Posted March 28, 200322 yr Per WQAM, Al Martin was relaesed prior to today's exhibition game with the Expos. This is a major surprise. I expect it had to do with something off the field.....
March 28, 200322 yr holy cow..... he is on probation and does currently have a restraining order against him.... MY NEW PREDICTION: Robert Stratton, if he is still on the team, other wise GW
March 28, 200322 yr It's 12:45 pm and they just announced on the Marlins radio broadcast - wow - god I'd love to know the back story on this one.
March 28, 200322 yr WTF? How can this be? Martin hit his a** off this spring. Something about him not agreeing to a clause they wanted to include in his contract apparently. He didn't want to get into it before the game when Dave Van Horn spoke to him briefly. I can't wait to hear what the front office has to say for the reasoning behind this... I hate to say it but with this group something always seems to smell fishy. I'm sure Gerald Williams is now the 6th outfielder. Whoopee. Maybe it's not that big of a deal, he's just the 6th outfielder. But when a guy comes in and performs like he did, he deserves to make the team. It can't possibly be money-related. Stay tuned. I'm anticipating hearing something really stupid. Hopefully I'm wrong.
March 28, 200322 yr hmmm, I didn't realize he was on probation. Maybe it's off the field stuff. What's his retraining order for?
March 28, 200322 yr Wow...that's shocking... Ramp...I think Stratton was sent down earlier this week.
March 28, 200322 yr Ramp...I think Stratton was sent down earlier this week. thanks true maybe, we are making the move for Greg Vaughn :lol
March 28, 200322 yr Wow, I just heard the news about Martin. I'm shocked and disappointed. There is definately something "fishy" going on. Martin had an outstanding Spring and provides a LEFTY bat off the bench. I don't get it. I wonder if this had something to do with the deal the Marlins cut with Millar & Gerald Williams' agents? Does anyone remeber that story? Supposedly the Marlins signed Williams in order to appease Millars agent in the midst of the Japanese fiasco. I'd rather keep Stratton than G. Williams. :mischief2
March 28, 200322 yr link In an unexpected turn of events on Friday, Martin said he was released because he refused to sign a waiver that enables the team to option a player to the minor leagues the first 45 days of the season. wow if G. Williams makes the team i'm gonna freak out :angry
March 28, 200322 yr Martin should have just signed the waiver...... oh well.... hopefully Gerald Williams will be 4th option for ph late in games behind Red, Castro and Banks
March 28, 200322 yr In an unexpected turn of events on Friday, Martin said he was released because he refused to sign a waiver that enables the team to option a player to the minor leagues the first 45 days of the season. This is bizarre. I wonder if Brian Banks had to sign the same waiver? I can't understand why he wouldn't sign it anyway though. The alternative is he has to start all over with another team. And based on his hitting so far he wasn't going to get sent back down. Strange.
March 28, 200322 yr pure idiocy.... on the marlins part. so he wouldnt sign a waiver.... that means you cut off his balls and cut him when he earned a spot? stupid. i dont blame martin for not signing the waiver...i wouldnt want the team to have hte leverage saying...hey we are giving you one at bat every week and you are hitting .100...down you go. I smell a rat.
March 28, 200322 yr This, to quote Shakespeare, is "much to do about nothing". Al Martin is gone, it was his choice. He was offered the job, he turned it down. Byeeeeeeeeeeee Al. You truly are a head case and I'm glad we found out now before the season started.
March 28, 200322 yr I'm shocked :o at first I thought it was he asked for starter money. When I heard he refused to sign something but I'll reserve judgement until I hear more. IMO The Marlins mess up but I reserve judgement
March 28, 200322 yr Stratton is still on the team and he is batting right now..!!!! Per MLB.com, Stratton was sent down yesterday (3/27). My guess is either they brought him back on the Martin announcement or they brought him to specifically play that game. They have done that with players like Derek Wathan, and Jason Stokes (who wasn't even in ML Spring Training) to rest the others.
March 29, 200322 yr Martin, Venafro sign with Devil Rays March 28, 2003 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- It didn't take Al Martin long to find work after being released by the Florida Marlins. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays signed the 35-year-old outfielder Friday, shortly after Florida let him go when he refused to sign a form giving the Marlins advance permission to demote him to the minor leagues. The Devil Rays also signed left-handed pitcher Mike Venafro and claimed outfielder George Lombard off waivers from the Detroit Tigers. Right-handed pitcher Brandon Backe and outfielder Jason Tyner were optioned to Triple-A Durham, and left-handed reliever Cedrick Bowers was reassigned to minor league camp. Martin, like Venafro, agreed to a one-year contract. He hit .342 this spring for the Marlins with four doubles, two home runs and nine RBIs. He last played in the majors two years ago for Devil Rays manager Lou Piniella in Seattle. Martin hit .240 with seven homers, 42 RBIs and nine stolen bases in 100 games for the Mariners in 2001. He has a lifetime average of .278 with 129 homers, 459 RBIs and 171 stolen bases in 1,132 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres and Mariners. Venafro was released by the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday. He appeared in eight games this spring, going 1-1 with a 6.30 ERA. He has pitched in 259 games, all in relief, during his career with the Texas Rangers and Oakland Athletics. Venafro, 2-2 with a 4.62 ERA in 47 games for the A's last year, has a career record of 13-10 with five saves and a 4.06 ERA. The 27-year-old Lombard was a second-round draft pick of the Braves in 1994. The Tigers acquired him last June and he hit .241 with five homers, 13 RBIs and 13 stolen bases in 72 games the rest of the year.
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