OK, it seems that right now, everyone wants to dump Pierre, Lowell, LoDuca, the entire bench and bullpen, and most of the rotation, but here's the thing...it's not necessary.

 

Pierre's under our control, Castillo, Delgado and LoDuca are all under contract. And outside of AJ, the rotation is pretty much coming back, or people with similar talent will be filling the spots of Moehler and Valdez.

 

Here's the thing: the team can't be any worse than it was this season. Pierre and Lowell and LoDuca can't have worse years, and while Dontrelle may not win 22 next year, Beckett'll probably win more than 15, and Vargas and Olsen will probably find ways to win 10 games each.

 

I guess it comes down to the belief that I've always had about baseball; that playoff teams are only different from good but non-playoff teams in that the playoff teams have more guys having good or career seasons. We were mathematically (and I guess realistically) in playoff contention until September 21st, and this is with 4 of our everyday position players having atrocious years, and only 2 of our 5 starters being reliable for quality outings every time they took the mound. The way I see it, if we simply bring back the guys who are under contract or our control for next year, and replace AJ with a decent veteran starter (perhaps Bruce Chen) I see no reason to think that we can't be a very good team next year.

and stay healthy.

I think JP and Lowell should be keepers for now for the reasons you stated above.

 

But if Lowell has a good 1st half, I would like him to be dealt to get us a key piece.

 

It was just a huge luxury to keep Lowell, when Miguel was ready 3B. And the OF position is much easier to fill up

We should trade Lowell if we can get good value for him.

We should trade Lowell if we can get good value for him.

 

 

That's not going to happen, it's going to be a situation of we eat half the contract and get a 'b' level prospect in return. Really, a team taking Lowell is doing us a favor in giving us $8 million worth of salary relief.

I don't want to blow the team up. I want to see some younger players given a shot. That doesn't mean trading players away or shifting the team's focus. Does Burnitz or re-signing Encarnacion really help us more than Willingham or Aguila? What about that 30-something reliever that is only capable of giving us one inning every other day, does he help us significantly more than Messenger/Resop/etc.? Or that free agent veteran starter? Or that bench player? Everything being equal, I'd agree with you. I'd retry this season. But we can't do that and need to look towards what players help us in 06 and onward.

 

 

Except Lowell. If it's possible, trade him. He's not a $8.5M player and we have Cabrera.

For starters, we keep JP and Lowell because neither one of these guys are going to go through another major offensive drought like they did this year (hopefully). So keep Cabrera in LF, JP in CF and Hermida in RF. Next Mikey stays in 3B, but I think the Marlins won't resign Alex and instead stay with Andino to see what happens. Luis Castillo should be healthy again next year and Delgado is still in 1B.

 

 

There were alot of reasons for this team doing so poorly this year, but they also have alot of potential to alot of things right next season.

A change in leadership will do wonders for these guys. I agree there is no urgent need to break the team up. We need to start next year with a fresh attitude.

 

I sure hope Loria is true to his word and Carlos stays put. Cabrera, Willis, Beckett, LoDuca and Castillo aren't going anywhere, so we'll have a nice core of players returning, regardless of what happens with the rest of them.

 

I'd like to see us keep Alex for another year, or two max as Andino just doesn't appear to be major league ready, at least in a starting role. Andino could be given a shot at a reserve infield position though in ST.

 

I can see us offering Conine a bench role next year. He's versatile and solid off the bench.

 

Willingham should be given a shot as back-up catcher or all-around utility guy.

 

I'd like to see us trade Lowell if possible, but primarily because he is blocking Cabrera. If we can't, then I'm holding out hope a new hitting coach will help him become productive again.

 

I also wouldn't mind us keeping Encarncion in RF, but I doubt salary restrictions will allow this to happen. Hermida could either start in RF if Lowell is traded, or be the 4th OFer in that case. If Enc is let go, then I expect Hermida to start in RF. Aguila should also be given a shot to make the team.

 

We keep Pierre. He'll bounce back next year ands sets a good tone in the clubhouse for hard work.

 

We need to sign a veteran starter to replace Burnett at #3. Vargas, Olsen, Johnson can compete for the remaining two spots in the rotation. Or re-sign Moehler for one of these spots and let the others compete for #5 and long relief

 

We need to sign a closer. Even if we are able to keep Jones, I don't see him repeating his '05 performance. Hopefully Anfonseca and Mota will have better years once healthy. We can trade Villone for a bag of peanuts. Bump, Messenger and Resop will be able to compete for a spot, but could also be used to trade for a veteran arm.

 

It should be an exciting off-season full of change and adjustments, and plenty of moves to debate.

The offense could be better, but let's face it, we're not going to go out and sign another Delgado. Encarnacion has been good, but if we're not going to trade Lowell, then we shouldn't keep Encarnacion, as Hermida needs to start somewhere. Hopefully we can build some good depth.

 

The main thing I think needs to be rebuilt is the bullpen. Had we had a good bullpen all year, I guarantee we'd be in the playoffs. Besides Jones, and at times Mecir, everyone else has sucked. Mota has been extremely disappointing, and I think this is Jack's fault. Mota has been used for 2 innings way too often, and he's just imploded. Alfonseca should also be let go, he's a waste.

 

Hopefully Spooneybarger will be back, I thought he was tremendous before he got injured. Same with Bump.

 

The rotation should be good if Olsen, Johnson and Vargas come on. The good thing is that we have a good, young rotation that we can build around for years to come.

1. Lowell is a huge impediment to the team. I like Mike-- think he's a good person, a great fielder, a good leader and good for the clubhouse. However, Cabrera renders him obsolete from a hitting perspective and its easier to get an outfielder than a third baseman. I would think the Marlins could afford to eat $ 4 million of his salary to deal him with a prospect for, possibly, a reliever. I would bet that some GMs would have to believe that this year was a fluke and that he'll bounce back. He may not have the power he once did, but this year's numbers are not truly indicative of what he is capable of and what his own history has shown.

 

2. Encarnacion was good for the team this year and he should stay (unless he can be packaged with Lowell). He's a good fielder with a better than average arm and he hit well this year, both in terms of average and RBIs with some decent power. I have no problem seeing him return in right field.

 

3. We should keep Conine. I can only wonder what would have happened had he played in the first half of the year. He hit well and he, too, is a better than average fielder with a good arm.

 

4. Pierre should remain.

 

5. Gonzo- if he stays fine, if he goes fine. Power numbers slipped and seemed to have more key errors this year.

 

6. Re-sign Jones; he earned it and he's good for at least another year.

 

7. Mota is good trade bait; Alfonseca's option should not be picked up (or did his contract change with his disc injury?). Mecir's retiring so, clearly, there will be room in the bullpen. Clearly the biggest area that needs to be filled. Valdez could probably be a solid reliever, maybe even a good setup man.

 

8. Most important thing: do not trade Delgado. His numbers for playing at Dolphins Stadium are incredible. Well worth every penny he's paid and due for next year.

 

Just my .02

Must Keep (Core Players):

- Dontrelle

- Cabrera

- Delgado

- Castillo

- Beckett

- LoDuca

- Vargas

 

Should Keep:

- Conine (one year deal 2 million)

- Nate Bump

- Mota

- Pierre

- Gonzo (2 years, 3 or 4 Million Max)

 

Fence (could go either way):

- Enc (one year deal only)

- Lowell (Keep if we have to pay more than 40% of his salary on a trade)

- Moehler (one year deal only), 5th starter

- Alfonseca (one year 500 to 750K, with incentives)

 

Gone:

- Jones (we don't have the $)

- AJ (we don't have the $)

We should keep:

Delgado

Castillo

Gonzo

Cabrera

Conine

Hermida

LoDuca

 

and pick up a slugging LF and a better CF (we can always use Luis at leadoff). Keep Conine as a bench player or PH. Pick up a backup IF or resign Easley if he's healthy and affordable.(Andino can't do this as that guy will PH alot and Andino isn't ready to hit MLB pitching). Put Hermida in right. The other positions are obvious. Most of whatever money we have to spend should be put into getting a good LF still in, or just getting to, his prime, and a better option in CF. On the bench or waiting in the high minors we'd have

 

Dillon (talking Lenny's role)

Willingham (trying to find a position)

Conine (who can start and do well for long stretches if needed)

Stokes (MLB ready?)

 

I think Hermida's the one youngster, going into srping, I'd pencil in. I know he hasn't shown much in the few appearances he's had since his call up, except that first ab grand slam, but his arm and speed mean he could play CF or RF. And he's shown quite a bat in the minors (.983 OBP + SLG this year).

 

 

For the rotation

Willis

Beckett

Mohler/Valdez or equivalent

Johnson

Olsen

Vargas

 

Pick up two quality potential 2-5 starters and let all 8 or 9 of them fight it out for spots 3-5 and long relief. Just get a reasonaby priced new guy or two with good perpipherals (K/BB ratio, K rate, etc.). Pitching is the least consistent skill, so guys with an upside can be pleasant surprises. The top proven winners will be too expensive for us, and I'm not a big fan of bringing in overpriced fading stars like we did with Leiter.

 

Get rid of:

Lowell - not an MLB regular anymore, and WAY overpriced even if he makes a modest comeback (which he probably will since if he stays this bad he won't play at al)

Pierre - unless the coaches can see why his OBP has fallen so dramatically and think they can fix it.. Without high OBP, this weak armed no pop OF is a reach even as a 4th OF.

The Bullpen - except Jones. This is where we need to spend the rest of our money (after adding OF bats) and bring in a lot of guys with upside for a look in spring training.

Treanor - LoDuca needs more rest and Treanor is not an adequate guy if we need to use him for 30-40 games behind the plate between off days for Paulie and injuries. Not sure if WIllingham can catch that much because of his poor skills behind the plate.

 

Not sure about:

Encarnacion - He is not a good offensive RF. If we keep him it needs to be for CF (where he'd be adequate defensively and one of the better ones on offense., and we can look for RF alternatives or just stick with Hermida if the staff thinks he's ready.