MARLINS NOTEBOOK

MARLINS NOTEBOOK

Tired Willis still `feels good'

Marlins to cut down on clinics, focus on run for playoff berth

BY KEVIN BAXTER

kbaxter@herald.com

Perhaps no player's recent performance is more emblematic of the Marlins' current struggles than that of left-hander Dontrelle Willis, who starts tonight in the last game of what, so far, has been Florida's worst road trip of the season.

Willis, the Marlins' All-Star rookie sensation, is 2-3 with a 6.25 ERA in his past seven starts after going 9-1 with a 2.08 ERA in his first 13 games. In two of his past seven starts, he has failed to get more than six outs. He has allowed at least one homer in each of his past six outings.

Chalk it up to the tale of the tape, says pitching coach Wayne Rosenthal.

''People make adjustments,'' he says. ``They've got tape of him. They watch him. With all the publicity he had, I guarantee you every team that he faces has seen tape.

``Everyone expected what he did before the All-Star break to continue all year long. They're comparing him to someone no one expected him to be.''

Fatigue may also be a factor. Willis, 21, is less than a year removed from Class A and has never pitched in September before. So if he makes it through three innings tonight, he'll equal his lifetime best for innings pitched in a season with 157 2/3.

However Willis refuses to make excuses.

''I can tell it's September coming, you know what I mean?'' Willis says. ``[but] it's just one of those things were yeah, this is the first time, you want to be cautious. But at the same time when is it OK to go this far? I feel good.

``I'm still throwing the same way I did when I came up. I'm still getting my running in. I'm still doing the same thing.''

One thing he'll be doing less of starting next week is public appearances. With the Marlins locked in a tight race for the National League's final playoff berth, P.J. Loyello, the team's vice-president for communications, said he will begin turning down most requests for clinics and other appearances.

''We have a list of things we were approached about in September,'' he said. ``[but] when the team is in the pennant race we want players to concentrate fully on what's going on on the field.''

LEE GETTING HOT

First baseman Derrek Lee, a career .282 hitter in the second half, is once again heating up as the season wears on. He entered Wednesday with a six-game hitting streak during which he batted .429 with two homers and seven RBI. Lee went 0 for 3 in a 4-0 loss to the Pirates on Wednesday.

''I've always hit for better average in the second half. I have no idea why,'' says Lee, who was elevated to the cleanup spot in the order Wednesday. ``Every year it's the same thing.''

But this year he's also driving in runs at a greater clip after the All-Star break with 17 RBI in 103 at-bats, an average of one every six at-bats.

Lee and Miguel Cabrera are the only Marlins with more than four RBI on the road trip, though the team's failures makes it tough for Lee to enjoy his success.

''We need to turn it around,'' said Lee, who broke the franchise record for career homers with his 123rd on Tuesday.

``We need to get back to having a little more fun like we were a little bit earlier.''

? Left-hander Armando Almanza will have an arthroscopy to remove a bone spur in his elbow today in Birmingham, Ala., and will miss the rest of the season. The surgery was recommended Wednesday by orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, who will perform the operation.

Almanza, who went on the disabled list with shoulder tendinitis Aug. 21, was 4-5 with a 6.08 ERA in 51 games.