Y08Marlin

Vanden Hurk has a right ulnar nerve injury. No word on the seriousness. http://www.gomudcats.com/recaps2008/recap04162008.asp

I'm starting to really like our bench. And it will only get better when Maybin gets up here and Amezaga moves back to his utility position. Amezaga, Andino, Gonzo, and Helms. Wow. Actually, it would probably be Amezaga, Ross, Gonzo, Helms. But I agree, our bench is looking solid. I agree that's what it would probably be, mine is just hopeful.

I'm starting to really like our bench. And it will only get better when Maybin gets up here and Amezaga moves back to his utility position. Amezaga, Andino, Gonzo, and Helms. Wow.

There is no clear answer with the current lineup. I think this is the root of the problem. We were spoiled pre-2006 by the formulaic nature of the lineup. Pierre then Luis at the tip just made sense. Now, our best 3 hitter (Hanley) can't hit their because we don't have anyone else to hit leadoff. As a result, our prototypical 2 hitter (Hermida) has to hit third, leaving an awkward hole at 2. If anything, Hanley is hurt because he does to many things well. If he wasn't as quick, he would probably have been hitting 3rd for some time now. Oh the dilema of having such and increadibly talented player...

It will be interesting to see if Jake get hit today after his "tag" on Francouer yesterday. Cox had the perfect opportunity to last night and didn't. Doubt it'll happen tonight. I disagree, Cox is to smart to get into that stuff at the end of a close game last night. If it happen, I think it will be in his first time up tonight.

Most recent I saw said Mitre not until June and JJ not until September if at all.

It will be interesting to see if Jake get hit today after his "tag" on Francouer yesterday.

He is on the minor league 7-day DL according to the Carolina Mudcats roster. I don't know what is wrong. I just call it as I see it. If anyone has anymore info, that would be awesome. Link

That top of the 6th was one of the best innings he's ever pitched. Instead of trying to throw 200 mph when he got in trouble, he actually maintained his composure and pitched. Great outing. Agreed, this was probably the key moment in the game. I would have liked to have seen Fredi give him a chance to finish it off, but it all worked out in the end. It's also great to see Olsen working quickly, he isn't giving himself time to overthink the game.

Olsen's getting on a role!! And how about Hammer starting to get hot.

The second HR by Hermida was a monster.

Not to many of us up in New Haven. WAY to many Sox and Yankees fans for my liking.

I love this idea. While we are at it lets make this the Rotation. 1) Byung-Hyun Kim - At least he might Pitch some innings. 2) Reynal Pinto - Too good for the bullpen. 3) Kevin Gregg - He started a couple of times for the angels didn't he? Besides, we really need to raise his trade value before the deadline. Not everyday you can get a top notch closer who can start too. He'd almost be just like John Smoltz. 4) Scott Olsen - I'm on the edge on this one. I really think he should go back to the minors for more seasoning. 5) John Patterson - Maybe the Rangers will release him so we can get a second chance at him. Just maybe.

I really don't get how you can dislike Hermida. Yeah he got hurt last year, but he played really well the second half of the season. And he is only 24. HRs aren't everything. He is a line drive hitter, not just a straight power guy like some of the guys in our lineup. He will hit around .300, take some walks, and hit a bunch of doubles and hit a few over the fence. To me, he is the epitome of a 2 slot hitter on a good team.

He looked really solid this spring. Can't wait to see what he does.

I think Freddi said that Hermida would hit 3rd whenever he got back to the bigs. Don't remember where I saw that though...

I agree for the most part. I think Uggla is a great hitter for his position (possibly the worst hitting position in baseball). As you say he isn't Luis Castillo. He is a different type of player all together. He is a power hitter who walks a little bit (he had 68 walks last year) and strikes out a lot. His power can't be underestimated though. He hit 49 doubles, which ranked second in the league, to go along with a very respectable 31 HR. The key is that he plays 2B, where his type of hitter is rare. I would prefer to see him hitting further down in the line up, but at the moment, we don't have any better options to hit second (I don't think Amezaga should play everyday). In short, I'm a huge Uggla fan.

I suppose he should come in late at 3B a few more times at least. I mean how much has the guy actually played there? That said, I think it will be hard to send down a guy hitting as well as he is now. I hope the team finds a spot for him, but for any long-term starting position he's gonna need to go somewhere new. Unless we were to do something crazy like push Hanley over to 3B and play Andino at SS. Back when Hanley was in the Red Sox org people expected that as got bigger he would move over to 3B eventually. Just a thought. I think in the long term this might be the best option. If Hanley can't figure out his defense, push him to third and plug in Andino at SS. I'm talking long term though, not this year. Give everybody playing their positions a chance to prove themselves this year. If Cantu doesn't work out, then rearrange based on where Andino fits in best defensively (could also be at 2B with Uggla moving to third). I really have very little confidence in Cantu in the long run.

I like this move. Question: Is Helms a less or greater liability at third than Cantu? I'm not liking what I see at third thus far. Is is possiblt that by the end of the year we'll see Cantu coming off the bench and either Helms or McPherson taking over at third? Not sure if Cantu can keep the job. What are you seeing at 3rd that you don't like, Cantu's 1 error? Let me preface my response w/ the fact that, out of the three options we started with before ST, Cantu was not on the top of my list. So when I say I don't like Cantu at third, Its b/c I don't think he was the best choice. He never has been a defensive talent, and I doubt his defense will improve based on what he has shown in the past. I'm sure other people share my sentiment. So, I do think we could filled the position w/ Castillo and been stronger defensively rather than hope Cantu returns to 2005 form, be an offensive upgrade, but a defensive liability. I strongly believe a stronger defensive candidate could have and should have filled our third base void. If your asking me if I like seeing Cantu's throwing error result in 2 runs, my answer is no. I don't like it. You may not agree w/ my sentiment, but I do believe other fans have shared the sentiment of having a defensive approach at third this year would have been a more prudent approach to fiiling our void at third. Now, back to my original question, does someone else see someone else taking over at third, especially now that Helms is aboard? So you wanted Wood or McDallas starting the year over Cantu giving there current situations at the time?? If Cantu swings the bat like he did all ST and today, ill take one erratic throw here and there. Just feel your being a bit critical, today at the game I was literally humming out loud the circus music because the defense was comical and a circus act, but I'm not going to freak out over one bad inning. I think the defense has improved as a team since last year, and I've actually liked what I have seen from Cantu so far. Now, I'm not saying Cantu or nothing, if he slides and Dallas or Helms is tearing it up then by all means a change is needed, but under the current circumstances IMO I see no reason to move Cantu thus far. I'm really hoping that his defensive problems and offensive inconsistency in Tampa Bay were more the result of maturity issues than any thing else (afterall, he is only 26). Maybe getting traded and eventually cut was a wakeup call. I actually think his defense in markedly improved from early in Spring Training.

I'm pretty sure, with the OBP advantage for Alfredo and SLG advantage for Uggla, having alfredo lead off and Uggla in the middle of the order produces more runs than Uggla hitting #2 and Amezaga in the bottom of the order, but I'm too lazy to double check (might do it later). I agree that ideally you'd have two .360+ guys, but the only guys that do that for us are power guys aswell. I wouldn't consider Hermida a power guy. A .501 SLGs pretty damn good, although it is mostly 2Bs. with the dimensions of our park...i LOVE guys who hit doubles left and right Agreed, I think Hermida is an ideal hitter for our park. He hits for contact and gets most of his power from line drives. Thus, if the ball doesn't make it out of the park, it becomes a double rather than a fly out. Some of our other guys are a little power happy. They (esp. Jacobs, Willingham) tend to use big uppercut swings which either result in a K, or ball hit in the air. Sometimes these go out of the park, other times they are just long fly balls. With the dimensions of our park, it is often the later. While I like most of our players, in our large park it is important to put the ball in play and make the outfielders get to it. If you hit the ball hard on a line, this is much harder than on a ball hit high in the air. This is something that various degrees Hanley and Uggla have also learned, as per their high double numbers from last year (Hanley (48) was helped by in his speed in this regard, Uggla (49 and 31HR) really just hit the ball HARD when he hit it). Edit: I would really prefer if Uggla wasn't hitting second, but our current roster situation doesn't present many better options. I don't want Amezaga playing everyday. Once Maybin proves himself at the back end of the lineup, I would like to see Hanley, Maybin, Hermida 1-3 in some order.

Great move. Hurk clearly needed some time to work on his secondary pitches. I really hope he can corral his secondary pitches. At least with Badenhop, he showed during the spring that he will be around the strike zone.

I wonder if the Marlins and Rays have ever been in first place in their respective divisions at the same time.

I hate this move. It's nice in the short term as an upgrade over Wood, but I would really rather keep Andino and Carroll in the bigs. I wouldn't give up a B level prospect for Helms. He's a nice addition to the bench for a competitive team, but I don't think we are competitive. Not without pitching that proves it is consistent.

agreed. Get healthy soon Jeremy.

I'd keep Andino and Carroll. Send Wood down. I have no interest in Helms. I think we have enough veterans on the bench. I think both of them are at a make it or break it point in their careers. Either they stick or we should let them move on. I've expressed my opinion of Andino's value on the bench before, and that still holds. When De Aza is ready to come back, reevaluate (probably send Carroll down at that point). Also, no reason to hurry Hermida. We won't be competitive at year's end anyway. Also, I believe if a player is released, he signs with a new team for whatever they offer him and the old team is still on the hook for the remainder of his old contract. Only if you claim a player on waivers before he is released do you keep the old contract.