Fish Stripes: FanPosts

2013 Marlins: Worst. Team. Ever?

2013-05-26T21:49:10Z

After 50 games, and now that we're almost a third of the way through the season, I think it's fair to start seriously considering whether the 2013 Marlins are the worst team ever to step on an MLB field, at least on offense. Since you can't win without scoring runs, I think it's fair to focus on offense only for the purposes of this discussion.

For starters, consider the following team statistics (courtesy of www.baseball-almanac.com):

Lowest batting average: 1888 Washington: .207 (2013 Marlins: .221). The Marlins' leading hitter with a qualifying number of plate appearances is Placido Polanco, batting .233. Not to be a pessimist, but I doubt that Ozuna will continue hitting above .300 for the rest of the year, and it is certainly within the realm of possibility that the Marlins could break this record.

Lowest slugging percentage: 1910 Chicago White Sox: .261 (2013 Marlins: .317). The Marlins seem safely above the worst level in history here, but I wouldn't be too comfortable that it will remain that way.

Lowest runs scored in a season: 1908 St. Louis: 372, or approximately 2.3 runs/game (2013 Marlins:132 runs in 50 games, or 2.64 runs/game). The Marlins have a good shot at this record. Mike Stanton is not coming back any time soon, and I wouldn't blame him for taking his time recovering, a la Derrick Rose, given the state of the team and the money he will command once he's a free agent. Even after he returns, with less than no protection in the lineup, and hardly anyone on base in front of him, the damage he will be able to do will be severely limited, so I wouldn't expect a repeat of last season's RBI numbers for him.

Losses per season: 2003 Detroit: 119 (2013 Marlins: currently 13-37, on pace to lose 119.88 games. Let's round up to 120). Certainly the Marlins' pitching has been keeping them in games. But if Nolasco gets traded mid-season for more "prospects", then the Marlins' chances of breaking this record should improve even further. Apparently, the 1899 Cleveland Spiders lost 134 games in a 152 game season, so unless the Marlins lose more than 134 games, maybe this achievement would deserve an asterisk.

Now if the Marlins set any one of the four records for futility above, they would have a place in the discussion among the worst teams of all time. But I think it's entirely possible they could set at least three of those four records, which would give them an unarguable lock on the position. This would be fitting, since they also have the worst owner in history.

I have been a Marlins fan since 1993, and remember counting down the days to the first franchise game. For years I subscribed to the mlb.com video package so I could wake up early in the morning and watch Marlins games from Asia, since I couldn't see the games on TV. But this season, I find myself hoping that the Marlins will set one or all of the records above. At least that would mean a historic season (rather than just a routinely and miserably poor season), and a repudiation of Jeffrey Loria. Maybe MLB would even be shamed into imposing another round of payroll supervision on the team, to ensure that at least the revenue sharing money goes back into player salary, rather than towards "consulting fees" paid to a Loria shell company, as has been the previous practice of the team.

I still consider myself a Marlins fan, but I can't cheer for a Marlins win knowing it makes Loria happy, and I'm not so much of a sucker to continue spending money on a Jeffrey Loria enterprise. Let's just hope Loria doesn't live as long as Fidel, and that one day in the not too distant future real baseball will be played by two teams simultaneously in that nice new taxpayer funded stadium.

For starters, consider the following team statistics (courtesy of www.baseball-almanac.com):

2013 MLB Draft Book now available

2013-05-21T23:50:26Z

Go here to get it.

This years' MLB Draft Book costs whatever you wish to donate to helping me improve my coverage next year. $0.01 is the minimum just to run the transaction. Donate and I'll email you the book in PDF form. It is 101 pages of Prospect info. Those that donate will likely get a discount on next years book or additional information that the rest will not get or both.

Almost all of this information is available on Minor League Ball or on my blog but I compiled it to have in one place for easy access.

If you don't like PayPal and don't want a discount next year, you can download a lower quality version here.

Go here to get it.

Almost all of this information is available on Minor League Ball or on my blog but I compiled it to have in one place for easy access.

If you don't like PayPal and don't want a discount next year, you can download a lower quality version here.

How much longer do we keep running Cishek out as closer?

2013-05-20T17:42:53Z

I would love getting some feedback from someone with access to better statistics and analysis. This post is just based on what I know.

I love watching Steve Cishek pitch. I kept rambling on to whoever would listen (virtually no one) last year that Cishek should be our Closer. His numbers is '12 were awesome, he was incredibly effective, and his delivery is just fun to watch.

But relief pitching is a fickle business, and he just doesn't seem to have it in '13. I know that he's only had about 18 innings of work, but even though numbers might be inflated by some bad outings, at the same time some of his numbers are helped by the fact that his bleeding is cut short when he blows saves on the road.

I don't know what the issue is. Small sample size? Just having an off year? Does he need more regular work? Is he not handling the pressure and expectation?

And even if they do decide to move him back to Setup, who takes his place? Redmond seems to want to run Mike Dunn out there when Cishek falls apart, but is it wisest to use your only real left-handed bullpen arm in a Closing role? Technically Ryan Webb's numbers are better so far (1.48 ERA, 0.86 WHIP) but he's never really had the dominant K/9 numbers (6.3 K/9 for his career) that the position traditionally demands. Mike Dunn's WHIP is cause for more concern in crunch situations (1.21 in '13, 1.49 for his career) but his strikeout rate (10.0 K/9 for his career) is fantastic.

I guess, in a bubble, the answer would be closer by committee based on who was coming up in the 9th, but although that works well in theory, I always think it becomes a distraction because it causes way too many opinion pieces, press conference questions and other nonsense that teams don't need.

Hopefully someone with better numbers will give me a better answer.

I would love getting some feedback from someone with access to better statistics and analysis. This post is just based on what I know.

I don't know what the issue is. Small sample size? Just having an off year? Does he need more regular work? Is he not handling the pressure and expectation?

Hopefully someone with better numbers will give me a better answer.

Being A Marlins Fan

2013-05-17T15:54:00Z

I found this article on Grantland and thought it was really good so I wanted to share it here with you guys. It's called Miami's Blue Period by Bryan Curtis

About half a block from Marlins Park, a hunchbacked stadium in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood, a scalper named Shorty spoke in a stage whisper. "Need a single?" he asked.

I did.

"Give me 10 bucks," Shorty said, cupping a crumpled ticket in his hand.

Under normal circumstances, a scalper has the advantage in these encounters. Shorty would have massaged the market for that night's Mets-Marlins game before I even showed up. But I knew all about the Marlins. I knew they had the worst record in baseball. I knew Marlins Park had become an ocean of empty blue seats. I knew Giancarlo (né Mike) Stanton, the only superstar left after the Marlins' clearance sales, had strained his right hamstring the night before and was out for weeks. Stanton was being replaced in the lineup by a guy named Marcell Ozuna, who jumped straight from Double-A. Ten bucks?

I must have looked skeptical, because Shorty played up the illicitness of our transaction. He pulled me into a parking garage. "There's a cop over there," he said.

Let the cop come, I thought. If baseball tickets were narcotics, this thing in his hand would count as "trace amounts." It had next to no value.

"I got four bucks," I said.

Shorty took the money and vanished.

That was how I got into Marlins Park on April 30, for the first of two games. Four measly bucks put me in a seat on the lower level, a ways down the third-base line, without a seatmate on any side. It was a perfectly lonely place to think about what happens when Major League Baseball is played in front of nobody, about whether we should go to a stadium in such circumstances, and about the trickle-down effects such a decision has, in turn, on people ranging from the Marlins players to Shorty the scalper.

I was sipping a Diet Pepsi and eating a hot dog when I realized I'd forgotten to look at the actual price on my ticket to see what kind of bargain I'd gotten. I looked. It was … one dollar.

I had overpaid.

The emptiness of Marlins Park pulses through Little Havana like a Martian death ray. As I drove down Northwest Seventh Street, I followed the frantic signal of a man who directed me to turn on Northwest 14th Court. There, I was waved into the front yard of Ina Questa.

Ina had lived in her brown, cinder-block house since the stadium that loomed over her was the Orange Bowl. She had been directing cars into her front yard since the early 1970s. Back then, she charged $3 to park. Three dollars in 1972 is worth more than $16 today. However, these days, Ina can get only $10 from fans. Thanks to the Marlins' extreme suckiness, Ina's yard had not kept up with inflation.

Mercedes Hernandez lives across the street from Ina. She, too, took on cars during Marlins games. "Hay muy poco público," Mercedes said. She then launched into a rant about the team. I didn't catch all of it, but I heard her repeat the words el dueño — the owner, Jeffrey Loria.

Since the Marlins began to offload their stars last season, Ina and Mercedes had noticed two things. First, of course, there were fewer cars. Second, the drivers did whatever the hell they wanted to. I saw a man pull onto the street, ignore Mercedes's instructions, and park directly in the middle of her front lawn. The man handed her $10 and made for the stadium.

Inside, Marlins Park was empty in a patchy, disorganized way. Section 7, which is between the visitors' dugout and right field, was about two-thirds full. Section 8, which is closer to home, was completely full. But Sections 9 and 10, which were even closer to the plate, had only one-quarter of their seats filled with real, carbon-based life forms. (As with all struggling teams, there is a discrepancy between the Marlins' reported ticket sales and their actual attendance. In April, the official count was thrown into further dispute when a woman managed to smuggle in a live raccoon.)

It was the same at the concessions. Sir Pizza ("Good to the Very Edge!") had long lines. But the poor woman manning the popcorn refill station — where you apparently could not buy a bucket of popcorn, just get a refill — had balled up her fist and was banging the back of her head to stay awake.

The Marlins have dealt with emptiness since the beginning. The franchise played its first game in 1993 and had the lowest attendance in baseball for its first decade. It was not unusual to find crowds at the old Joe Robbie Stadium as paltry as the 15,018 reported to have showed up April 30. "If this big," said Jeff Conine, the former outfielder known as "Mr. Marlin," who's now an announcer and works in the team's front office.

"I never gave it a thought," Conine said. "Obviously, you play off the energy of a bigger crowd. But it didn't affect me at all." Conine did remember one weird thing about Joe Robbie: In the emptiness, you could hear an individual heckler's voice with amazing clarity. It was like you and the heckler were at the same café and he was two tables over.

"I'm a Dominican," a fan named George Feliz told me, "and when they opened this place all the Dominicans were excited." Indeed, Marlins Park, which was built with more than $500 million in public financing, opened last April with a bang. The team had signed free agents Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle, and — what was $27 million more? — Heath Bell. Ozzie Guillen was the manager, and the reality series The Franchise was chronicling the team's first season in the new park.

Then, the deluge. The Marlins struggled to sell tickets, the team sucked, and Guillen proclaimed his admiration for Fidel Castro. (The mayor who backed the stadium, Carlos Alvarez, had already been removed in a recall election.) The Marlins would dump Reyes, Bell, and Buehrle, along with Josh Johnson, Hanley Ramirez, John Buck, and Emilio Bonifacio. After the All-Star break, Marlins Park was as ghostly as Joe Robbie. I could find only two near-sellouts at the 37,442-seat venue this spring. The first was the Dominican Republic–U.S. game at the World Baseball Classic, which came up a few thousand short. The second was the televangelist Joel Osteen's "Night of Hope," which packed the joint.

"In Northwest Miami," George said, "we were buying Jose Reyes shirts, Bonifacio, Hanley. We were spending a hundred and something dollars! Now, we're stuck with the shirts." George pointed at his friend, who'd been watching our conversation silently. "Put it this way," George said. "He came from the Dominican Republic. We came here because he wants to see David Wright."

Marlins fans had a dilemma. They could protest Loria's stinginess, and their elected officials' complicity in the public financing, by staying home. "A lot of people are upset, so they're kind of boycotting," said James Grovetzian, who was hanging out at the big bar in center field. But since Marlins tickets were basically worthless — either through the secondary market or promotions from Pepsi, Chevron, and Subway that nearly matched Shorty's prices — you could argue that fans coming to the game didn't really fatten Loria's pocketbook. By this thinking, the superior form of protest was to show up and ignore the Marlins.

That's what Julio Mallea and Ramsey Abreu had figured. They'd gotten free tickets from a friend, had watched the Mets and Marlins go 1-2-3 in the first, and then hit the concourses. Ramsey said, "We came here to have a few beers and we couldn't care less about the game."

I noted that Julio was wearing a Marlins cap. "I'm a Mets fan," Julio insisted, "but I lost my hat." Sure.

The crowd around the bar in center — where the TVs were playing TNT's NBA pregame show — had been three deep last spring. Now, Julio and Ramsey could walk right up and grab a beer. They could admire the leggy female "beauty pageant" in the concourses, which seemed to have been unaffected by the lousiness of the team.

In other words, they could treat Marlins Park like Dolphin Mall. The baseball had an apocryphal quality, and even Loria had become indistinct, like a Bond villain from three movies ago. "I dunno," Julio said, "he collects art. Let him collect art and leave us alone." Julio nodded at the giant Red Grooms installation in center, which looks like Shamu had tried her hand at pop art. "How about that hideous monstrosity?" Julio said.

The entire upper deck, an usher told me, was closed that night — a decision the Marlins made official this week. I found myself staring across the expanses of blue seats toward Section 139, in right field. I could see one man there, sitting in the front row. The section rose behind him like a Plinko board.

His name was Jim Varsalone — perfect for a solitary soul. Mr. Varsalone had brought a can of Pepsi to the box office, which got him into the stadium for $5. "This is actually better than the end of last season," he told me. "Considering what Mr. Loria did, I expected a lot worse." Varsalone wore a fishing hat with the old, teal Marlins logo, blue jeans, and a cross necklace.

It was the bottom of the ninth inning — the previous eight had played in two hours flat — and the Mets were leading 1-0. Varsalone had been here the night before, when the game lasted 15 innings and more than five and a half hours. (Stanton had gotten hurt in extras.) By the end, the stadium was practically empty.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Marlins' Chris Coghlan led off with a pinch-hit single to left. Coghlan took second on a passed ball. The scoreboard said "Make Some Noise," and we remaining stragglers put up a pretty good effort. Juan Pierre bunted Coghlan to third and wound up safe at first himself.

The Mets brought out reliever Brandon Lyon, but the Potemkin franchise wouldn't be denied. Donovan Solano hit a single the other way, tying the game and moving Pierre to third. Lyon intentionally walked Placido Polanco — if you're looking to intentionally walk a Marlin, I guess Polanco fits the bill. With the bases loaded, and the tiny Marlins fan base screaming, Lyon's first pitch got by the catcher. Pierre slid into home with the winning run.

I was the only person in Section 139 available for Varsalone to high-five. "That's three in a row!" he yelled into the emptiness. "That's three in a row! I never thought I'd say this: We won three in a row!"

The next morning, Eric Dunkley was scalping tickets over on 17th Avenue. How's business? I asked. "Shitty," Eric said. "They sold the team, man." The street was empty but for a police car that had been optimistically assigned for traffic control. A fan in a Reds hat came by clutching a couple of tickets.

"Got any extras?" Eric asked.

"How much will you pay for 'em?" the man asked.

"Pay for 'em?" Eric said.

A Marlins scalper, I learned, doesn't pay for tickets. Or doesn't pay much. Eric, like my pal Shorty, buys tickets from the Marlins' website for the group-sales rate of $1 a piece. (This explained my absurdly cheap ticket from the night before.) Then the scalper tries to flip them.

The customer is quoted an initial figure of $10. But the scalper will always take $5. By the start of the game, he will take anything so he doesn't have to eat the tickets and lose money on the bus fare back home. "Ten bucks is about as much as you can get," Eric said. "Even behind the plate. That really sucks." For Osteen's "Night of Hope," however, Eric got as much as $40 per ticket.

Besides Heat games, where it costs $150 to walk in the door (more for playoffs), Miami has turned into a scalping sewer. The Dolphins were bad business unless they were playing the Patriots. According to Eric, he'd been flying north to scalp Florida State games on Saturdays and Tampa Bay games on Sundays. The North Florida twofer could net him a couple thousand — that is, in pure profit. Of course, he had to shell out for the plane flights and $70 for a room at the HoJo.

Only tourists fell for the Marlins hustle. They — or me, the night before — would find themselves outside a new major league park and think $10 was a reasonable asking price. "If you get an out-of-towner," Eric told me, "you can get you something."

Albert Taylor, another scalper, walked up looking triumphant. Taylor had just unloaded his tickets to a sap near the Marlins' box office for — he claimed — $10 to $15 each. The box office was where the customers were, Albert said. The problem was, it was surrounded by cops. Eric headed off that way and tried to look nonchalant. "You gotta look like a fan," Albert told me. He smiled to reveal a mouthful of gold teeth.

With the Marlins, scalping had become a democratized business. While Albert and I were waiting to see how Eric made out, I met a boy named Leslie who was 16 years old but barely looked 12. "What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I sell tickets, too," Leslie said.

A man in a Heat jersey wandered over to dump an extra ticket. "I paid $40 for behind the dugout," he told Leslie. "Give me 10 right now."

"Two bucks," Leslie said.

The man grimaced and his face got red. "I'm from the Bronx," he snarled. "Don't talk to me like that."

A few minutes later, the man wandered back over and looked at Leslie. "Five bucks," he said.

Leslie looked away.

The man felt like a sap. "This owner should be shot," he told me. "Look at that beautiful stadium. Cheap bastard."

He looked again at Leslie. "Kid, I'm taking you for free. Come on. You made me feel bad." I saw Leslie and the man walk into the stadium and ride up the escalator together. The man had been whipped in the negotiation but had consoled himself with a write-off.

Albert and I discovered Eric near the box office. He'd found a mark: A thirtyish guy with two elderly relatives. He was the kind of guy who might not know the arid nature of the Marlins ticket market. The kind of guy who didn't want a lot of messy haggling in front of his loved ones. "How much?" the guy asked as he looked over the worthless tickets.

"Twenty each," Eric said optimistically.

The man gave Eric $60 bucks. Eric tried to stifle a grin.

I still needed a ticket. About that time, a man named Corey Sticco approached me. Corey had an extra. It was in Section 15 — lower level, directly behind the plate. Corey did not ask for money. He handed the ticket to me and we walked into Marlins Park together.

My scalping tally: two Marlins games. Two lower-level seats, including a one-in-a-lifetime seat behind the plate. Four bucks. Which seemed about right.

David Samson, the Marlins president, came down to Section 15 after a few innings. Samson, who is Loria's stepson, is a small, thin marathoner. His shirt was unbuttoned and he was unshaven, like one of the guys hanging in The Clevelander, the club in left field. Samson noted that he had not gone into hiding. "I don't sit at home in the fetal position sucking my thumb," he said.

It was Weather Day, where Miami schoolkids filed into the ballpark and listened to meteorologists lecture about hurricanes and other deadly forces. To continue the theme, the students stayed to watch the Marlins. "Weather Day is my least favorite day because of the foul balls," Samson said nervously. "Look at this kid right here." A kid from Citrus Grove Middle School was turned around in his seat, talking to some friends behind him. "No one's paying attention."

"Do you get emotional when you see empty seats?" I asked Samson.

"No, I'm not very emotional at all," he said. "My wife would change that about me if she could change one thing. No, it makes me work harder."

Samson had been roaming the concourses, talking to any Marlins fan who stopped him. (No one yelled, he said; true hate only came from "cyber courage.") Samson's message was delicate. No Marlins fan was going to be persuaded that dumping the team's stars, especially right after the new stadium was built, had been a noble act. So Samson had given that up right away. "I'm not trying to change their mind," he said. "I'm not even trying to have people understand."1

What Samson was trying to sell was the virtues of an empty stadium. He remembered going to Yankee Stadium during the lean years of the 1980s, when he regularly got in for 10 bucks. You didn't have to like the regime to like the access. Similarly, Samson wanted to decouple Marlins Park, which nearly everyone liked, from the Marlins owners, whom everyone hated.

Although Samson did not put it this way, he was trying to perform an exorcism on the park.

"I'm trying to make it OK to come to the ballpark and have a memory with your child," he said.

It is an opportunity, I admitted, thinking about my two seats.

"Right," Samson said, "because it's fun. That's what makes me feel the worst, if anyone's not coming because of me."

I wanted to watch the final inning of Marlins vs. Mets alone. It seemed appropriate. I made my way to Section 141, in right field, where there wasn't a single Miami bro waving for the T-shirt gun or schoolkid singing along to "Call Me Maybe." I sat there in a blue seat, without company, while the Marlins recorded their last three outs.

I thought of Ina and Mercedes, Mr. Varsalone, Eric and Shorty, and even David Samson. What a strange corner of baseball they inhabited. They are Marlins people, united by a communal experience that nobody else showed up for.

I found this article on Grantland and thought it was really good so I wanted to share it here with you guys. It's called Miami's Blue Period by Bryan Curtis

About half a block from Marlins Park, a hunchbacked stadium in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood, a scalper named Shorty spoke in a stage whisper. "Need a single?" he asked.

I did.

"Give me 10 bucks," Shorty said, cupping a crumpled ticket in his hand.

I must have looked skeptical, because Shorty played up the illicitness of our transaction. He pulled me into a parking garage. "There's a cop over there," he said.

Let the cop come, I thought. If baseball tickets were narcotics, this thing in his hand would count as "trace amounts." It had next to no value.

"I got four bucks," I said.

Shorty took the money and vanished.

I was sipping a Diet Pepsi and eating a hot dog when I realized I'd forgotten to look at the actual price on my ticket to see what kind of bargain I'd gotten. I looked. It was … one dollar.

I had overpaid.

I noted that Julio was wearing a Marlins cap. "I'm a Mets fan," Julio insisted, "but I lost my hat." Sure.

"Got any extras?" Eric asked.

"How much will you pay for 'em?" the man asked.

"Pay for 'em?" Eric said.

"I sell tickets, too," Leslie said.

A man in a Heat jersey wandered over to dump an extra ticket. "I paid $40 for behind the dugout," he told Leslie. "Give me 10 right now."

"Two bucks," Leslie said.

The man grimaced and his face got red. "I'm from the Bronx," he snarled. "Don't talk to me like that."

A few minutes later, the man wandered back over and looked at Leslie. "Five bucks," he said.

Leslie looked away.

The man felt like a sap. "This owner should be shot," he told me. "Look at that beautiful stadium. Cheap bastard."

"Twenty each," Eric said optimistically.

The man gave Eric $60 bucks. Eric tried to stifle a grin.

My scalping tally: two Marlins games. Two lower-level seats, including a one-in-a-lifetime seat behind the plate. Four bucks. Which seemed about right.

"Do you get emotional when you see empty seats?" I asked Samson.

"No, I'm not very emotional at all," he said. "My wife would change that about me if she could change one thing. No, it makes me work harder."

Although Samson did not put it this way, he was trying to perform an exorcism on the park.

"I'm trying to make it OK to come to the ballpark and have a memory with your child," he said.

It is an opportunity, I admitted, thinking about my two seats.

"Right," Samson said, "because it's fun. That's what makes me feel the worst, if anyone's not coming because of me."

Are We Being Fair to Loria?

2013-05-13T20:08:01Z

The Miami Marlins stink. There is no arguing that. The fans are upset and with good reason. We were told that if we kicked in our money, and tax dollars are OUR money, let's not forget that, that the team would be able to be competitive with a sparkling new stadium. We were told the team would spend money on talent to be competitive. That lasted about a half season before we were treated to the all too familiar Marlins salary dump.

We saw similar salary dumps after World Championships in 1997 and 2003, although the 1997 fire sale was under Wayne Huizenga. We were told those were necessary because of the stadium issues which prevented the team from selling tickets and making a profit.

So understandably, without that excuse any longer, the 2012 salary dump was met with considerable fan anger. Fans felt as if they were hoodwinked into building the Marlins and Jeffery Loria a new stadium to increase the team's value so he could sell it and make a profit, using OUR money as capital. And that is a viable point.

But as I look at the current baseball standings, I see the Toronto Blue Jays are in dead last place. Why does that matter? Because the Jays are the team that acquired most of the Marlins "talent.", Josh Johnson, Jose Reyes, Mark Buerhle and Emilio Bonafacio ended up in Toronto along with the Mets Cy Young Award winner R. A. Dickey. Where has it gotten them?

Let's also remember that the Marlins were in last place when they dumped all of these guys. Apparently this was not a fluke. If you are going to come in last place, why do it with high priced veterans who are not going to get any better? Why not start over with young guys who have a chance to improve?

This is going on all over baseball too, not just with the Blue Jays. Look at the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Angles, New York Mets, etc.

The Mets have repeatedly spent money on free agents that busted. Look at Jason Bay, Johan Santana, Pedro Martinez, the list goes on and on. Where are they?

The Angels have spent a ton on Albert Pujols and Josh Hamiliton. Where has that gotten them? How about the Dodgers with all that high priced talent in Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Zach Greinke?

It seems like the successful teams in baseball are the ones who bring up their own talent from the minor leagues or at least acquire their talent while they are still young and hungry. The Baltimore Orioles, Tampa Bay Rays, St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Nationals, and San Francisco Giants come to mind. Oh sure, you do occasionally see a Detroit Tigers or New York Yankees hit pay dirt with a Prince Fielder, Miguel Cabrera or C.C. Sabathia.

Maybe the Marlins have figured out though that those are few and far between. Maybe we should wait and see before we pass final judgment?

This is going on all over baseball too, not just with the Blue Jays. Look at the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Angles, New York Mets, etc.

The Mets have repeatedly spent money on free agents that busted. Look at Jason Bay, Johan Santana, Pedro Martinez, the list goes on and on. Where are they?

Maybe the Marlins have figured out though that those are few and far between. Maybe we should wait and see before we pass final judgment?

MinorLeagueBall.com Mock Draft - Marlins

2013-05-13T16:19:27Z

Hey Marlins fans,

Over at our sister site MinorLeagueBall.com, there is a mock draft every year where a member of the blog takes control of a team to draft. This year I am drafting as the Marlins, who are my second favorite team behind the Rays (Sorry!). I have posted a Mock Organization Draft diary over at the site that I encourage you to post your thoughts in (the link is here), or to post them in this Fan Post on Fish Stripes!

If you have any questions, or would like to be an Assistant GM, please feel free to let me know!

Hey Marlins fans,

If you have any questions, or would like to be an Assistant GM, please feel free to let me know!

Going Back to the Tigers Trade

2013-05-08T10:58:29Z

So as the losses mount, I keep thinking back to 2007. Marlins front office is still defending that trade.

Back in October, after Miggy won the first triple crown since 1967, Sportspickle.com quoted Marlins GM Michael Hill as saying that he's still confident the Marlins got the better of the deal. "Miguel Cabrera likely peaked this year. Whereas the guys we got in return have yet to do anything. You could say they're full of potential."
Oh yeah? Of the six guys the Tigers sent the Marlins, three -- Dallas Trahern, Mike Rabelo and Eulogio De La Cruz – -- got dumped without any compensation.
Let's look at the others:
Andrew Miller – traded to Boston Red Sox in 2010 in return for Dustin Richardson, who was claimed off waivers by the Braves the following year. So zero benefit there.
Burke Badenhop – traded in 2011 to Tampa Bay for Jake Jefferies, who's now with AAA New Orleans. In six minor league seasons, Jefferies has batted .250, with 10 stolen bases and 15 homers.
Cameron Maybin – traded in 2010 to Padres for Edward Mujica and Ryan Webb. Mujica, who showed considerable promise, was dumped last year to the Cards for Zack Cox, who is now playing third base at AA Jacksonville batting .328 with no homers. Ryan Webb is a run-of-the-mill bullpen guy with Marlins.

So six years after giving away Cabrera, we have ... Ryan Webb.

-- John Dorschner, MarlinsManiacs.blogspot.com

So as the losses mount, I keep thinking back to 2007. Marlins front office is still defending that trade.

-- John Dorschner, MarlinsManiacs.blogspot.com

What will be the Miami Marlins now in 2014? Rounding out the active roster

2013-05-02T20:09:40Z

We are starting with the starting infield of the near future, we have the starting infield for the near future, but there been many changes and progress of players who are no more. We have the arrival of Marcell Ozuna and the rehabilitation of Adeiny Hechavarria but more bad moves are on the way he was told or we were told of Nick Green expected designation to make room for Adeiny Hechavarria. Let's start the analysis.

Our starting First Baseman of the near future who started the season on the DL will come off the DL in the coming months. This was expected. Casey Kotchman and Joe Mahoney who are also on the DL but played for Logan Morrison. Greg Dobbs who is signed through 2013 could be expected to be free agent in 2014. Let's see what we got till end of active roster. Logan Morrison will be expected to pickup his arbitration in 2014.

1. Logan Morrison 1B L L 6'4" 235 8/25/1987 2014 Age 27

Our starting catcher of the near future Rob Brantly is already here on the active roster but the starting catcher of the near future J.T. Realmuto is struggling in the minors. His next arbitration comes in 2016, plenty of time to view.

2. Rob Brantly C L R 6'2" 188 7/14/1989 2nd Year Player 2014 Age 25

Some Marlins fans don't see it as Logan Morrison as our First Baseman, but there's a cloud of smoke appearing, some Marlins fans might see someone else at First Base. As for Second Base we have Donovan Solano he had no clear shot at Second Base with Omar Infante on the roster now he does. Instead of waiting for Avery Romero in 2016 we need to build a championship team for 2014, 2015. Probably a trade for a Second Baseman not minor league prospects who lost their way. A major league veteran. Solano arbitration doesn't come till 2016, so we must keep him till then.

3. Donovan Solano 2B R R 5'9" 190 12/17/1987 3rd Year Player 2014 Age 27

Derek Dietrich is our starting Third Baseman of the near future as we see a promotion to New Orleans in mid-minor league season. After 55 games of play Placido Polanco is 37 now we must say goodbye; for now will let him play. His major league service time hasn't started.

4. Derek Dietrich 3B L R 6'1" 200 7/17/1989 Rookie 2014 Age 25

Adeiny Hechavarria placed on the DL made some room for veteran utility infielder Nick Green and he's the player helping the team to score runs and the "lungnuts" wants to take him off the 40 Man Roster. Hechavarria is signed through 2013 his next arbitration is coming in 2016.

5. Adeiny Hechavarria SS R R 5'11" 180 4/15/1989 2nd Year Player 2014 Age 25

We have completed our starting infield of the near future. Next is the starting outfield for the near future. Don't have time to complete 2014 active roster. Have to be somewhere.

1. Logan Morrison 1B L L 6'4" 235 8/25/1987 2014 Age 27

2. Rob Brantly C L R 6'2" 188 7/14/1989 2nd Year Player 2014 Age 25

3. Donovan Solano 2B R R 5'9" 190 12/17/1987 3rd Year Player 2014 Age 27

4. Derek Dietrich 3B L R 6'1" 200 7/17/1989 Rookie 2014 Age 25

5. Adeiny Hechavarria SS R R 5'11" 180 4/15/1989 2nd Year Player 2014 Age 25

We have completed our starting infield of the near future. Next is the starting outfield for the near future. Don't have time to complete 2014 active roster. Have to be somewhere.

Time for some bold moves or hold on until reinforcements arrive?

2013-04-26T07:05:32Z

The Marlins have pretty much been a freak show up to this point in the season. The offense has been anemic while the starting pitching is holding its own. I think we can all agree that a 5-17 record is not an acceptable start to the season. Certainly there is reason for optimism considering the rash of injuries the Marlins have endured early in the season, but the major problem is a lack of depth in the upper minors and major league team. The organization can be patient and hope that the return of Morrison, Hech, Eov, Alvarez, Kotchman, and Mathis will kick start the team, but certainly they need to start thinking about making some serious changes. In this vein, I wanted to compile a list of players that are either blocked or maybe even undervalued by certain teams that could be acquired for minimal return and maybe push the team in the right direction.

Michael Taylor: Oakland A's: Taylor is off to a nice start for Sacremento. His ops is 1.111. Oakland's outfield is completely full at the moment and Taylor, at age 27, is too old to still be toiling in the minors.

Daric Barton: Oakland A's: We all know the deal with Barton. The guy takes a bunch of walks and plays good defense. The power just never seemed to show up. He's also 27 and probably doesn't fit into Oakland's plans with Moss and Smith taking on duties at DH and 1B.

Kila Ka'aihue : Diamondbacks: Kila seems to be back to his mashing ways. He is stuck behind Goldschmidt in Arizona and probably will never get a legit chance as a full-time player. He is still only 29 and the guy can hit.

Charlie Blackmon: Rockies: Blackmon has done nothing but hit throughout his career. The Rockies outfield is pretty much set so he could certainly be made available. He currently has an ops of 1.093 in AAA.

All of these players would provide, what I believe, would be an immediate upgrade over the current roster. They are older guys, but have very good track records throughout their minor league careers. Maybe it's not time to completely panic, but it's for sure time to start thinking about making this team better. What say you? Any players you would like to see the Marlins target considering their limited resources?

Other bad trades

2013-04-24T15:42:51Z

So Marlins are gearing up for a Stanton trade a la Miggy and the Tigers? And folks argue that you'll never get true value for Stanton. The radio announcers on Tuesday were discussing another disaster, one that hasn't gotten much attention: Josh Willingham. At Marlinsmaniacs.blogspot.com, i look at how Willingham was dropped in 2008 because his back was giving problems and the Marlins had a new phenom, Jeremy Hermida, to take his place.
Well, Willingham has hit about 30 HR each of the last two years, with 100 RBI. Hermida has basically vanished from the big leagues, with one homer and eight RBI, total, in the past two years.
But wait! We got some players when we traded Willingham and Scott Olsen to the Washington Nats in 2008. What happened to them? We got Jake Smolinski, now 24, a weak-hitting outfielder with no power and career minor league average of .263 who is now in AA; P.J. Dean, a pitcher who apparently has been out of organized ball for several years, and Emilio Bonifacio, dumped in the Blue Jays trade last fall.

Around the Fish Tank: Chris Hatcher

2013-04-20T20:54:10Z

Since the Fish are off to one of the most abysmal starts in MLB history lets turn our focus elsewhere. While the fish do not have the most stellar farm system there are still some bright spots. Chris Hatcher is one of those bright spots and he is closing games in New Orleans with the Marlins AAA team, the Zephyrs.

Hatcher was drafted out of UNCW in the fifth round of the 2006 amateur draft by the Marlins. Between 2006 and 2010 Hatcher spent his time calling the pitches from behind the plate instead of throwing the pitches. It was not until 2011 that Hatcher became a full time pitcher. I witnessed Hatcher play the catcher position in Greensboro and it did not surprise me when he made the move to pitcher because he had a straight canon for an arm. Hatcher has seen time with the Fish sporadically over the last three seasons without much success. Hatcher has, however, seen a great deal of success since moving to the closer role in New Orleans.

So far this season Hatcher is 5-5 in save opportunities while posting a 2.08 ERA in 8 appearances this season. He also has 9 k's to his 2 bb's. Last season Hatcher picked up 11 saves and gave up only 4 earned runs in 37 appearances giving him a 0.77 ERA. With question marks at essentially every position right now look for Hatcher to make it back with the fish this year and hopefully provide some solid innings out of the bullpen.

Alternate Blue Uniform?

2013-04-20T00:38:07Z

Does anyone think they should have a blue one? Just like on the "M" logo in the new era cap. Every time I see the Black uniforms remind me of the 2003 Marlins Alternate one. Plus, the orange one looks hideous to me. At first it looked ok but then it looks too bright. The white and grey one looks pretty good! Should they have a new different color? What are your thoughts! These are just opinions......and I like blue

2013 Marlins on track for worst team ever?

2013-04-16T11:15:53Z

Mediocrity can be boring. The Marlins aren't boring. They're not "kind of bad." They are on track maybe to be the worst team ever. On my blog, marlinsmaniacs.blogspot.com, I'm tracking them against the '62 Mets, which set the record with 120 losses. They're also right now looking good for fewest runs ever -- they're at 1.9 runs a game, lower than the record setting pace of the "dead ball" 1908 St. Louis Cards.

100 Loss Season?

2013-04-09T08:35:32Z

Some buddies were making fun of the Fish today saying they were gonna lose 100 games this season. I had to defend my team but it was with a heavy heart. I sure hope I never have to see a 100 loss season for the Fish in my lifetime. There are low points, there is rock-bottom, and then below that there is the infamous 100-loss season. I have faith we wont hit that mark. What do you guys think?

Poll

Will the Marlins lose 100 games?

Yes, sadly thats where we're heading

23 votes

No chance!

2 votes

No, but the Heat might win more games

5 votes

30 votes | Poll has closed

What is wrong with the Miami Marlins?

2013-04-04T23:03:59Z

After getting swept by the Washington Nationals. Marlins are 0-3. Well who didn't see that coming? Marlins dumped 99.98% of their talent from last season (Excluding: Giancarlo Stanton, and Steve Cishek) for a few unproved prospects and some old but worn out veterans. But Loria insists that the talent will prove. The Marlins had the talent. Josh Johnson, Jose Reyes, Mark Buerhle, Giancarlo Stanton, and Anibal Sanchez were the best players on the Marlins roster last season season. And all but one of them were traded. Why? Instead of trading your only productive players, why didn't you trade or dump the real problems? Like Mike Dunn? Heath Bell? John Buck? Or Logan Morrison? All of them did little to help the team last season. Yet Heath Bell and John Buck were then only ones traded. With a better bullpen and one to two more hitters in the lineup the 2012 Miami Marlins could have been a playoff team. But with Loria doing what he does best the dream of a playoff run was crushed for longtime fish fans. Now fans must wait many years for this talent to rise back up again. And eventually be traded away just the way Loria likes to do it. Fish fans (those that still exist) Dont get attached to these players such as Giancarlo, Jose Fernandez, and Christian Yelich. Cause knowing Loria, the second they prove themselves is the second they get traded away. And the dreaded cycle of the Marlins will continue.