One of the best Infields in baseball...but we wont be together after next season!

 

Time running out on Marlins infield?

Keeping foursome together might prove too costly

By KEVIN BAXTER AND CLARK SPENCER

kbaxter@herald.com

 

PHILADELPHIA - Marlins infield coach Perry Hill admits the trade rumors that surrounded third baseman Mike Lowell the past month cost him more than a few hours sleep.

 

''I tossed and turned at night,'' Hill said. ``I'm selfish. I'll be the first to admit I'm selfish.''

 

So when management promised earlier this week it would keep Lowell for at least the rest of the season, Hill heaved a sigh of relief.

 

But it might be a temporary respite because while ownership's pledge will keep one of the best infields in the majors intact for now, financial pressures will make it difficult to keep the Marlins' Fab Four -- first baseman Derrek Lee, second baseman Luis Castillo, shortstop Alex Gonz?lez and third baseman Mike Lowell -- together after this season.

 

And they might not make it that far.

 

None of the four infielders, who will make a combined $14.5 million this year, is signed beyond this season. And with Lowell and Gonz?lez having career years, and Castillo -- who ranks among the National League's leading hitters -- eligible for free agency after the season, Lee is the only one who isn't in line for a hefty raise.

 

''This is one of the best infields I've ever been associated with, no question about it,'' said manager Jack McKeon, who has spent more than half a century in baseball. ``Who wouldn't like to see them keep it together? [but]you only can pay so much money regardless of whether they're the best in the league or not. You've got to understand the financial responsibilities of the club.''

 

Lee understands. He knows the Marlins' payroll ranks among baseball's bottom third, and the club can't afford to lose money indefinitely.

 

But he said ownership sent a powerful message when it broke off trade talks involving Lowell.

 

'That says, `Hey, maybe we're making a shot at [the playoffs]. Maybe we're making a run at it,' '' Lee said. ``That's a much better step than last year. [but] the economics of the game -- especially for a team like us that doesn't have big revenue [or] draw a lot of fans -- make it tough to keep guys.

 

``Mike Lowell, when he starts playing as well as he is, he demands a certain salary. And with the revenue like it is here, it's tough to pay guys like that. It is unfortunate.''

 

Hill likens his infield to the Baltimore Orioles' quartet of the late 1960s and early '70s, which featured Gold Glove winners Brooks Robinson, Mark Belanger and Davey Johnson, and the Los Angeles Dodgers foursome of Steve Garvey, Davey Lopes, Bill Russell and Ron Cey, who played together for a record eight straight seasons.

 

''But don't forget the Dodger infield didn't have salary arbitration and didn't have free agency,'' McKeon said. ``So it was a whole lot easier to keep those guys in those days than it is today.''

 

Lowell, at 29 the oldest of the Marlins' four infielders, is all but a lock to make the NL All-Star team for the second year in a row. He enters tonight's opener of a three-game series at Philadelphia leading the league with 26 home runs while batting .292 with 72 RBI, tops among major-league third basemen.

 

Castillo, 28, was an All-Star last year and is batting .321 with a career-high five home runs, while Lee, 28, has been inconsistent at the plate, where he's batting .257 with 16 home runs, 47 RBI and 69 strikeouts in 303 at-bats. But he has helped to make up for that by playing spectacular defense.

 

Gonz?lez, 26, might be having the most surprising season. An All-Star as a rookie in 1999 -- the season he, Lowell and Lee joined Castillo as regulars in the lineup -- Gonz?lez is batting .300, 60 points higher than his career average entering the season. And with 53 RBI he's just six away from equaling his career high with nearly half a season left.

 

''I love our infield,'' said Lee, who -- along with Lowell and Gonz?lez -- is eligible for salary arbitration after the season. ``I like watching them because they make so many good plays. Just to be part of it, that's special.''

 

Said Gonz?lez: ``We trust one another. We've spent five, six years playing together. It would be good to keep us together.

 

``But one never knows. It's a business.''

 

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Nice article, but our infield will be half that come '04.