across 86 innings, while Santana is batting .311 with 23 stolen bases. MLB Pipeline ranked them Nos. 26 and 27 in Tampa Bay’s system.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow