"He called the Marlins' final four-year, $48 million offer life-changing money. Dan Uggla couldn't rationalize not being worthy of a fifth guaranteed season because his 30th birthday was behind him. Not when older free agents like Adrian Beltre and Jayson Werth can look forward to deals of at least five seasons in the current market.

As a result, Uggla is now a member of the Atlanta Braves. Before boarding a cruise ship Wednesday, Uggla reflected on why he's no longer a Marlin.

"I was very surprised because I was still thinking in a weird way that we were going to be able to get something done where I could stay in Florida," he said. "Turns out it wasn't the case. I tried to not to think about this kind of thing until it actually happened. Now that it happened, I'm obviously very surprised.

"A lot of different emotions … very excited to be able to play with guys like Brian McCann and Chipper Jones, and at the same time very sad I won't be playing with all my buddies back in Florida."

Uggla did not deny that the Marlins made it clear he would be traded if he turned down their final offer. For whatever reason, he still didn't fully believe it would happen."