MIAMI -- For more than a month, Marlins third baseman Mike Lowell has quietly played with a nagging groin problem.

 

On Friday, the two-time All-Star decided to have it checked out.

 

Lowell underwent an MRI on his left groin and was not in the lineup Friday for the Marlins' second-half opener against the Cubs.

 

Most likely, the slugging third baseman will miss the entire Cubs series.

 

"Mike is a warrior," Marlins manager Jack McKeon said. "He doesn't want to be out of that lineup. He plays hurt. He is a gamer. He wants to play."

 

Lowell was not at Pro Player Stadium on Friday, and the results of the MRI are not expected until either late Friday night or Saturday.

 

Rookie Miguel Cabrera started at third base Friday, and could continue to play the position as long as Lowell is out.

 

Cabrera, 20, played third base in the minor leagues and became the starting left fielder after being called up from Double-A Carolina on June 20.

 

Losing Lowell for any substantial period of time will certainly hurt the Marlins, who consider themselves contenders in the Wild Card race.

 

Lowell is in the midst of a career year, batting .275 with a team-high 28 home runs and 76 RBIs. His home run and RBI totals are the highest ever by a Marlin at the All-Star break.

 

In Tuesday's All-Star Game, Lowell had a ground-rule double in his only at-bat.

 

The groin problem bothers him mostly in the field, where he felt it impacting his range. At the plate, he has been in a bit of slump lately, with two hits in his last 31 at-bats. Both were home runs.

 

More on Urbina trade: A strong farm system enabled the Marlins to obtain coveted reliever Ugueth Urbina from the Rangers shortly before the All-Star break.

 

Obtaining Urbina came at a price, though, since the Marlins parted with three promising minor leaguers: first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, left-handed pitcher Ryan Snare and outfielder Will Smith.

 

In some circles, the Marlins were ripped for mortgaging part of their future for the present. But did they really?

 

Some considered Gonzalez the Marlins' first baseman of the future after he was drafted first overall in the 2000 draft, but even before acquiring Urbina, the consensus in the organization was that slugger Jason Stokes, at Class-A Jupiter, is now the organization's future at first.

 

Although Gonzalez would have provided the Marlins with a needed left-handed bat, the right-handed Stokes has more power potential. Stokes has 13 home runs and 71 RBIs this season.

 

Gonzalez, meanwhile, has had an up-and-down season, getting demoted from Triple-A Albuquerque to Double-A Carolina after batting .216 in 39 games. With the Mudcats, Gonzalez did improve his average, hitting .307 in 36 games. In terms of power, though, he had only one home run in 137 at-bats.

 

Snare was 5-4 with a 3.67 ERA at the time of the trade. A starter in the minors, the Marlins planned to eventually use him as a relief pitcher.

 

Smith was hitting .293 with one home run and 13 RBIs at Carolina.

 

Double-A pitchers Denny Bautista and Trevor Hutchinson are on the fast track to the Major Leagues.

 

Bautista, a 6-foot-5 20-year-old, is 3-0 with a 1.99 ERA since being brought up from Class-A Jupiter. A right-hander from the Dominican Republic, Bautista tossed one scoreless inning -- striking out two and walking one -- in the Future's Game played last Sunday in Chicago.

 

A power pitcher, Bautista's fastball has been clocked from 93-98 mph.

 

Hutchinson, a third-round pick last season, is 2-0 with a 1.53 ERA for Double-A Carolina since getting moved up from Class-A Jupiter.

 

At the rate both are progressing, they could each have a chance to contend for a spot in the rotation at Spring Training next year.

 

Hutchinson relies on a fastball, slider and changeup, and his velocity varies from 89-92 mph.

 

Spooneybarger still ailing: Injured reliever Tim Spooneybarger says he is getting better, but he still has no timetable on when he might return.

 

On the disabled list since June 17, Spooneybarger spent much of last week at the team's complex in Jupiter undergoing rehabilitation on his sprained right elbow ligament.

 

The last time he tried throwing was in the bullpen at Shea Stadium in late June.

 

"As soon as I don't feel pain any more, I'll throw," said Spooneybarger, who had his elbow examined by orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala.

 

Spooneybarger is upset at McKeon for comments the manager made to the press regarding the injury. The reliever believes he is being portrayed as "milking the injury."

 

"This is my life," Spooneybarger said. "This is what I do. My whole life I've worked to be a baseball player. I didn't do it to make a team and milk an injury."

 

Olsen throws: Pitcher Kevin Olsen completed a light throwing session for the second straight day.

 

Olsen has been on the disabled list since June 10, a day after he was struck in the head by a line drive off the bat of Boston's Todd Walker at Fenway Park.

 

Olsen says he still struggles with his equilibrium while on the field. He says his vision is fine.

 

Down on the farm: If the Marlins should need to add infield depth at any point in the second half of the season, Triple-A Albuquerque prospects Kevin Hooper and Wilson Valdez are available. Both are likely to be called up in September. Triple-A outfielder Robert Stratton is also an intriguing possibility, based on his 29 home runs.

 

If Lowell goes on the disabled list, the Marlins could call up an outfielder. Stratton and Chad Allen are both possibilities.

 

While Smith was traded to the Rangers as part of the Urbina deal, Double-A Carolina is getting a boost with outfielder Chris Aguila coming off the disabled list after being out with a wrist injury.

 

The skipper says: "We're going to have a little team meeting to go over a few things. I'm going to tell them, 'Hey, we've got a golden opportunity to decide our own fate. Let's pick it up a notch, dig down a little deeper and give it our best shot." -- McKeon summarizing a speech he gave the team urging them to push hard in the wild card race.

Tough Cookie :cool . What were some of the things that Mckeon said about Spooney? It seems as if Spooney and Beckett don't really like Mckeon all that much. Also Penny has his little battles with Mckeon about the Bullpen comments. I think that lit a fire in Penny though.

Ok. question......was Kevin Olsen's DL retroactive to June 10??? Because he got smacked with the ball on June 27.......

Tough Cookie :cool . What were some of the things that Mckeon said about Spooney? It seems as if Spooney and Beckett don't really like Mckeon all that much. Also Penny has his little battles with Mckeon about the Bullpen comments. I think that lit a fire in Penny though.

Hey you have to love Mckeon how he says what on his mind and gives his honest opinion.

Ok. question......was Kevin Olsen's DL retroactive to June 10??? Because he got smacked with the ball on June 27.......

According to ESPN.com:

 

June 11:Marlins option Vladimir Nunez to Albuquerque and recalled Kevin Olsen from Albuquerque.

 

June 29:Marlins place Kevin Olsen on the 15 day disable list.

 

Sounds like June 29th's the date. It could not have been retroactive to June 10th, because Kevin pitched between the 10th and 29th.