pb1300

Have a cookie. 667943[/snapback] That is one of the worse appetizing cookies I have ever seen lol.

The key to us beating the Braves will be the health of Beckett and Burnett. If they both stay healthy I think this is the year we take over the division!? 667806[/snapback] Even a healthy Beckett and Burnett doesn't come close to Hudson and Smoltz 667808[/snapback] I think a healthy Burnett and Beckett contend with any dual in the NL, let alone MLB. They have the stuff to be top pitchers in this league, but injuries and youthfulness has been the biggest flaws of this tandem. As long as this team stays healthy, they should be right up there with the Braves this season. IMO, with the addition of Delgado, a somewhat revamped bullpen, and the continued growth of Burnett, Beckett and Cabrera, the Marlins will win there first division title. I just think we have a complete lineup, and Im worried about other teams when JP and/or Luis get on, and they have to deal with Cabrera, Delgado, then Lowell.

I think they are pretty much even. They are both going to get you 35/100. Thome might play better D, but he strikes out to much, where as Delgado's D is average, yet he averaged over 100 walks four out of the last five years I believe. They are both equal IMO, and they equal each other out.

Rotoworld reported that the Marlins could look into trading Encarnacion/Stokes if the Marlins plug Delgado at first for the next few years. Now everyone has there negative thoughts of Enc, but am I the only one who thinks that we shouldnt trade Enc just yet? I like Conine in the outfield, but Juan does have a canon for an arm and I think he could improve at the plate this year, if he is 100% healthy. The one negative I have against him is for what he did when we made the Series, when he was b!tching about not getting to play.

I hope that shot Luis took in the eigth is nothing more than a bruise. The problem is, that fastball looked to his his foot straight on. The way he walked to the clubhouse didnt look good, and Im hoping to god we dont lose him for an extended period of time.

IS that deal going to go down? I heard it tonight and would love to see it happen, even if we did lose Stokes.

Florida is currently 13th in the league in home attendance, averaging over 31,000 fans a game. I think that is an amazing number, and if you would of told me these numbers before the season started, I would not be surprised. Unfortunately, winning will bring fans to the stadium here in South Florida, and a great start to this season has really worked well for the attendance #'s. With a stadium deal hopefully being completed soon, we have a chance to field a team that could be a contender year in, year out, for the rest of this decade. I really believed that because of what the ownership did this summer, trying to keep the nucleus together, it would work out well with the fans and the attendance would grow. Its a real great time to be a Marlin fan, as it looks like we finally have something positive to look forward to for a while!

The Marlins are the East's new version of the Braves staff of the 90s, just with some more power. Sports Illustrated should lose there publishing license for not having this pitching staff in there top five. This Marlins staff is going to be the main reason why we will make it to the playoffs again, this time as division champs. Barring any injuries, this team has a chance to make this season extremely successful. After everything we have been through the past few seasons, aside from last season, we finally have something to look forward to. This is gods gift to us, and this team is going to be the reason why baseball is going to succeed in South Florida.

i think an NL east championship and another WS will bring a stadium. i dont think this 6-1 start is enough. ~Le0 By then, it would be too late. It is unfortunate that we are on a long road trip. I think right now we could be gaining some momentum with our current winning streak. People would come out and attend. It could set off a spark too. But we are on the road, this is true. Still, I think this could only help us at this point. The opposite would certainly not net us good PR. If the Marlins come home after a successful roadtrip (7-2), that will be the momentum for a good homestand, attendance wise. This team is a fun team a lot, and a good start will the fill the stadium nicely early in the season.

i think an NL east championship and another WS will bring a stadium. i dont think this 6-1 start is enough. ~Le0 By then, it would be too late. It is unfortunate that we are on a long road trip. I think right now we could be gaining some momentum with our current winning streak. People would come out and attend. It could set off a spark too. But we are on the road, this is true. Still, I think this could only help us at this point. The opposite would certainly not net us good PR. If the Marlins come home after a successful roadtrip (7-2), that will be the momentum for a good homestand, attendance wise. This team is a fun team a lot, and a good start will the fill the stadium nicely early in the season.

ESPN is reporting that Vlad is close to signing with Baltimore. Not only that, Palmeiro is close to returning to Baltimore as well. There has been discussion on this board about both of these guys, and I was hoping to see this team sign one of the two.

The Yanks got Sheffield, so it looks like Vlad will go to either Baltimore or Florida. Now he has the same agent that Tejada does, he would join Tejada and probably Pudge, so there is his spanish partners, and Baltimore can afford to give him more than we can, so that seems to put the Orioles in the lead. But...according to Jayson Stark, a close friend of Vlad said Sunday that his first choice would be to play in Florida. He also makes some other good points, "In South Florida, obviously, he would be surrounded by balmy weather, a large Spanish-speaking community, more prominent Dominican players and a front office populated in great part with people he was familiar with in Montreal -- including senior VP Fred Ferreira, the scout who signed him." It will be interesting to see what happens in the following few weeks. IMO, Vlad will be a Marlin. On a side note, if Pudge and Vlad were signed by the Orioles, will this team turn to Lopez? Florida would be, quite possibly, the only destination available for Javy.

Say we sign Vlad and have a Castro/Redmond duo behind the plate, I think that puts us as one of the best in the NL and one of the favorites for the East. But there is a problem brewing in Philly. We know they have the offense to put the runs on the board, now they are starting to copy our plan for success. The Phillies are close to signing reliever Ugeth Urbina. Now that would give them one heck of a combo with him and Wagner. I dont think there rotation is better than ours, but if they have the lead heading to the eighth, its basically lights out for them. I just hope we can sign Lopez or Vlad, give us some more pop in the lineup so when we face those Phillies, we cant give them a chance to get to those killers.

Take it for what its worth, but in the Sun-Sentinel article regarding Fudge's departure, the last paragraph had a comment about Lopez being a possibilty.

Fox is close to resigning with us, so add him to the pen.

If we can resign Pudge, we can come back next year and have another successful year. Maybe not win it all again, but definately make a push for the wild card. Burnett will help a lot when he returns. I just hope they resign Pudge, cause he is the key to our success.

I saw on the news that the Marlins could be in agreement with a major union. The union would loan the Marlins over $100 million for a stadium. The union wants the opportunity for more jobs in Miami. Any news on this?

Redman meant Harold Reynolds. ESPNews even made a comment about Redmans remarks to Harold.