Sashimi

When you get the performance out of Nolasco or Miller, you have to leave them in for the 6th and/or 7th rather than just reflexively pull them like throughout the past 2 road trips. With Nolaco, yes. With Miller, unfortunately, no. We are grooming him to be our future no. 1 or 2 starter. You have to be more careful with him. I'd rather wear out Waechter's, Nelson's or J. Miller's arm than A. Miller. Even with Nolasco, however, it may be that they still value his future enough that they would rather abuse some of the bullpen arms, who are more replaceable and may not fit into the long-term plans of the team anyway, than running up Ricky's pitch count to dangerous levels when he is struggling.

Maybin was considered the best hitting prospect in the Tigers org. But that probably says more about the Tigers farm system than it does about Maybin. That's selling Maybin a little short, isn't it? Maybin has been consistently ranked as a top 10, if not top 5, prospect in all of baseball--an indication that he is considered good not just relative to the Tigers system. That being said, he has to be able to learn to handle the off-speed stuff better if he is going to fulfill those lofty projections. And since he is still so young, he still has time to do that. To me, the Marlins' perspective of the trade is the exact converse as the Tigers' perspective you put forth: We were only going to have Cabrera for two more years--two years in which we were very unlikely to be a serious competitor-- and the ballpark was not going to ready in time to generate the revenue to pay him, so we got something for him while we still could. Even with the ballpark, we were probably only going to be able to afford either Cabrera or Hanley, who was emerging as a legitimate superstar in his own right. And Hanley was not only under team control longer (i.e., until the new park was built) but I have a feeling the front office preferred his attitude/work ethic better as well.

Strong second inning for Thompson after a very shaky first inning of work.

I've have also been trying to find info on Bowyer, but to no avail. I was hopeful that he would be pitching this season. I wonder if he is in the minor league camp.

So does this affect whether we are still in the market for Dallas McPherson?

Dayum. Could you imagine!! We sign him, he gets healthy, balls people up, then we ship him off for some good prospects. Like the poster above me said, we cant lose anything if we sign him to a sub 750K contract, so what the fudge, DO IT! Yeah, that's not going to happen. He's looking for considerably more than that and, considering the number of teams reported to be in the hunt, he'll get it.

I'm not a fan of the old "M" logo. To me, it just looks too outdated (as opposed to classic or timeless) and reminds me of a high school logo. I would guess that they will just have the fish wrapped around an "M" instead of an "F" but would use something like the script used for jersey.

Do you think that had they reached this agreement a month ago, Cabs and D Train would still be here? No I agree that a stadium deal would not have affected the decision to deal Cabrera (or Dontrelle). If it had been that important, they would have undoubtedly held off on dealing Cabs until this latest legislative push for a stadium played itself out (after all, they knew this was looming at the time they were shopping him and they must have had an inkling of the political support they were going to get). A new stadium, and the revenue it allows the team to control, will enable the Marlins to raise payroll, hopefully significantly, but almost no team outside of NY, LA and the Northside of Chicago could afford to pay two superstars of Miggy and Hanley's caliber (both top 10 or 15 players in their prime) and still field a decent team around them. Recognizing that this was a team unlikely to contend for a championship in the next two years they controlled Miggy, the decision was made to build around Hanley, in part because he bought the team more time until a stadium was built and a new revenue structure was in place. That was certainly a big reason, but the fact that Miggy's value in the NL was likely to decline somewhat in the coming years due to his eroding defensive skills and the fact that Hanley may well be the more complete player when you consider his average-power-speed package (and while he is also not the greatest defensive player, I believe there is more hope for him to improve in this area as well). As special a hitter as Cabrera is, the decision to deal him now actually showed a great deal of foresight on the part of the FO, IMO.

And LOL @ Sickels giving Maybin the same grade as Lowrie.

I agree with Sickels about rushing Maybin. And there is really no need to do so. We can make do with DeAza, Carroll, Ross (and, hell, maybe even Amazega occasionally) in CF until Maybin gets a little more seasoning. The strikeouts are somewhat of a concern, but they would be a lot more of a concern if he showed no plate discipline whatsoever, which is simply not the case. He knows how to draw a walk. That bodes well for his ability to cut down on the K's as he matures. This is something that would be better to work on in the minors rather than figuring it out against big league pitching.

I guess it doesn't much matter whether we like it or not, because it's going to happen if the Marlins are to remain in South Florida. I like the look of the current uniforms so I hope they do not mess with it too much. I am a fan of the teal but it looks better as a highlight (or secondary color) rather than a primary color. I do not know if this would happen or not, but if the stadium deal is completed, I would like to see them make the name switch as soon as possible rather than waiting until 2011. Since fans know the name change will be coming, the merchandise sporting an "F" or "Florida" will become 'lame duck' merchandise. Why invest in a jersey now if you know it will not be current in a couple of years (unless you are into collecting vintage jerseys or want a momento of the Florida Marlins era)?

The best website that I have found on Tigers baseball was the Scout.com site. They decided to go ahead and write prospect reports on the guys who were traded to the Marlins. I was told I cant post the reports on this site, but I hope it is ok to post their rankings as far as the Tigers organization. #1 Cameron Maybin #5 Dallas Trahern #8 Eulogio Delacruz #17 Burke Badenhop Where is Miller on this list? Because of his major league service time, Miller will not show up in the prospect rankings this year. He would have been considered the number two or three prospect (behind Porcello) in the Tigers system, depending on whom you ask.

Miami Marlins :confused i know the state didn't help with sh*t... but... Miami Marlins :confused Ha, I know what you mean. It will take some getting used to, but I guess it's better than the Portland or San Antonio Marlins. There was a minor league team by that name that existed in the past. Not to get ahead of ourselves here, but I'll be interested to see what they have planned for the uniform and cap. Will they keep everything the same and just replace the "F" with an "M" on the cap (and shoulder patch), and "Florida" with "Miami" on the visiting jersey? I guess I'll hold off on getting that new Marlins hat. :mischief

I like Stuart Blumberg, I really do, but I have to explain a few things regarding this Channel 10 piece that might escape the casual reader or viewer (which it was meant to do). First of all, The idea that's his group the source of all the tax dollars, or even most of the tax dollars in the Professional Sports Franchise Tax kitty is categorically untrue. To understand why you need to know two things: PSFT is not collected on Miami Beach (you have to read the fine print of the taxing language, that money goes to CDT coffers. You also have to understand as well-meaning and hard working as he is Stuart is a gadfly. his organization IS NOT the GMCVB the major driver if tourism here, it is a much smaller group with one tenth the political clout of the larger group. Stuart has a fixation on one project, a ballroom for the Miami Beach Convention Center. He would rather it be built than a cure for cancer be found (I don't really mean that it's for effect), so obsessed is he in getting it done. He sees killing off any project that might provide more money for the MBCC as a good thing. He is not a bad person, he has tunnel vision and as such he is the perfect guy to go to if you're looking for someone to say exactly what he said. It's almost Pavlovian. You could interview him ten times on ten different subjects and get the identical answer if it conceivably meant a new revenue stream for the MBCC because if it doesn't fill his hotel members' rooms with conventioneers, he's against it. If you hear the Beacon Council or the Greater Miami Convention and Visitor Bureau (GMCVB) come out against it be worried, be very worried. But you won't. But thank you Channel 10, we wouldn't have expected less from you. So how significant would his opposition be?

Ensberg is getting non-tendered. I expect Morgan to find a contender (Cleveland, Minn, Yankees for 1B, Milwaukee, etc) to go play for, but it would be nice if we could scoop him up. What about Joe Crede? Think he'll be non-tendered? I'd be surprised if he was. But even if he is, he'd be out of our price range.

I know not everyone is such a prospect homer, thus making your perspective of the big trade a little distasteful. So, for the sake of optimism, and also because I have 20 minutes to waste before work, here is your 2010 lineup/rotation 2010 Lineup: (tons of promise... I mean, tons) 1. Chris Coghlan 2B (2nd year) 2. Jeremy Hermida RF (5th year) 3. Hanley Ramirez SS (5th year) 4. Mike Stanton / Mike Jacobs 1B (Rook / 6th year) 5. Cameron Maybin CF (3rd year) 6. Josh Willingham LF (6th year) 7. Matt Dominguez 3B (Rook) 8. Catcher of the day... maybe Jameson makes it up by 2010, but hopefully a trade will concur. 9. P 2010 Rotation: (absolutely filthy) 1. Andrew Miller (3rd year) 2. Chris Volstad (2nd year) 3. Josh Johnson (5th year) 4. Rick Vanden Hurk (4th year) 5. Sean West / Scott Olsen / Brett Sinkbeil / Dallas Trahern / Ryan Tucker / Gaby Hernandez It's going to be an all out brawl for the 2010 spots in the rotation. I'm sure some of these guys will get lopped off for position players. This is why I like the Marlins philosophy of stockpiling young pitching, which they have been doing almost to a fault. First, obtaining pitching on the open market has become extremely expensive, and prohibitive for the Marlins. Second, there is more attrition (through injury) in developing pitching than position players. Third, the relative scarcity of good pitching in the league means that any surplus will fetch a high price on the trade market, allowing the Marlins to fill their position player deficits when needed, as you suggested.

The name change has been in place ever since the city of Miami re-entered negotiations two years ago. It was one of the conditions of them doing so. So I guess this means I will have to buy a new cap and away jersey! LOL! This stadium deal sounds reasonable for the Marlins. A lot will hinge on the Marlins being able to front the $155 million, of course. And I have no idea how feasible that will be for the team. Certainly the recent cost-cutting should help in that regard. I hope this gets done.

For those of you wondering, yes, the Marlins would become the Miami Marlins "prior to the beginning of the 2011 season". Really? Where did you hear this?

This is why the Marlins stockpile cheap, young pitching. The premium being paid for even mediocre pitching nowadays is extraordinary.

Well Beinfest is singing to the Tune "We've only just begun"...I guess we can only comment on what has transpired so far. We have obtained a CF who has the speed to cover CF at DS, defensively Amezaga had very limited range. We will now see a centerfield being played the way it ought to always have been played. Hermida and Willy will benefit enormously, our pitchers will learn to appreciate Maybin in CF very quickly as well. Andrew Miller is the type of pitcher that if we had to lose Dontrelle, but we had his arm to fall back on just leaves you with a smile on your face. The comparison with Randy Johnson is not an exageration. It actually might be a conservative projection. Think in terms of Josh Beckett but throwing from the left side. He could anchor a rotation for the next 10-12 years. We also acquired some more pitching depth that will compete to hammer out our rotation in ST. Mike Rabelo has skills as a catcher that are very much a significant piece for his name to be included in the trade. I highly doubt he was obtained for his bat, his handeling of pitchers and defense is his calling card. We definitely need more of that on our team. I don't know if he is a stopgap til Langley arrives. I know Maybin will likely hit lead-off but with his power he may end up hitting 4th down the road. He will be a fun player to watch. I just am a little concern with the strikeouts ratio but lets sit back and enjoy. Next matter of business: 3rd base... There has been a lot made of his propensity to fan, and it is an area of concern (perhaps the only major concern with Maybin), but I think it is also important to consider that it's not like he doesn't know how to draw a walk. Baseball Prospectus has noted his advanced pitch recognition, and last year he posted OBPs nearly 100 points higher than his BA. So that bodes well for his ability to improve in this area. It seems with Maybin it's largely a matter of knowing when to lay off/learning to hit the curveball. It would be of greater concern if he were striking out a ton and not walking at all.

Agree with Lou on Maybin. Even apart from the service time considerations, which are nontrivial, it seems that Maybin could certainly use a little more seasoning in the minors. Last year, after his short MLB stint, the Tigers admitted that he wasn't ready yet. Even though the Marlins can afford to allow Maybin to experience his inevitable growing pains next year, I'm concerned that needlessly rushing him could adversely affect his development. Ross, De Aza and Carroll can hold down CF for half of a season, or more, until they feel Maybin has made sufficient progress in the minors.

How about Alfonso Soriano? Yeah, it did seem that Hanley might have that Soriano-esque preference for hitting lead-off, even though his power would suggest him hitting lower in the order. Piniella tried dropping Soriano last year and it just didn't take. The reasoning was that Soriano, an excellent fastball hitter, will see more fastballs batting in the lead-off spot.

So I guess this means Uggla will not be traded this offseason.

Would like for us to pass on Barfield just because I know we will likely overspend by giving up either Gregg or multiple prospects. Would much rather have Ronny Cedeno (Cubs). Something like Kevin Gregg for Ronny Cedeno and Billy Petrick can work out well for both teams IMO The Ronny Cedeno who gets pushed backward when he makes contact with a MLB fastball? No thanks. Agreed. I live in the Chicago market, so I get to see my fair share of Cubs games, and I'll pass on Cedeno.

How'd you get to talk to him, Ramp? just curious Him and I go to the same shoe shiner Ramp, Speaking of torn labrums, do you have any idea if we will we ever see Travis Bowyer again?