January 1, 200521 yr FloridaMarlins.com MIAMI -- After falling short of their postseason expectations, Marlins management was left wondering "what if." What if the Marlins had somehow found a way to get back into the playoffs? The way the pitching broke down for a number of postseason teams, the Marlins' brass quietly felt there was a wasted opportunity to make another strong World Series run. Despite their injuries and inconsistencies, the Marlins were in the thick of the Wild Card race until the final two weeks of the season. The way the playoffs panned out, management is left with the conclusion that if the team pitches the way it is capable of, anything is possible. Overall, 2004 was not a total waste. For just the third time in their history, the Marlins finished with a winning record. By going 83-79, they claimed third place in the National League East. Not the preseason goal, but not too shabby either. And for the first time ever, the club experienced successive winning seasons. As the Marlins shifted their focus towards 2005, their objectives remain the same. Pitching is paramount. A lot can change by Opening Day, but as 2004 becomes 2005, this is who is projected to take the field for the Marlins:? ? C Paul Lo Duca ? 1B Jeff Conine ? 2B Luis Castillo ? SS Alex Gonzalez ? 3B Mike Lowell ? LF Miguel Cabrera ? CF Juan Pierre ? RF Juan Encarnacion ? SP Josh Beckett ? SP A.J. Burnett ? SP Al Leiter ? SP Dontrelle Willis ? SP Logan Kensing ? CL Guillermo Mota? More previews:? Select a team Anaheim Arizona Atlanta Baltimore Boston Chi Cubs Chi White Sox Cincinnati Cleveland Colorado Detroit Florida Houston Kansas City Los Angeles Milwaukee Minnesota NY Mets NY Yankees Oakland Philadelphia Pittsburgh San Diego San Francisco Seattle St. Louis Tampa Bay Texas Toronto Washington? General manager Admin Beinfest's remains committed to assembling the strongest staff within his budgetary guidelines. Obviously, it is a challenge. The free agent market elevated salaries to the point the Marlins were not able to retain All-Stars Carl Pavano and Armando Benitez. Pavano set a club mark for wins in a season, going 18-8 with a 3.00 ERA. And Benitez logged a Marlins-best 47 saves, surpassing the previous marks of 45 shared by Bryan Harvey and Antonio Alfonseca. As much as the Marlins would have liked to retain the two stellar right-handers, economics prevented them from making serious bids. With Pavano now a Yankee and Benitez pitching for the Giants, the Marlins are funneling their resources to securing quality replacements. The biggest free agent prize is seasoned left-hander Al Leiter. At 39, Leiter returns to the Marlins after spending seven seasons with the Mets. A key member of the 1997 World Series title team, Leiter brings experience and knowledge to the staff. Manager Jack McKeon notes that the Marlins haven't had a real savvy veteran pitcher in years. The benefits are having proven pitchers are twofold. Foremost, the organization feels Leiter still rates among the best pitchers in the NL. Secondly, just having his presence in the clubhouse and in the dugout should help groom youngsters like Josh Beckett, A.J. Burnett and Dontrelle Willis. As talented as the trio is, they haven't been able to regularly pick the brain of someone who has seen just about everything when it comes to pitching. In Leiter, the Marlins have a solid left-hander who likely will be the third or fourth starter. He's been on three World Series title teams, including being the Game 7 starter for the Marlins in the 1997 championship game against the Indians. In 1996, Leiter tossed the first of three no-hitters in Marlins history. At the Winter Meetings in Anaheim in December, McKeon said managers and coaches can only tell players so much. A bigger impact often is made from the players themselves. In 2003, the young Marlins' starters said they learned a great deal about pitching from talking with Mark Redman. While Redman went 14-9 that season, the left-hander, who is now with the Pirates, lacks the overall credentials of Leiter. With Leiter on hand, the Marlins are left searching for a fifth starter. Ismael Valdez, a free agent, won't likely be back. Beinfest noted several times that signing Valdez isn't a high priority. There also is a question about whether Burnett will be back. A free agent after the season, Burnett has been the subject of trade rumors. Indications are the Marlins will only move the hard-throwing right-hander if they get premium value in return. More on Burnett's status will be known as we get closer to Spring Training. Replacing Benitez is another large task. Guillermo Mota, one of the top setup relievers for years, will be given the chance. With a 96-mph fastball, and a changeup he learned from Eric Gagne, Mota has the assortment of pitches to close. But he is untested in that role, which isn't for everyone. Beefing up the back end of the bullpen is a top priority. The addition of 36-year-old Todd Jones helps solidify a setup spot. The team is seeking more experienced relievers, possibly someone with the potential to close. The everyday lineup remains intact. The team is searching for a left-handed hitter who can spot Juan Encarnacion in right field. Offseason report card: Signing Leiter was significant, especially when you consider the impact of losing Pavano. The veteran left-hander is a proven winner who should make an impact on some of the young starters. Adding Jones provides the bullpen with more experience. On a scale of one to 10, give the front office a 5: Improved and still shopping. Arrivals: Free agents: LHP Al Leiter and RHP Todd Jones. Worth watching: Rule 5 draft pickup, LHP Luke Hagerty. Departures: RHP Carl Pavano, RHP Armando Benitez, C Mike Redmond, RHP Rudy Seanez, RHP David Weathers, INF Wil Cordero, INF Mike Mordecai. Did you know? Miguel Cabrera had a banner 2004 season. His 33 homers were second-highest by a Marlin. His 112 RBIs are fourth best in team history. He also became the eighth Major Leaguer with a 30-plus home run and 100-plus RBI season before the age of 22. Alex Rodriguez and Albert Pujols are the only two other active players on the list.
January 1, 200521 yr Overall a very good article. I disagree with the notion the Marlins were in the wild card hunt until September. They were so far out, and inching back into contention, yet never really got to the point where one could consider them in the race. The FO should have addressed the BP problems in June. Failure to do so, plus address the catcher situation are two of the biggest reasons we fell out of contention after leading the division early on.
January 2, 200521 yr Can't leave out the poor performances from the starting rotation mid-season. 645948[/snapback] True. Oliver sucked, Beckett couldn't stay off the DL, and it took AJ a few games to get it going. Yet AJ was screwed on a couple of starts by a lack of supporting offense.
January 2, 200521 yr I disagree with the notion the Marlins were in the wild card hunt until September. They were so far out, and inching back into contention, yet never really got to the point where one could consider them in the race. 645913[/snapback] I couldn't disagree more...on September 14 the Marlins defeated the Expos in Chicago and had a record of 76-65 and were only two games out of the Wildcard. They were only one game behind Houston. I sure as hell considered them "in the race." The hurricanes and the resulting doubleheaders along with the bullsh*t pulled by MLB in regards to the Cubs series is what ultimately led to the Marlins demise. :hat
January 2, 200521 yr I couldn't disagree more...on September 14 the Marlins defeated the Expos in Chicago and had a record of 76-65 and were only two games out of the Wildcard.? They were only one game behind Houston.? I sure as hell considered them "in the race."? The hurricanes and the resulting doubleheaders along with the bullsh*t pulled by MLB in regards to the Cubs series is what ultimately led to the Marlins demise. :hat 645983[/snapback] Yup...Gotta agree with you there. The Logan Kensing experiment was forced on us, the Cubs series was postponed, and all the doubleheaders killed us. If not for the damn hurricanes, the race is much more interesting.
January 2, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it.
January 2, 200521 yr I disagree with the notion the Marlins were in the wild card hunt until September. They were so far out, and inching back into contention, yet never really got to the point where one could consider them in the race. 645913[/snapback] I couldn't disagree more...on September 14 the Marlins defeated the Expos in Chicago and had a record of 76-65 and were only two games out of the Wildcard. They were only one game behind Houston. I sure as hell considered them "in the race." The hurricanes and the resulting doubleheaders along with the bullsh*t pulled by MLB in regards to the Cubs series is what ultimately led to the Marlins demise. :hat 645983[/snapback] Sure, anything was possible being 2 games behind. Yet the Marlins had the most difficult schedule of the contenders, plus finished the season with a 10 game road trip. In my view they needed to have a 2 game lead in the race to have a chance of making it through September. So no, they had not put themselves in a good position to have a reasonable chance to win the wild card, IMO. The string of lost series against last place teams sealed their fate.
January 2, 200521 yr agreed PB. sure the DH's were tough to deal with, but being down 2 games in september with a killer schedule werent good odds to begin with, and houston outplayed everyone by a mile in septmember
January 2, 200521 yr Remember that this is a preview and it can change. The reason he wrote that is because he was the last guy we have on the roster that Jack used. A signing could change that very quickly.
January 2, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it. 645996[/snapback] do I sense brain reactions or simply a heavy use of a dictionary :blink: oh yeah ... I agree with you marlins lol
January 3, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it. 645996[/snapback] do I sense brain reactions or simply a heavy use of a dictionary :blink: oh yeah ... I agree with you marlins lol 646382[/snapback] Bolded.
January 3, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it. 645996[/snapback] do I sense brain reactions or simply a heavy use of a dictionary :blink: oh yeah ... I agree with you marlins lol 646382[/snapback] Must have received a Thesaurus as a Hanukkah gift. :thumbup
January 3, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it. 645996[/snapback] do I sense brain reactions or simply a heavy use of a dictionary :blink: oh yeah ... I agree with you marlins lol 646382[/snapback] Must have received a Thesaurus as a Hanukkah gift. :thumbup 646411[/snapback] :lol You're a real comic.
January 3, 200521 yr Logan Kensing our 5th starter ? wtf 646373[/snapback] This better change or it's third place finish again
January 3, 200521 yr Nothing against Kensing as he will likely be a solid starter one day. He just isn't major league ready yet. The only reason his name was penciled is because of his place in the rotation at the end of the season. This will change by the end of ST.
January 6, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it. 645996[/snapback] do I sense brain reactions or simply a heavy use of a dictionary :blink: oh yeah ... I agree with you marlins lol 646382[/snapback] I need two hands to count the number of words used out of context in that phrase.
January 6, 200521 yr I reckon that the hurricane hurt us from contending vastly. We were in it and then we started playing atrocious. We had an ample chance to get the wild card, but then we all of a sudden starting playing like we didn't desire getting it. It was very frustrating for me to be a sentinel of it. 645996[/snapback] do I sense brain reactions or simply a heavy use of a dictionary :blink: oh yeah ... I agree with you marlins lol 646382[/snapback] I need two hands to count the number of words used out of context in that phrase. 649246[/snapback] That should be an example in an english book somewhere.
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