charlie 3Florida Marlins
March 4th 2010 15:15
Is it finally time for Florida Marlin fans to celebrate. Previously when contracts got to be too much they would send them on their way out of town. Even with that they were in the top 5 in runs last year. Marlins signed free agents in the offseason as well, but only to minor league deals.
The big question for the Marlins is who will be at the corners. Cantu and Sanchez are your starters if the season was to start today. Morrison and Jimenez still have a month to prove their worth before opening day at the Mets. Jimenez, with a month of Spring Training has the upper hand being that he is a lefty on a squad lacking left handed bats.
There is a 22 year old that has the starting CF job that only he can have taken away from him. Cameron Maybin is who i am talking about, last year he struck out 31 times before being demoted to AAA. Called back up to the Marlins in September he showed revised discipline and pitch recognition. Maybin showed that he made improvements that will keep him a starter.
The Marlins rotation will be flexible and has a lot of room to grow. You will see the same young and tall cast as last year. At least 4 guys have a shot to take the fourth and fifth spots in the rotation. Volsatd is a solid 3 or 4, while Miller has blazing stuff to round out the rotation. There is no guarantee that they will all live up tp their hype though. Only Sanchez last year had an ERA better than 4.30. When needed the bullpen can close but are not that shut em down unit. Nunez will be the closer for now. Turnbow and McClung will be good backup plans if Nunez stuggles in the closing roll.
Projected Lineup
1 LF Chris Coghlan .321 Batting average 2009
2 C John Baker Fourth-best OPS (.776) among N.L. catchers
3 SS Hanley Ramirez 106 RBI in 2009
4 3B Jorge Cantu Only player with 100 RBI but fewer than 20 HRs
5 2B Dan Uggla 31 HRs in 2009
6 RF Cody Ross 34 BBs in 604 PAs in 2009
7 1B Gaby Sanchez .828 OPS in 2009
8 CF Cameron Maybin .319 AVG in AAA
Projected Rotation
1 RHP Josh Johnson 15-5 3.23 ERA in 2009
2 RHP Ricky Nolasco ERA shot from 3.52 to 5.06
3 RHP Anibal Sanchez 3.87 ERA with 37 ER
4 LHP Sean West 4.79 ERA as rookie
5 LHP Andrew Miller 59 SO and 6.64 K/9
Prediction: The Marlins have two winning seasons under manger Fredi Gonzalez desipt payroll that is at the bottom of the league. Development and who starts at first base are keys to how far they will go. Jimenez could stick as a left handed bat off the bench. A pitcher other than Johnson and Nolasco have to step up this season. Signing MacDougal boosts and already solid bullpen. I think the Marlins are a year away from contending for any kind of playoff spot. Continued improvement is what i see in their future but no 2010 playoffs. 19 games out of the East with a 80-82 record.
Tomarrow: Mets
The big question for the Marlins is who will be at the corners. Cantu and Sanchez are your starters if the season was to start today. Morrison and Jimenez still have a month to prove their worth before opening day at the Mets. Jimenez, with a month of Spring Training has the upper hand being that he is a lefty on a squad lacking left handed bats.
There is a 22 year old that has the starting CF job that only he can have taken away from him. Cameron Maybin is who i am talking about, last year he struck out 31 times before being demoted to AAA. Called back up to the Marlins in September he showed revised discipline and pitch recognition. Maybin showed that he made improvements that will keep him a starter.
The Marlins rotation will be flexible and has a lot of room to grow. You will see the same young and tall cast as last year. At least 4 guys have a shot to take the fourth and fifth spots in the rotation. Volsatd is a solid 3 or 4, while Miller has blazing stuff to round out the rotation. There is no guarantee that they will all live up tp their hype though. Only Sanchez last year had an ERA better than 4.30. When needed the bullpen can close but are not that shut em down unit. Nunez will be the closer for now. Turnbow and McClung will be good backup plans if Nunez stuggles in the closing roll.
Projected Lineup
1 LF Chris Coghlan .321 Batting average 2009
2 C John Baker Fourth-best OPS (.776) among N.L. catchers
4 3B Jorge Cantu Only player with 100 RBI but fewer than 20 HRs
5 2B Dan Uggla 31 HRs in 2009
6 RF Cody Ross 34 BBs in 604 PAs in 2009
7 1B Gaby Sanchez .828 OPS in 2009
8 CF Cameron Maybin .319 AVG in AAA
Projected Rotation
1 RHP Josh Johnson 15-5 3.23 ERA in 2009
2 RHP Ricky Nolasco ERA shot from 3.52 to 5.06
3 RHP Anibal Sanchez 3.87 ERA with 37 ER
4 LHP Sean West 4.79 ERA as rookie
5 LHP Andrew Miller 59 SO and 6.64 K/9
Prediction: The Marlins have two winning seasons under manger Fredi Gonzalez desipt payroll that is at the bottom of the league. Development and who starts at first base are keys to how far they will go. Jimenez could stick as a left handed bat off the bench. A pitcher other than Johnson and Nolasco have to step up this season. Signing MacDougal boosts and already solid bullpen. I think the Marlins are a year away from contending for any kind of playoff spot. Continued improvement is what i see in their future but no 2010 playoffs. 19 games out of the East with a 80-82 record.
Tomarrow: Mets
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