Marlins Beat Angels 5-2, Improve to 33-41

        The skid is over. The Florida Marlins won 5-2 on a nice night at Sun Life Stadium. Javier Vasquez through 6 1/3 innings, and got the W in the Marlins second win of the month.

         The Marlins offense came from a solo homer by Gaby Sanchez in the first inning, an Omar Infante sac fly and rbi single, an RBI double and single for Mike Stanton. Stanton went 3-4 with 2 RBI's, a few days after being diagnosed with a right eye infection.

          For the Angels, they got both runs in the 9th off of newly called up pitcher Jose Ceda. Ceda was acquired from the Cubs in exchange for former Marlins closer Kevin Gregg. Ervin santana got the loss for the Angels, who did not have his best stuff. The Marlins cannot get Torii Hunter out, as yesterday he went 3-4 and is now 4-8 in the series against the Marlins.

          With Brad Hand being sent down to Jupiter, the Marlins will start RHP Brian Sanches for the second time this year. He pitched very well in the Marlins "bullpen" win in Los Angeles on May 30th. He will face Angels veteran starter Joel Pineiro on Wednesday night.
          
          A good day for Marlins fans as they get off the schnide and get back into the win column. Maybe Jack McKeon is the spark the Marlins needed, and the fun continues tonight at 7:10 at sun Life Stadium with Sanches v Pineiro.

Edwin out, Ol' Jack in

Rodriguez gone as Marlins skid continues

           After Saturday's loss against the Rays, the Marlins losing streak fell to 9. So did Edwin Rodriguez hopes of staying the manager. He let GM Larry Beinfest know of his resignation Sunday morning. It was respectfully accepted, and Brandon Hyde was named interim manager for the day.

           Edwin went 78-86 in his time as Marlins manager, which lasted about a year, as he was named interim manager after the Marlins fired Freddi Gonzalez after a .500 start through June. Edwin led the team to 30-20 through the first 50 games this year, and was respected by the players. He was looking set for an extension, all until this abysmal stretch the Fish have  found themselves on. In June, under Rodriguez, the Marlins were 1-17.

           After this news the Marlins needed a new interim manager, and who better than ol' Jack Mckeon? The Marlins were struggling in '03, and McKeon was named manager, and we all know what happened that year. Now, in a just as talented team full of young talent, McKeon, at the young age of 80 will try to do it again.

          This team is much better than their reecord displays. They started 30-20, and if McKeon can bring a spark to this team, and get the players attention, which he will using his experience and just the fact he is who he is, this team has a chance. McKeon is a no nonsense, old-school manager. He is not too into matchups, moreso who is playing well and ready. He showed this by benching Hanley Ramirez in his first night as skipper for arriving late to the clubhouse.

         The Marlins need a spark, and McKeon could very well be that. Today is the first day of Summer, so as McKeon said, "This team is a Summer team, not a Spring team", som fresh words for Marlins fans dying for a change and spark to get this team into playoff contention. We'll miss you Edwin, but Jack is, well, back. And hopefully the Marlins are too.

Coghlan on DL after short stint in minors

        In the midst of an 11 game losing streak and a slide in which the Fish have lost 18 of 19, some changs have been made in the recent weeks. Chris Coghlan was optioned to NOLA, and Dewayne Wise was brought up to play CF. Coghlan was then placed on the 15 day DL as of June 17th, disregarding his option. Coghlan is still in the Marlins' future plans  in my opinion, no doubt, but he is just not seeing the ball right now, and needed some work in the minors.      
       Coghlan's problems begin in his stats agains LHP. In his '09 rookie of the year season, he hit above .330 against southpaws. This year however, he is hitting below .200. His total OBP thi year is not even at .300, which is very low and not acceptable for a leadoff hitter. coghlan is a main reason the Marlins offense has been struggling. It all starts with the #1 hitter. One thing I have to give Coghlan credit for is his glove. everyone was more worried about his glove than his bat this year as he was adjusting to CF. Coghlan is a natural inflielder, who played 2B at Ole Miss. Coghlan will be back, and starting in CF next year for the Fish on opening day, book it. Keep your head up Chris.

       

Marlins lose 1st game of doubleheader in Philly; Some news

      Didn't do a full preview for today's doubleheader, I'll just be doing some wrapups. Elih Villanueva had a terrible start, giving up 8 runs in 3 innings. It again started with him walking the pitcher, that always kills Marlins pitchers. Our only run in the 8-1 loss was again on a 1st inning run, a Logan Morrison homerun. The Marlins fall to 32-35, and have now lost 5 in a row.
     
     Some moves were made after the ball game as INF Jose Lopez was recalled from AAA New Orleans, and Villanueva was sent down to AAA. I've heard from sources that Jose Lopez will be in tonight's starting lineup, playing 3B. Who knows, maybe a fresh bat that will bring some life to this team. Can't hurt.

Key stat: Jose Lopez is 7-21 with 1 HR career vs Halladay. Who knows, maybe a spark?

      One thing I find highly annoying is that the Marlins called up a minor leaguer in Elih Villanueva that had no business being here .He was only 5-4 in the minors and had been struggling. All this, basically sacrificing a game, to save a day's rest for Javier Vasquez, who is indeed a professional athlete. Especially against the Phillies in Citizens Bank Park, just a bad move in my opinion.
     
    Another tidbit, as you guys know by know is that Josh Johnson has been placed on the 60-day DL, as retro to May 15th. The Marlins expect him back right after the all-star break, maybe in that series at Wrigley Field. Ozzie Martinez was also sent back down to New Orleans. He has no business being in the MLB right now, and needs some AB's playing everyday, which he can get at AAA. Good move.
    
    Tonight's matchup, 2 men with no-hitters. Should be a good one. Anibal requested to against Halladay, I love that.

Go Fish!

Florida Marlins (32-34) @ Philadelphia Phillies (41-26) 6/14/11 Summary

Phillies homer their way past Marlins 9-1:

They say never look Cole Hamels in the eye, well the Marlins did tonight.

Notes and thoughts: 

• The Marlins got crushed tonight, losing 9-1 on a rainy night at Citizens Bank Park.
• Dom Brown, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard all homered. Brown homered twice, in fact. 
• Chris Volstad's woes against the Phillies continue. He couldn't even get through 6 IP and gave up 8 runs, all earned.
• Ryan Howard has 7 homers against Volstad in 24 AB's. That is crazy. 
• The Marlins had a good first inning, collecting 2 of their 6 total hits, and their only run of the game.
• Chris Volstad should not be in this rotation going into the future in my opinion. He just can never get it done out there. He has his moments where he pounds a hitter with his two-seamer, but he always seems to fall behind or have that one bad inning, and cost his team a chance at winning. A starter in the MLN doesn't do good everytime, but he does bad more often than not.

Key Plays:
Ryan Howard homered to left in the 1st
Chase Utley homered in the 3rd
Domonic Brown homered in the 4th
Jimmy Rollins homered in the 6th
Domonic Brown homered in the 7th
Sensing a trend? Yeah.
I don't even want to give you a link to those, so if you enjoy seeing Phillies bombs off Volstad, you can look them up. They might still be traveling?

Wrapup:
Overall a depressing game for the still skidding Florida Marlins. They fall to 32-34, the first time all season they have been 2 games under .500. A double header comes tomorrow, and some pitcher named Halladay pitches the nightcap. Ever heard of him? Pretty good. Anibal Sanchez requested Edwin to have him start against Halladay, he wants that task, which I thought was pretty nice. Preview coming tomorrow, as the Marlins lose again. Death, taxes, and a Marlins loss? Who cares, a Marlin fan at 162-0 and a Marlin fan at 0-162. Go Fish!

Stanton for Guillen?

Well, the Marlins-Phillies game has been delayed for a little while. So as I sit here waiting for the game to start, I hae to bring something up. Although Marlins sources deny it, I have heard some sources say that a Mike Stanton-Ozzie Guillen swap was discussed in the offseason? When I first heard the rumor, it was Logan Morrison for Guillen, but the more reliable one was the trade with Stanton. I wouldn't doubt it with Loria's love for the star manager, and he was a former Marlins 3rd base coach on the '03 team, but again, just a rumor. Marlins fans, can you imagine?

 FOR

Now, I hope its not true. Just pointing it out.

Also, check out http://www.marlinsdaily.com/.
A new Marlins blog by Dave Gershman. Good stuff.
Go Fish!

Florida Marlins (32-33) @ Philadelphia Phillies (40-26) 6/14/11 Preview

A classy Cole Hamels (8-2, 2.58 ERA)

 
VS

                                                                    

Chris Volstad (2-6, 5.51 ERA)


Marlins Lineup:
Florida Marlins:
1. Hanley Ramirez SS
2. Emilio Bonifacio CF
3. Logan Morrison LF
4. Gaby Sanchez 1B
5. Mike Stanton RF
6. John Buck C
7. Omar Infante 2B
8. Wes Helms 3B
9. Chris Volstad P

Pre-game notes and thoughts:

• Best Phillies pitcher this year? Go. Nope, his name is not Roy, his name is Cole. The arrival of Roy Halladay has greatly influenced Hamels career. Don't forget he was the World Series MVP at one point in time.
• While Hamels hasn't fared too well against the Fish, the pitching matchup favors the Phillies by a wide margin.
• Chris Coghlan has a .412 batting average in 17 AB's (7-17) against Hamels, yet is still benched. A very interesting move by Edwin, making a statement that Coghlan needs to get it together.
• Expect some homers in this series, as Citizens Bank Park is hardly friendly to pitchers. A Stanton bomb would be nice. But morose, a Marlins win, multiple of them, they need them.

Keys to the Game:

• For the Marlins: Volstad needs to avoid the big inning. In a ballpark like this, and an offense like the Phillies have, big innings can happen. Volstad always runs into an inning where he struggles. Marlins hitters need to get men on base against Hamels and start a rally of their own. They will need the big hit and occasional long ball to have a chance in this game and series.
• For the Phillies: Play the baseball that they have played all year. An Utley diving catch, a Howard bomb, a Halladay complete game. They are elite. If they keep the game close, or take an early lead, they will be ready to pounce on a tired Marlins bullpen if they get to it. If they get to the bullpen early, they will win this game.

Beautiful Citizens Bank Park is the setting for the biggest Marlins series of the year this far. Go Fish.

Marlins lose to Diamondbacks 12-9, fall below .500:

Ricky falters, and falls to 4-2 on the season.

Notes and thoughts: 

• The Marlins have not been under .500 since April 3rd. Well, they are tonight. After losing 12-9 in an adventerous game, the Marlins are 32-33. 
• Ricky Nolasco gave up 9 runs, 4 being unearned, and did not fool anyone. He only lasted 3 innings. 
• The bullpen was worked, but they did an effective job. Giving up only 3 runs in 6 innings.
• Why does Kirk Gibson always look so sad? He is a solid manager though. That team has a nice core, and a solid future.

Key Plays:
In a 4 run fourth, Miguel Montero had a 3-run double.
Zach Duke hit a 2-run HR in a 5 run 3rd.
Omar Infante had a 2-run double
Gerardo Parra nailed Bonifacio at the plate after an Infante single.
Mike Stanton added an RBI single, and had a 2-run double.
John Buck had a 2-run single.
Key Plays

Wrapup:
On a night where the Marlins had the most hits and runs they have scored this season, they lose. Isn't baseball a beautiful sport? They fall 7.5 behind the Phils, and they need to gain some games to have a chance. How do they do that? They beat the Phils. A HUGE 4 game series is among them as 4 games will be played at Citizens Bank Park in a span of 48 hours. While it is early in the season, this series may make or break their season.

Arizona Diamondbacks (36-30) @ Florida Marlins (32-32) 6/13/11 Preview



Zach Duke (1-1, 2.37 ERA)

 


                                                                    
VS

Ricky Nolasco (4-1, 3.98 ERA)



Marlins Lineup:
Florida Marlins:
1. Emilio Bonifacio SS
2. Omar Infante 2B
3. Logan Morrison LF
4. Gaby Sanchez 1B
5. Mike Stanton RF
6. John Buck C
7. Wes Helms 3B
8. Chris Coghlan CF
9. Ricky Nolasco P

Pre-game notes and thoughts:

• I posted a picture of Zach Duke in a Pirates jersey for good luck. Why? Because in his career with the Pirates against the Marlins, he was 0-5 with a 6.49 ERA.
• In Ricky Nolasco's 6 career starts vs Arizona, he has won 5 of those decisions. So on paper, this matchup looks promising for Florida, knock on wood.
• The Marlins need to stay above .500. IF we want to have a chance at the WC, we have to take it one game at a time.
• The Marlins need to hit better with RISP, and maybe add some more homers.

Keys to the Game:

• For the Marlins: Hit with RISP! The Marlins left 13 guys on base yesterday and went 0-8 with RISP. If they add it in a homer or two, it will help propel the offense. Ricky needs to go at least 7 innings, and save the Marlins bullpen. No Leo Nunez until Philly, which is a good thing in my eyes, Cishek for closer!
• For the Diamondbacks: Zach Duke needs to do what his teammates Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson did. Keep the Marlins off balance with RISP and limit the runs. Their bullpen, unlike the Marlins, is not overworked, due to Kennedy and Hudson going 8 and 6 innings respectively. The Diamondbacks will have Kelly Johnson back in the lineup, and they need Johnson and Upton to get hot again in order to get this offense hot and get the win tonight.

The Problem with All-Star Voting

Last year, Braves 2B Omar Infante was putting up great numbers. Even eith these numbers, he was not selected for the all-star game, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, who was the NL manager, chose Omar to be on the team. Ofcourse Infante is a Marlins this year, and even though he is not worthy of a nod this year, even if he was hitting 40 HR's, he would not be in the all-star game, why? Because he is a Marlin.While Hanley Ramirez has made it 3 years, it is because he has been proven as a star, but the point of the all-star game is to get guys that have earned it that specific year, but it is based on popularity, just like a high-school election. This seems to eliminate Marlins players as a whole because of their small market. But two players this year deserve it, Mike Stanton and Gaby Sanchez. Gaby Sanchez has been in the top 10 in NL stats all year, and Mike Stanton is in the top 5 of HR's and slugging %. Stanton nor Sanchez are listed on the top 10 or 5 respectively in their respective positions. It's sad. So Marlins fans, vote for our two studs, and get them some recognition. Not to mention what Stanton would do in the home run derby.

Preview coming soon for the game against Arizona.

Arizona Diamondbacks (36-30) @ Florida Marlins (32-32) 6/12/11 Summary

Marlins lose to Diamondbacks 5-1, fall to 32-32:

Every time I tried to find a picture of Brad Hand, Brad Pitt kept popping up, so here is a picture of him after a pitiful game at Sun Life Stadium. Sponsored by Marlins manager Edwin Rodriguez?

Notes and thoughts: 

• Thank god for the new Marlins ballpark. The game got soggy in the late innings as the Fish fell to .500 on the season. 
• Brad Hand was unimpressive, giving up 4 runs in 5 innings. Not terrible, but way too much when your offense only gets you 1 run in the entire game.
• In fact, wen Brad Hand has been on the mound, in 11 combined innings, the Marlins hitters have given Brad 0 runs in support. 
• Daniel Hudson was solid, but not overpowering. He had 8 K's, but the Marlins had a baserunner every inning. 
• The struggles with RISP continued, as the Fish were 0-8 and left 13 guys on base. 
• Mike Stanton,, my boy, had a rough day, going 0-5. He had a guy in scoring position his first four times up there. Oh well, with his bombs, come his bad games. 
• Uhh, Steve Cishek, boss. 

Key Plays:
In the 1st, Stephen Drew drove in 2 with a double.
In the 3rd, Ryan Roberts homered again, his 3rd time against the Marlins already this year.
In the 7th, Gaby Sanchez had a sac fly to drive in Coghlan, but the Marlins failed to score anymore after having the bases loaded with no outs.
Yeah, 3 key plays, not an exciting game today.

Wrapup:
Average. That's what the Marlins record is now. An exact .500 record, at 32-32, after they have gone 2-12 in their last 14. What happened to this team after the sweep in SF? We are now 7 GB behind the Phils, and 5 back in the WC. This series with Philly is huge, and one of the starters in the doubleheader may be a guy in the minors as I type, yikes. Well, just take it one game at a time. ARI tomorrow, Rich and Tommy will call it beautifully as usual. Go Fish.

Arizona Diamondbacks (35-30) @ Florida Marlins (32-31) 6/12/11 Preview

Daniel Hudson (6-5, 3.98 ERA)

 VS

Brad Hand (0-1, 1.50 ERA)

Marlins Lineup:
1. Chris Coghlan CF
2. Omar Infante 2B
3. Logan Morrison LF
4. Gaby Sanchez 1B
5. Mike Stanton RF
6. Greg Dobbs 3B
7. Emilio Bonifacio SS
8. Brett Hayes C
9. Brad Hand P

Pre-game notes and thoughts: 

• Brad Hand gets his 2nd career start after his brilliant start vs Atlanta. It was a shame he got the loss, as he only gave up 1 hit in 6 innings. Maybe he should teach Javier Vasquez how to pitch?
• Daniel Hudson has pitched well for Arizona this year. He stands at 6-5, and comes of a 7 IP, 1 ER performance.
• Brett Hayes gets the start for the Marlins at catcher, giving Buck a day off. Emilio stays at SS, so the lineup is pretty familiar.  
• The Marlins need to stay away from being .500, they have not been since they were 5-5 in April. 

Keys to the Game:

• For the Marlins:Get a good start from Brad Hand. He won't give up only 1 hit every game, but if he can go another solid 6 innings, the Marlins chances skyrocket. As far as hitting, the MArlins need to keep doing what they are doing, but come through in situations with a guy on 3rd and less than 1 out. A Mike Stanton homer won't hurt either. I will say Infante and Stanton homer today.
• For the Diamondbacks:Hudson needs to keep doing what he is doing. Kelly Johnson, Gerardo Parra, and Miguel Montero all get the day off, so they need their backups like Melvin Mora to bring a splash to the lineup. 
• If the DBacks score more than 5 runs, they will most likely win. If we can keep them to about 3-4 runs, I think we have this one. 1:10 start time: Go Fish!

Arizona Diamondbacks (35-30) @ Florida Marlins (32-31) 6/11/11 Summary

Marlins lose to Diamondbacks 9-5, fall to 32-31:

Stanton homers again, but Marlins fall 9-5.

Notes and thoughts: 

• Well, on a rain delayed game in Miami, the Marlins dropped a bad loss against the Diamondbacks, falling 9-5. 
• Javier Vasquez looked promising, striking out 6 through 3, but fell apart in the 4th. He ended up going only 3 2/3 innings, giving up 7 earned runs. He now has an ERA over 7.00, the only SP with a 7.00+ ERA with at least 10 starts. 
• I feel Edwin needs to look into finding a different option at starter, Vasquez just is not cutting it. Good thing he is only a 1 year contract.
• As far as hitting, the Marlins started solid, getting a leadoff homer from Coghlan, and a RBI triple from LoMo in the 3rd. Gaby and Stanton added bombs, their 11th and 16th, respectively. 
• The Marlins need to win the next 2. 6 games behind the Phillies is scary; they may need to look into the WC mainly. 

Key Plays:
In the 1st inning Ryan Roberts homered to right.
In the 1st inning Chris Coghlan homered to right.
In a 6 run 4th, Javy walked Ian Kennedy leading to a Ryan Roberts walk with the bases loaded, making it 3-2.
In the biggest play of the game, Kelly Johnson cleared the bases with double. DBacks up 6-2.
Justin Upton added an RBI double to make it 7-2.
Gaby added a 2-run HR in the 5th, making it 7-4.
Next batter, Stanton launched a solo HR.
All key highlights can be seen here

Wrapup:
Well, the Marlins fall to 32-31.
MVP of the game was Ian Kennedy. He went 8 strong innings and after the Stanton homer, he retired 10 straight batters. Prediction: Stanton will lead the MLB in homers after the season is over. Man is a beast. Brad Hand starts tomorrow for Florida, a must win in my opinion. Preview will come sometime tomorrow. Fish lose, but keep your heads up, its a long season. However, taking 3 of 4 from Arizona before heading up to Philly would be ideal.

Arizona Diamondbacks (34-30) @ Florida Marlins (32-30) 6/11/10 Preview



Ian Kennedy
(6-2, 3.01 ERA)

 




                                                                    
VS




Javier Vasquez
(3-5, 6.50 ERA)

Marlins Lineup:
Florida Marlins:
1. Chris Coghlan CF
2. Omar Infante 2B
3. Logan Morrison LF
4. Gaby Sanchez 1B
5. Mike Stanton RF
6. Greg Dobbs 3B
7. John Buck C
8. Emilio Bonifacio SS
9. Javier Vasquez P

Pre-game notes and thoughts:

• Javier Vasquez had a rough start last Monday v Milwaukee. He allowed a big 3-run HR o Prince Fielder in the Marlins 7-2 loss. The Marlins only non 1-run loss in their 8 game slide.
• In Javy's last start against Arizona, he was crusing into the 6th, until allowing a 2-run HR to Ryan Roberts. The DBacks went on to win the game 6-5.
• Ian Kennedy is having a solid year for Arizona, but gave up 3 ER in 5 IP last week against the Fish. In his career he is 1-1 with a 4.35 ERA in 2 career starts against Florida.
• John Buck has been hot recently as he has a 5 game hitting streak. He has seen sucees batting 6th behind Mike Stanton. The two went back-to-back last night and almost went back-to-back on Thursday.

Keys to the Game:

• For the Marlins: Javier Vasquez has to go at least 6 innings effectively. In Javy's starts, he has given up most of his runs in the 1st inning. If Javy goes 6 strong, unlike his last start vs Ari when he gave up a HR in the 6th to deflate the lead, the Marlins chances go way up. Offensively, hitting effectively with RISP is key. The Marlins also have a great record when they hit HR's, so a bmb by Stanton would help as well.
• For the Diamondbacks: Ian Kennedy needs to keep up what he is doing. He has a 3.01 ERA which is 2nd best on the Diamondbacks staff. He needs to keep the Marlins hitters off balance and keep the ball in the ballpark. The offense needs to rely less on homers, and start to manufacture runs against Javy, especially early in the game where he is vulnerable.

Arizona Diamondbacks (34-30) @ Florida Marlins (32-30) 6/10/11 Summary

Notes and thoughts:

• On a beautiful night at Sun Life Stadium the Florida Marlins beat the Arizona DBacks by a score of 6-4.
• Well, my score prediction was dead on. Pretty sure that will never happen again. But that's exciting.
• The lineup was tweaked as Bonifacio was put in for Coghlan in CF. He had 2 doubles and a walk, and made a nice defensive play late in the game. Wes Helms was the only starter without a hit.
• I really like what Edwin did tonight. I am glad Cishek got the save, I like that guy. the one thing I did not like is bringing Dunn in in the 7th.
• Anibal gets the W, bringing him to 6-1, and Joe Saunders gets the L, bringing him to 3-6.

Key Plays:
In the 1st inning Logan Morrison homered to right:
Logan Morrison 2-run HR
In the 6th inning Mike Stanton hit a 2-run bomb, his 15th of the year:
Mike Stanton 2-run HR
John Buck followed Stanton with a HR of his own:
John Buck Solo HR
Miguel Montero hit a 2 run HR in the 7th:
Miguel Montero goes deep
Xavier Nady goes back-to-back with Montero, making the score 5-4:
Xavier Nady HR

Wrapup:
So, the Marlins get off the losing streak and bring their record to 32-30.
Phillies beat the Cubs, and as I type the Braves are hammering the Astros. So the Marlins won't gain any ground in the East or the WC, but the win should jumpstart this team. Go Fish. Preview for the Marlins-DBacks game coming up tommorrow.

Hanley Ramirez to begin rehab assignment Friday

According to many sources, Marlins SS Hanley Ramirez will begin his rehab assignment for class A Jupiter tonight. Tonight he will be the DH, but tomorrow when the Hammerheads play in St. Lucie, Ramirez will play SS. The Marlins hope for their all-star shortstop to be back for their series next week @Philadelphia.

Arizona Diamondbacks (34-29) @ Florida Marlins (31-30) 6/10/11 Preview



Joe Saunders
(3-5, 4.32 ERA)



                                                                    
VS

Anibal Sanchez
(5-1, 2.97 ERA)

 Lineups:
Arizona Diamondbacks:
Unannounced
Florida Marlins:
1. Emilio Bonifacio CF
2. Omar Infante 2B
3. Logan Morrison 1B
4. Gaby Sanchez 1B
5. Mike Stanton RF
6. John Buck C
7. Wes Helms 3B
8. Ozzie Martinez SS
9. Anibal Sanchez P

Pre-game notes and thoughts:

• Anibal Sanchez goes against the team he threwhis no-hitter against in 2006. Anibal comes off a rough start against the Brewers where he gave up 8 hits and 5 runs in 5 IP.
• Anibal has a higher ERA at home with a 3.03 earned run average, but is 2-0 on the season at Sun Life Stadium, opposed to a 3-1 record away from home. He has posted a 2.93 ERA away from Sun Life.
• Joe Saunders faced the Marlins once this season and got the win. He gets a lot of double play balls, in fact he has the 2nd most double play balls since 2008.
• Anibal comes off a gem against the DBacks, throwing 8 great innings and only offering up HR's to Justin Upton and Kelly Johnson. 2 runs allowed in 8, I'm sure Edwin will take that again. This start was in fact the last Marlins win.

Keys to the Game:

• For the Marlins: Keep Kelly Johnson and Justin Upton off the basepaths. Johnson was 6-12 with 3 HR in the last series meeting betweeen the two, while Upton was 8-14 with 2 HR. You have to let someone else beat you. As far as hitting, the Marlins need to come through with hits with RISP.
• For the Diamondbacks: Saunders needs ground balls and needs to keep the Marlins hitters off balance. Saunders does not have over powering stuff, but can be effective with his control. On the hitting side, the Diamondbacks need help from the bottom of the order. If men are on for Johnson and Upton, Arizona is hard to beat.

Prediction:
Marlins win 6-4.

Checking In

Hey guys, my name is Kyle and I am a huge Marlins fan. Checking in here to my blog the Marlins are currently on a 8 game losing streak and stand at 31-30, 3rd in the NL East. A little summary of our season thus far:
Coghlan: Has not had the best of years. Has hit a ton of doubles however. I would like the K's down, and the avg up, especially for hiom being the leadoff hitter. his defense has been A+ even though he has a noodle. Infante: Defense is superb. Hitting has been getting hot. I like him, he puts good AB's o...ut there, and is a good vet. I love the trade right now. He's cheaper, and playing better than Uggla.
Hanley: My friend's friend is the shoe cleaning guy for the Fish, and he says that everyone on the team does not like Hanley and he is a jerk. I believe that, and with him struggling with both the bat and the glove, I find him falling on my favorite players list. Really dissapointed by his leadership and play thus far. I'll tell you one thing, though. He is probably the biggest factor on if we make the playoffs or not.
Gaby: Has been our best hitter all year. I love his approach. I think he is the biggest leader on this team, and his glove is also vastly improved. He better make the all-star team.
LoMo: they call him 2-0 LoMo. Watch his AB's and you will always find him up 2-0. His approach is second to none and he is only 23! Love him going into the future.
Dobbs: Without Dobbs, we are under .500. With Murphy being a bust, and Boni not a guy you want starting at 3B everyday, Dobbs has been a lifesaver. It's simple for me, start Dobbs v LHP and Boni v RHP. NO HELMS.
Stanton: I love this dude. Absolutely love him. Needs to strikeout less. He is the type of player that you can tell what type of game he is going to have right off the get-go. When he is on, this team is hard to beat. I say 37 HR's for the year.
Buck: He has struggled with his average all year, but I have noticed he is clutch at the plate in tight games. Love what he has done for the pitching staff. He has been huge for Leo Nunez especially.
JJ: Dude is a monster. We need huim back healthy. some say it doesn';t matter cause he only plays every 5 days, but look where we have been heading without him activated.
Anibal/Ricky: Have been great #2 options. Anibal has been better this year in my opinion, but Ricky has been dazzling himself. If we make the playoffs, it will be a 3 man rotation with these 2 and JJ.
Bullpen: I love Cishek, Sanches, Badenhop, Choate, and most of the time Mike Dunn. Ryan Webb makes me nervous, but he has good stuff. Leo makes me cry sometimes, but has been a huge improvement.
Great job by Edwin thus far, and if we make the playoffs, he should be a choice for manager of the year.
I predict we finish 88-74. Whether we win WC with that, I don't know. All I know is we have a bright future.
Before each game I will have a preview and a prediction, and after as summary will be posted. Hope you guys like it and follow.