Posted on 06/19/2006 3:48:14 PM PDT by FlJoePa
Marlins turn it around
By TIM REYNOLDS
MIAMI (AP) - Joe Girardi is as surprised as anyone.
"I knew we would play better," the Florida Marlins' rookie manager said, "but I did not expect this." He's surely not alone. No one could have expected this - a four-week run where the untried, rebuilding and rookie-loaded Marlins were the hottest team in baseball.
Led by a bunch of relative unknowns, the Marlins are 18-6 in their last 24 games and have climbed out of last place in the National League East. Josh Johnson leads the majors with a 2.01 earned-run average. Dan Uggla has 12 home runs. Scott Olsen has won four consecutive starts.
Who, exactly, are these guys?
They're the future, which right now is looking pretty good.
"I just like how, regardless of how we were playing, we were still coming in and working hard and still believing," said left-hander Dontrelle Willis, who was second in the NL Cy Young award voting last year but is off to a 3-6 start in 2006. "Now it's starting to pay off."
Willis and third baseman Miguel Cabrera - among the NL leaders with a .342 average, 83 hits and 23 doubles - came into this year as the veterans of sorts in the Marlins' clubhouse.
Never mind that Willis is still only 24 and Cabrera just 23, they are the sages on a team that split with Carlos Delgado, Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, Alex Gonzalez, Juan Pierre, Todd Jones and Luis Castillo from last year's team - slicing $45 million US in payroll, down to a major league-low $15 million in 2006.
But a bunch of guys getting their first chance at being major-league regulars - like Johnson, Uggla, Mike Jacobs (.273) and Hanley Ramirez (.268, 20 stolen bases) - are making the most of their opportunity.
"When you've got young guys, rookies, they always want to prove themselves," Girardi said. "It's like they need to show themselves that they can really play on this level."
If there was doubt, it's starting to be erased.
"I don't think in this game you can catch anyone off guard," Uggla said. "People in the game know who's a good team and who's not.
"We can see who can play and who cannot. At this level, very few people can't play."
The Marlins were 11-31 on May 21, losers of seven straight. They beat the Chicago Cubs 9-1 the next day, and the roll hasn't stopped since. Postseason tickets probably aren't being printed yet, but there's a clear sense of confidence accompanying Florida's current eight-game winning streak - one shy of the team record.
During this 24-game run, Florida has outscored opponents 117-74, is 8-2 in games decided by two runs or less, and has a team ERA of 2.82.
"It all starts with starting pitching," Girardi said. "When you've got that, you've got a chance."
And in the eight-game winning streak, the Marlins' numbers are even better. Team ERA: 1.85. Batting average: .279. Run differential: 37-16.
Florida went 6-0 on its homestand that ended Sunday, capped by a win over Toronto's Roy Halladay - who was 8-1 coming into the Marlins-Blue Jays series finale. Halladay was OK on Sunday, giving up four runs in six innings and striking out seven. But Johnson was better - yielding one run in 5 2-3 innings.
Since moving into the starting rotation in early May, Johnson is 5-2 with a 1.63 ERA. And over his last five starts, he's beaten some of the game's top aces: Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz and now Halladay.
"Even when things were bad, this team knew it would get better," said the six-foot-seven Johnson. "And now it's getting better. It's coming together for us."
Hard as it may be to believe, the Marlins were only 3 1/2 games out of second place in the NL East entering Monday's play. They were a half-game behind Washington for third - and maybe in the most stunning development of all, were a game ahead of Atlanta, the perennial division champion that has sunk to last.
True, they are just 29-37. But, finally, there's reason for hope.
"It means a lot," Uggla said. "You put that much effort into a ballgame, you want to win it.
"Putting a streak together like we've put together is pretty special."
There are FOUR Yankees with salaries that exceed the Marlins' entire payroll. The average age of their starting lineup is usually around 24 years old, depending on who is pitching.
I expect them to keep playing well. They got very good value with the trades they made (just as they did after the 1997 season) and should contend for another World Series Championship in just a few years imo.
Also not mentioned in the article: the Marlins have won more championships in the last 10 years than the Mets.
Minor correction: The Marlins have won TWO more Championships in the last TWENTY years than have the Mets.
That sounds better.
You are quoting John Zacherley:
My Twinks have put together an impressive string of wins also, too bad it won'tt be enough to catch the leaders.
In 2000-2001 when they had a very exciting young team, I'd love to go watch them. But you could just about count the attendance yourself. They'd announce 10,000 or something, but I swear, there wouldn't be 1,000 in the stands.
No, 1 vs. 2 (Mets won in '86--how could you forget?)
I spent some time in Miami in 2004 and went to a few Marlins games. The place was always half-empty on a night when Dontrelle Willis wasn't pitching.
That's really sad. Dontrelle is fun to watch, to be sure, but so are some of the other players, and I'd expect support for the team overall to be better in a place like Miami, which should be a good baseball town.
I'm hoping they move to Portland, for selfish reasons, but that's not looking very promising at this point.
And the Dodgers...
In fact, talk about insult to injury...forget the Marlins...the Angels have won more playoff series in the last four seasons (four), than have the Dodgers in the last 18! (none) And their manager, Mike Scioscia, was the Dodgers starting catcher the last time they won a playoff series (the WS, against Oakland)
Extra knowledge...the Dodgers have won only one playoff game in the 18 years since winning it all in 1988...it was Game 3 of the 2004 division series against St. Louis. Jose Lima, of all people, was the winning pitcher.
Used to love it when they would have him on the "Today Show" (Dave Garaway days) as a Halloween guest and he would have them all in stitches by about halfway through the segment.
Met him at a "Chiller Theatre" Expo in Jersey some years back. Really nice guy!
But the Mets are supposed to be winning. They are an awesome team from top to bottom. The Marlins were dismantled and stocked with Rookies (except for D-Train and Cabrera). They were supposed to be awful. Now it turns out they're not half-bad. I wouldn't worry about them winning the division, but the mere fact that they are winning at all is impressive.
I also pull for the Devil Rays to do well. They won't win a pennant, but they make contending teams work hard to beat them.
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