October 14, 200322 yr Right now, there is eternal hope. Everything and anything seems possible. But to think we are going to walk into Wrigley and take one game, let alone two, against some of the toughest pitching we have seen all year is gumptious. It takes balls. And we have em boys. Had em all year long. I think for the most part, the philosophy applied in Game 5, the first real Marlins'-style game we have played this series. We got to keep Lofton off base, and keep the Cubs from scoring early. The longer we keep them off the board, the better. We also have got to get our hitters on base against Wood and Prior to force them to throw from the stretch. They have thrown a lot of pitches to this point, and forcing them to throw more only works for our benefit. I dont care how jacked up they have to be, truthfully, the pressure is on them right now. We have had our backs against the wall - have been that way all season. The Cubs, well, they have underachieved all season long. Which sets the stage for a possible miracle... I also liked that McKeon, finally, switched the lineup around for Game 5. What resulted was more sustained offensive attacks without a breakdown in the lineup to create holes. I would like to see us utilize the following: Pierre Castillo Pudge Cabrera Lowell Conine Lee Gonzalez P Now, it is debatable, but you could even flip flop Conine and Lowell, or Conine and Cabrera. But Cabrera has bigger upside and is actually verydisciplined at the plate. Putting Lowell in there forces pitchers to respect Cabs even more. The Key, of course, is Pierre and Castillo setting the table and forcing the Cubs pitchers to pitch from the stretch. Once that happens, it is on. We should be able to steal on Miller/Bako too, but have not been as sucessful as we should be. Keep our poise, lock in, and get the job done. Play good defense, do all the little things, and be on alert. Do that, and we win Game 6. One game at a time...
October 14, 200322 yr Aggression, Aggression and more Aggression. JP should bunt at his first AB Then Louie should be patient at the plate, and give some time for JP to steal if he can. Ive noticed that Prior's delivery is not the fastest thing in the world, and also having Miller or Bako behind the plate. IF JP is succesful in stealing, then Chip Away.If not, Luis can bunt him to 2nd. Another alternative is for luis just to try and base knock the ball. Whatever is the best choice at the exact moment should be done. Patience should also be practiced. Depends if the ump is very liberal we might have to swing at many pitches. IF the ump has a narrow strike zone, then they should pick their pitches. Also we should'nt be scared to go longballing. Cabs And Dlee showed us we can go long ball against Prior. Basically lets do what we have been doing all year. We are going to need alot of clutch hits. And i think that once again it will fall in the hands of Pudge. Pitchers need to go for their throats, follow from Beckett's example. Show them who owns Home Plate. Make them get away from the plate. And most importantly. WALKS KILL! They must adapt during 3-2 situations or 2-2 situations. After all is said and done, Taking advantage and playing with Aggression is what counts. I have Faith, I Believe...its not impossible! LET'S GO MARLINS! BELIEVE IN YOURSELVES! DO IT FOR YOURSELVES! PROVE TO THE WORLD THAT YOU ARE NO MINOR LEAGUE TEAM!!!
October 14, 200322 yr Rabbits still aren't getting on base. Castillo's hitting around .200, and JP's not much better.
October 14, 200322 yr agreed--put encarnacion back in, he IS one that got us here. if pierre can steal some bases, and pudge can get some nice hits w/conine & castillo, i think we'll be all set for game 6--providing the pitching is on :thumbup
October 14, 200322 yr the key to winning this game is scoring more runs then we allow... :lol that is pure genius. you should be on sports center :lol i think we all have to go out and buy marlins thongs and wear them during the game (joke with KJC) disregard everything i just said. LOL
October 14, 200322 yr the key to winning this game is scoring more runs then we allow... :lol that is pure genius. you should be on sports center :lol who needs broadcasting school? its my type of insight that ESPN is missing...
October 14, 200322 yr i dont know how i feel about Enc being out. Miguel has been hitting pretty well lately. I wish Enc could bat for Lee or Agon but keep them on for their D. if only i think Lee is going to break out of his slump soon. He better lol
October 14, 200322 yr Right now, there is eternal hope. Everything and anything seems possible. But to think we are going to walk into Wrigley and take one game, let alone two, against some of the toughest pitching we have seen all year is gumptious. It takes balls. And we have em boys. Had em all year long. I think for the most part, the philosophy applied in Game 5, the first real Marlins'-style game we have played this series. We got to keep Lofton off base, and keep the Cubs from scoring early. The longer we keep them off the board, the better. We also have got to get our hitters on base against Wood and Prior to force them to throw from the stretch. They have thrown a lot of pitches to this point, and forcing them to throw more only works for our benefit. I dont care how jacked up they have to be, truthfully, the pressure is on them right now. We have had our backs against the wall - have been that way all season. The Cubs, well, they have underachieved all season long. Which sets the stage for a possible miracle... Keep our poise, lock in, and get the job done. Play good defense, do all the little things, and be on alert. Do that, and we win Game 6. One game at a time... This is great speech material. I can picture Mckeon saying this as his players surround him, taking a knee.
October 14, 200322 yr We need to jump out early, we need a 2-0 lead, something like that. We've gotta take the crowd out of early and get in the Cubs head...and believe me, if we get up again it's going to get in their heads, don't think they aren't hearing this stuff from all sides. The last thing we can afford is to get down early, we have to go downhill in this game, not uphill, plain and simple. It's like JL said, Pierre should bunt to lead off the game...we haven't done that NEARLY enough. We all talked about the meidocre Cubs defense and we haven't tried this stuff nearly enough (usually because we've been losing). The key to this game is scoring early, we've GOTTA score first. HAVE to. There's a reason we went 67-21 when doing so this year.
October 14, 200322 yr To be honest, I think the big difference in this last game is that Lowell is back in the lineup. If you take one look at that lineup ITS DANGEROUS. The first 5 guys are completely DANGEROUS. Putting Lowell in the middle of it is like reassuring those runs will score let alone Pudge is there too. Lowell already has 2 HRs. I don't know why I just think thats amazing after coming off the dl.
October 14, 200322 yr The key to winning: D-Lee, A Gonz, & Luis need to bust out of the slump they are in!!! If Conine and Pudge and Mike Lowell and even Cabs have another big game and those three come through..... Yeah buddy!!! :thumbup
October 14, 200322 yr Yes, as long as we keep the Cubs from scoring in the first innings, and we score before they do, we're pretty much set. We just gotta avoid letting them score. We can do it, guys. Prior is good but he isn't a god.
October 14, 200322 yr if we wanna win then everyone is going 2 have 2 help-and were going 2 need gret pitching.-go marlins!!!!!!
October 14, 200322 yr Ramp, As "McKeon" has often stated, Leave you ego at the door. McKeon plays the hot hand and is not afraid to change things IF it does not affect the D too much. We have no good replacements for SeaBass or Lee for that matter. Enc has done nothing for almost a month and is replaceable.
October 14, 200322 yr I have faith in Pavano. He's got a good head on his shoulders & he won't get caught up in the pressure of the game. He'll use all his pitches, keep the Cubs off-balance, & won't walk batters. He knows he's good a good defense behind him. Keep the ball down in the zone & he'll be alright. Everyone's talking about Pavano having to pitch the game of his life, I don't see it that way. He's pitched plenty of very good games this year. This isn't the Yankees or Red Sox lineup he's facing. The Cubs will get themselves out if you make good pitches to them.
October 14, 200322 yr I have said this before,the key things for us to gain victory today will be for Luis and JP to get on base so that Pudge Rodriguez and Cabrera can drive them in...We also need to be very aggresive on the basepaths and do anything we can to get men in scoring position.Pavano will also need to rise to the occasion and most of all the guys need to believe they can win.
October 14, 200322 yr Well, from what I have gathered by reading and watching the news interviews, it seems to me that the guys DO have faith in themselves. This is a big game and they're going to be fighting real hard. I am also pretty sure that Pavano can do it. We just gotta keep the faith and hope for the best!
October 14, 200322 yr Also, check this out guys. I haven't seen this posted up here yet, so I am going to repeat what someone said to me earlier. 80% of the time, the winner of Game 5 in a 7 game Series, wins the Series!
October 14, 200322 yr 80% of the time, the winner of Game 5 in a 7 game Series, wins the Series! Interesting.... :mischief2 Thanks,that makes me feel a bit better(Home sick with the flu )
October 14, 200322 yr Ramp, As "McKeon" has often stated, Leave you ego at the door. McKeon plays the hot hand and is not afraid to change things IF it does not affect the D too much. We have no good replacements for SeaBass or Lee for that matter. Enc has done nothing for almost a month and is replaceable. he has hit two big homers in these playoffs.... that alone is more than Alex and DLee combined and also, Enc was on fire vs Philly the last week of the year... but oh well, who am I to argue with Trader..... but I still dont like it
October 14, 200322 yr Author Ramp, you are crazy. No Enc = Lowell and Cabrera. I would rather both bats than Enc at all. I love Enc, but he is just another hole in the lineup right now offensively. But, with him on the bench, we got some options. I suspect we may see him as a defensive replacement if we take the lead... Gentlemen, I am stoked. There is a rumbling, deep down in all of our souls that I can feel. This team believes. The Cubs even seem to believe that the Marlins are going to do it - they are all talking about how they are going to get it done. They seem scared, not confident. One way or another, the stage is set, and I like the make up here. Go get 'em boys... :angry
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