Resop makes roster

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2006/mar/30...ins_roster/?mlb

Last year, Chris Resop had his cup of coffee ? a baseball clich? used to describe a taste of the major leagues. The 2001 Barron Collier graduate enjoyed five weeks with the Florida Marlins. Now, he?s going to enjoy a bigger drink.

And he?ll need one to celebrate the fact that he made the Florida Marlins? Opening Day roster.

Resop said last June?s call-up was ?special and a moment I?ll cherish forever.? The 23-year-old called Wednesday?s news the biggest thrill of his young career.

After battling for a month and a half in spring training, Resop learned that he will be with the Marlins when they open the season next week at Houston against the Astros.

?It?s a totally different feeling than making my big-league debut,? Resop said in a phone interview. ?The excitement. The thrill. The uncertainty. For six weeks you fight for a spot, never knowing the outcome. So to find out I?ve made the team is an unbelievable feeling.?

The Florida Marlins released veteran reliever Kerry Ligtenberg and sent starter Scott Olsen to the minors Wednesday to make room for Resop and Josh Johnson, a starter who will work out of the bullpen to start the season. Olsen, a left-hander, is expected to make a brief stay in the minors, ultimately becoming the Marlins? fifth starter in the second week of April.

In previous moves, Florida sent relievers Nate Bump and Travis Bowyer to Triple-A Albuquerque.

Resop knows that could have been him.

Barron Collier graduate Chris Resop delivers a pitch for the Florida Marlins in a game against the Boston Red Sox at City of Palms Park in Fort Myers earlier this month. Resop learned Wednesday that he made the Marlins opening-day roster.

?It?s been a tough spring training,? he said. ?The battle for a spot has been intense, which is why this is even more satisfying.?

Joe Girardi wouldn?t comment to the beat reporters Wednesday about who had made the roster.

?Anything is possible, but we pretty much have the 25-man roster,? Girardi said. ?We probably won?t announce it until we leave, in case something comes up.?

Resop, who had a 2-0 record in three different stints with the Marlins last season, isn?t sure what his role will be in the bullpen. Even though he worked primarily as a closer the past two seasons in the minor leagues, he calls himself a middle reliever.

Currently, with Todd Jones, the Marlins? closer last season, moving on to the Detroit Tigers, former Chicago Cub Joe Borowski is slated to assume that role.

Resop and Matt Herges, a former Dodger and Giant, could be utilized as set-up men for Borowski. There also is the potential that Resop or Herges could become the man who comes in to close out a victory if Borowski doesn?t regain the form of 2003 when he posted 33 saves in Chicago.

?That?s the position that I?m comfortable with,? Resop said of being a closer. ?I like being in there with the pressure of having the game on the line. Being the closer is the position that I?m working toward.?

Resop thrived with the closer role in two seasons at Double-A Carolina in the Southern League. Last year, he finished second in the league in saves with 24. He also posted a 3-2 record with a 2.57 ERA in 47 appearances.

Resop, a fourth-round pick in 2001 who started his professional career as an outfielder, is making the jump to the Marlins without ever pitching in Triple-A. But Resop understands that a trip to Albuquerque is just a phone call away ? especially knowing that Olsen will be called back up soon.

?Trust me, I don?t want to go back to the minors,? Resop said. ?Now that I?m here I?m going to keep working to stay here. I definitely won?t take anything for granted.?

The Marlins will spend the first week on the road, at Houston (April 3-5) and New York (7-9). Florida will host San Diego on Tuesday, April 11, in its home opener.