Bud Selig Approves Marlins and Blue Jays Trade Commissioner Bud Selig formally approved a 12-player trade Monday that sent five veterans from the Miami Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays last week. The need for a review, even if it was only a formality, underscored the charged emotions that accompanied the deal. The Marlins promised a new experience for fans when they raised their payroll and opened a largely taxpayer-financed ballpark in April. But the team sharply changed direction with the Blue Jays deal, engineering the kind of epic salary dump they were known for while sharing a stadium with the Miami Dolphins. The Marlins traded shortstop Jose Reyes, starting pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle, catcher John Buck and the utility player Emilio Bonifacio to the Blue Jays for shortstops Yunel Escobar and Adeiny Hechavarria, starter Henderson Alvarez, catcher Jeff Mathis and the prospects Anthony DeSclafani, Jake Marisnick and Justin Nicolino. The deal allows the Marlins, who finished last in the National League East, to drastically reduce their payroll and rebuild - again. "It is my conclusion that this transaction, involving established major leaguers and highly regarded young players and prospects, represents the exercise of plausible baseball judgment on the part of both clubs, does not violate any express rule of Major League Baseball and does not otherwise warrant the exercise of any of my powers to prevent its completion," Selig's statement said. In other words, the trade was defensible in baseball terms, and Selig would not impede the Marlins from trying to build a foundation for success. He did not object to a similar deal in August, in which the Boston Red Sox unloaded several highly paid veterans to the Los Angeles Dodgers, mostly for prospects. But the Marlins, unlike the Red Sox, have never demonstrated a consistent ability to maintain a competitive payroll, a cycle that was supposed to end with their new ballpark. Selig addressed the concerns of the community in his statement. Baseball is a social institution with important social responsibilities and I fully understand that the Miami community has done its part to put the Marlins into a position to succeed with beautiful new Marlins Park. He added: "Going forward, I will continue to monitor this situation with the expectation that the Marlins will take into account the sentiments of their fans, who deserve the best efforts and considered judgment of their club. I have received assurances from the ownership of the Marlins that they share these beliefs and are fully committed to build a long-term winning team that their fans can be proud of. Yet it seems unlikely many of those fans will show up next season. The Marlins drew 2.2 million fans last season, ranking 12th of 16 N.L. teams. The last time they ranked higher was 1997, when they won the World Series and then quickly dismantled their roster. SUZUKI TO SIT OUT CLASSIC Ichiro Suzuki told Japanese baseball officials on Monday that he had decided not to play in next year's World Baseball Classic. "I appreciate being asked to play for Japan again at the W.B.C.," Suzuki said. But after the second tournament in 2009, I never considered playing in the third event. My feelings have not changed to this day, and it's where things stand. Suzuki, a free agent who played for the Yankees last season, helped Japan win the W.B.C. in 2006 and 2009.