Sirspud

I think the Cubs organization comes off like a douche for fielding the teams they did the last couple of years.

I will always remember the date. It was the last time any of my favorite sports teams won a championship. It was really the first time in my adult life. But it wasn't just the Marlins victory that occurred on this day. This was also the day that my sister entered into marriage with a wonderful man, a man who initially the family had a hard time accepting for reasons difficult to summarize. We later realized that despite our misgivings, my sister truly loved this man, and despite his faults he was an exceptionally caring and loving man who would rest at nothing to make her happy. He became a beloved member of the family, and the one man that I could say without a doubt would be there if you needed something. He has been a tremendous father to the two children they have birthed. After joyously enjoying the first wedding of my adult life, the first time I got to see a close friend or sibling married, numerous extended family retired to our home to watch the world series with us. It was an amazing experience getting to celebrate both events at the same time. On Monday morning my sister's husband passed in a manner that initially appeared to be a suicide but, given some serious medical issues he was having, may have actually been a horrific accident suffered due to a severe seizure (the coroner has yet to make a ruling pending a great deal more evidence being collected, but much of it points towards the latter). This is perhaps the most difficult thing I've ever experienced in my life. His character was beyond question, and in its own way my sister's family was a fairytale romance. I can't imagine any man ever being a better love for my sister, or a better father for my niece and nephew. This tragedy has brought me back to the time when they officially became a family. A time when my life was much different, and a time when I was still relatively in my youth, of which the Marlins were such a big part. I never thought I could love the Marlins again, after the way the organization has practically abused its fan, and after the FLORIDA Marlins, with their teal color and an awkward but colorful stadium, seized to exist, but I really want to love the Marlins again. To do so would bring back a small part of a life that I will never get back. If even 11 years later and well into adulthood my youth still wasn't really dead, it died when my sister's husband left behind two children and a sister who will need my constant love, support, and participation in their lives to make it through. I want that connection with my youth, which was also connected with the Marlins winning (at least at one point), and in their first couple games I've seen a spark that probably won't be sustained, but still shows that this club has potential if the players can player up to that. I know it is wishful thinking, but it would be magical if the Marlins could have a meaningful season. I've been watching games, reading box scores, and all the like every time the Marlins play, which I haven't done in some time. I know this post is less about the Marlins and more about my personal loss, but I wanted to share this personal story. I doubt any of you could imagine that baseball could take on such an emotional significance, but there is something cathartic about rooting for the Marlins to win in hopes that it will make this whole shocking and devastating tragedy make a little more sense.

At least we know the defense is going to suck on opening day.

f***ing hell. I can't believe we're going to have Solano to start the season. How long do broken hands take to heal? A lot longer that you think, considering I broke mine almost 2 months ago and just now out of a cast that didn't even allow my thumb to move. I'm still looking at another 2 1/2 weeks before I can assume unrestricted duty. The doctor told me I was a fast healer. It all has to do with blood supply. A larger bone is sure to have better blood flow than many in the hand, which can be rather spotty.

I am in no way making this statement to be argumentative, but is Marisnick's ceiling higher? Other than Marisnick's spring being better his minor league line over 4 seasons is .280/.351/.446 (.797 OPS) while Ozuna who started playing at 17 years old in 6 seasons has a .274/.333/.820 with much more power. I'm not sure if Marisnick is actually better than Ozuna. But this is baseball. Don't you understand that even with the game being the most easily quantified in the world, perception matters more than anything else when it comes to prospects? I'm still waiting on Cameron Maybin to become a superstar. He's gonna make that Miguel Cabrera trade look awesome.

But what if their hitting coach instructs to hit to the gaps? We're doomed. Bigger dimensions make it easier for outfielders to track down balls. Since the fence is further, fielders can go at full speed for longer without having to worry about running into a fence. Any way you slice it, a higher percentage of well hit balls still end up in fielders gloves, and some that don't still end up being only worth a double instead of a run.

Only thing the marlins will have sleeping is their offense. When your park is the size of some national parks, it doesn't take much to make a pitcher look competent.

I was mentioning to my wife that I had never seen Stanton connect in a game when I was at. Not anymore.

That team had no chance of succeeding even if everyone was healthy. The problem wasn't as much injuries as it was players they paid high dollar for absolutely sucking. They also would have had a better chance if the squad they got in 2006 had been managed better. The timing of those players going through arbitration and FA wasn't good with the stadium opening date, and we traded many of those guys for insignificant returns while we extended a select few who didn't live up to it. The most notable guys were an extremely injury prone, overrated starting pitcher who rarely could go long in games due to command issues, and a guy whose work ethic was a concern and who was a very good component of a lineup without ever becoming a guy who could carry a lineup.

The trade wasn't the problem Not re-investing into the team was the problem - which they still haven't done Yep, the Marlins made trades like these to save money alone. Loria & Co. may pass these off as baseball moves, and in their warped minds it may be. As far as they see it, they weren't going to win with talent that was getting paid, so they might as well save money if they aren't going to win.

Seeings as the Marlins regularly fail to field major league caliber players in the regular season, they are the last team that should complain about this, but I don't mind that someone called out a team on not honoring that rule. After all, it's there so that fans who are still paying to see the game get what they paid for. And for those saying they "still saw baseball", I'm sorry, but I can see baseball at a high school or even at the single A team a mile from where I live. If I pay for major league, that's what I want to see.

The only reason I can see for Trout turning down that kind of money from the Angels is that the last few times they paid that kind of money, it hasn't worked out so well. Trout only has to look at Grady Sizemore to see what can happen down the road. I remember some who believed that he was the best player in baseball years ago, but a lot of good that's done for him in recent years.

So Matt Lindstrom all over again. I thought the reliever panic attacks were gone once Heath Bell/Kevin Gregg were sent packing. I now know it's never over. Some of the results may be similar, but Matt Lindstrom was a 100 mph fastball that was fast enough to miss bats much of the time without exceptional movement. Marmol's pitches have so much movement you can understand watching why he can struggle to hit the plate, but its as difficult for hitters to hit him as it is for him to throw strikes.

Marmol at times was one of the most dominant relievers in baseball. Pitching in a lower pressure environment instead of the hot mess that Chicago can be should help. There's no guarantee the move pans out but I think the chances are worth the gamble. If Marmol toes a fine line he can be successful even with a high walk rate because he is effectively wild. If he can stay close enough to log strikeouts he can offset that.

hello not been on site for months after last season how can you pump up for season we did get good pitching from Fernandez and Stanton i hope owmer ship learn from mistake this season not put aaa team on Field I don't think they are going to find an MLB team in two weeks. It's not happening.