Bad reviews for Marlins

By Greg Cote

 

With your indulgence,

 

I would apply to the 2008 Marlins the words of William Shakespeare, slightly adapted, from his early-1600s play Julius Caesar:

 

I come not to bury the Marlins or to praise them but to admit the spade bearing the dirt is ever closer at hand.

 

OK, so I'm no Shakespeare. Lately, the Marlins aren't acting like the playoff team they purport to be, either, so we're even.

 

South Florida's feel-good story isn't feeling very good these days. The Little Team That Could seems more and more as if it can't, and won't.

 

Marlins bats napped in a 3-0 home loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night, a defeat that left the slumping Fish 2 ? games back in the National League East and dropping ever further out of any pursuit for the wild card.

 

Heck, the lowly Dolphins, brawling in practice earlier in the day, showed more fight Thursday than the Marlins.

 

Erstwhile ace pitcher Scott Olsen continued a drought that has seen him without a victory since July 19. The Cards' first run fittingly was set up by an error by first baseman Mike Jacobs, one of the defensive culprits for the majors' worst-fielding team. Also fittingly, the un-clutch Marlins were 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position.

 

SWIMMING IN PLACE

 

Olsen said afterward: 'It's hard to keep saying, every day, `You got to put it behind you and move on.' ''

 

The clubhouse TVs bore Olympic swimming.

 

''It's real frustrating,'' Jacobs said of an offense gone mute lately. ``You can only give credit to the [opposing] pitchers so much.''

 

A depressing pall hung in the air, it was quiet, the weather was damp and dreary, and a small gathering of witnesses was present.

 

What sounds like the perfect setting for a funeral was instead the ambience at this game, something sadly appropriate.

 

The small crowd watched the Marlins lose for the fifth time in their past seven games, watched a team in need of an extra gear but stalling, a team looking for the clutch but finding the brake instead.

 

I think it might be time to start talking about the Marlins honestly. This team has been coddled in the local and national media. We have been guilty of being so charmed by the perceived overachievement, based on low spring expectations, that the patting on the back goes on even when a kicking in the a -- might be warranted.

 

Nothing said or written about the Marlins this season has been as viscerally on the mark as the frustrated booing heard earlier this week from home fans -- those loyalists who see the Marlins every night, warts and all, not just occasionally in highlight reels.

 

It is fine to give this team attaboys for a season over .500, but the guys have been above criticism for too long.

 

Since reaching a season-best 10 games over .500 on May 26, the Marlins have been 33-39. That is an awfully long time to be mediocre at best. That's a long time to be hanging in the playoff chase by pure luck, by the gift of nobody else being that much better.

 

Warm and fuzzy is fine, but it's time for a little reality show down here. The Marlins haven't been anything special for going on three months now -- good enough to tease and claim to be a part of the playoff race, but not good enough to give you the idea they might be playing in October.

 

The return from injury of pitchers Josh Johnson and Anibal Sanchez and the emergence of top prospect Chris Volstad should be infusing this club with momentum and spark at just the right time, but it has not shown in the one place it must -- the standings -- because bats are cold when arms are hot, and vice versa.

 

ROAD GETS TOUGHER

 

Florida is 13-14 since the All-Star break, and the path gets no easier, with three games on deck here against the best team in the league, the Cubs, followed by a nine-game road trip.

 

It's wonderful and fine to accentuate the positive by marveling how a team so flawed can still be thinking playoffs this late. But it's time to admit the flaws -- serious one,s such as bad defense and the dearth of clutch hitting -- are not getting any better. They are continuing. They are wanting to ruin what otherwise might be a storybook season.

 

The Marlins rank 12th of 16 NL teams in batting, 13th in ERA and 16th in fielding. The team has a starting center fielder, Cody Ross, batting .206 since the All-Star break, and a superstar, Hanley Ramirez, hitting barely better than that with runners in scoring position. No team's lineup strikes out more (or comes close), and there are entire towns in America populated with fewer people than the men Florida has left on base.

 

These are not trends that suggest October.

 

Let's quit reliving how wrong we all were in February to predict how lousy the team would be -- and giving the Marlins a free ride based on that.

 

Instead, let's start demanding that a team 33-39 since late May starts proving it deserves to be in the playoff race.

 

Let's see if a team looking more and more like a pretender has the fight left to be the contender it thinks it is.

 

Miami Herald

i still believe. let's go fish!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

oh and the article :thumbdown

I know a lot of people aren't going to like the article, but it was pretty spot-on. I had no idea the Marlins were under .500 since May 26th. And things aren't getting better.

Whether you agree wih Cote or not (I happen to agree) give him some credit for actually writing a piece about the Marlins that has to do with their performance on the field and not about attendance or payroll or Manny Ramirez or any other such bulls#!t. This is the kind of baseball writing/reporting that is so lacking in the South Florida media market. Not that anything he said is earth-shattering or particularly well-written, but at least he's showing some passion for this team and sounding like a sportswriter.

Whether you agree wih Cote or not (I happen to agree) give him some credit for actually writing a piece about the Marlins that has to do with their performance on the field and not about attendance or payroll or Manny Ramirez or any other such bulls#!t. This is the kind of baseball writing/reporting that is so lacking in the South Florida media market. Not that anything he said is earth-shattering or particularly well-written, but at least he's showing some passion for this team and sounding like a sportswriter.

I agree. I think the local writers pretty much behave like glass half full fans and cheerleaders. They hardly ever question anything.

Anytime someone uses a Shakespearean turn of a phrase they have me hooked and generally I agree with Cote, but the idea that the Marlins have been coddled and above criticism or somehow given a pass this season by the local and national media is a hint that Cote's suffering some sort of dementia or early onset Alzheimer's if he's having trouble remembering back to April when every pundit, here or elsewhere proclaimed us the laughingstock of baseball guaranteed to finish somewhere behind the Nationals and most certainly with worst record in baseball.

 

You might want to schedule an appointment promptly with your neurologist or geriatric phychiatrist Greg, before you have trouble finding One herald Square in the morning.

I know a lot of people aren't going to like the article, but it was pretty spot-on. I had no idea the Marlins were under .500 since May 26th. And things aren't getting better.

beat me to it, by about 20 minutes, but exactly what I thought after reading the article.

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Forget Cote!! We're not done yet!!!......Go vote for Billy for the Mascot Hall of Fame!!! Slider of the Cleveland Indians is catching up. Let's help Billy win this thing!!!

 

Check the sticky to go to the direct link...

 

C'mon Fish Fans!!!

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Why May 26th? That's a pretty random date.

 

I think 13-14 since the All-Star break tells more than that. Or 40-42 since May 15th. Or 27-27 since June 15th. We've basically been a .500 ball club for a few months now.

 

 

That said, I half agree with the singing sportswriter. I agree that they haven't been playing like a playoff team since the break (1 game under .500 isn't terrible, but not playoff worthy), but I don't agree that they have been coddled and not criticized but the local and national media. You never hear about them enough locally for they to be coddled and the national media has been nothing but critical of the Marlins.

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Why May 26th? That's a pretty random date.

 

I believe Cote stated that May 26th was when they were at their high point, 10 games over .500. So it's not just an arbitrary date.

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Why May 26th? That's a pretty random date.

 

I believe Cote stated that May 26th was when they were at their high point, 10 games over .500. So it's not just an arbitrary date.

Ah, OK, I see.

 

That said, I still don't think it is the right date to go by, concidering that the Marlins had the worst 10 games all season after that point, going 3-7.

 

Like I said, going 13-14 since the All-Star, 27-27 since June 15th, and 40-42 since May 15th are more telling of how this team has been playing.

Good article, it was painful to read but very true. If anything he should have spoke more about the Pen, clutch hitting wins games, but even if we only put a few runs on the board, the pen still needs to lock it down and keep us in the game. We tend to be compared to last year's Arizona for staying in the race without any big names, they won this way because they had a rotation AND a pen.

Cote, I agree, maybe Freddi could listen to Cote since he doesn't listen to us.

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Why May 26th? That's a pretty random date.

 

I think 13-14 since the All-Star break tells more than that. Or 40-42 since May 15th. Or 27-27 since June 15th. We've basically been a .500 ball club for a few months now.

 

 

That said, I half agree with the singing sportswriter. I agree that they haven't been playing like a playoff team since the break (1 game under .500 isn't terrible, but not playoff worthy), but I don't agree that they have been coddled and not criticized but the local and national media. You never hear about them enough locally for they to be coddled and the national media has been nothing but critical of the Marlins.

 

 

This is how the season went so far:

 

1. Low expectations for pre-season.

2. Marlins get off to hot start, media jumps on the bandwagon.

3. Marlins start to cool down, but they are still in contention for the NL East so the media stays with them.

4. As of recent, the Marlins have been ice cold (at least with the bats) and the media starts to get off the bandwagon.

 

For most of the season, the Marlins haven't been praised as much as I would have liked them to be, but its not like everything the media has said has been negative, and they have only been criticized. The Marlins aren't a bad team, in fact they're far from it. They are an average, maybe slightly above average team that could suprise people by making the playoffs. In my opinion, they aren't playoff worthy, but they are able to make them.

Shut up, Cote.

 

You & every other sports writer can stick to Dolphins practice. That's all you people cover, anyways.

 

Nice to hear that the Dolphins are "working hard."

 

I'm sure you're still salavating over Greg Camarillo last year (speak of a team who doesn't get the criticism they deserve).

 

The Dolphins are currently the joke of the NFL. And despite all the talk about their perfection...they haven't done anything "perfect" since 1972.

 

At least the Marlins are still in the race in mid-August forced to play in the POS field, the POS football team, plays in.

 

Marlins "getting too much love?" HA!

I like the article. The team isn't showing any passion out there now. Man up and get mad! Something needs to spark these players. If I am correct, they have still only lost 2 series since the all star break, and broke even in two. But they need to waken up. This is reminding me of that season where AJ Burnett started talking about how the team seemed to not care and thats when he got shipped outta town.

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Why May 26th? That's a pretty random date.

 

I think 13-14 since the All-Star break tells more than that. Or 40-42 since May 15th. Or 27-27 since June 15th. We've basically been a .500 ball club for a few months now.

 

 

That said, I half agree with the singing sportswriter. I agree that they haven't been playing like a playoff team since the break (1 game under .500 isn't terrible, but not playoff worthy), but I don't agree that they have been coddled and not criticized but the local and national media. You never hear about them enough locally for they to be coddled and the national media has been nothing but critical of the Marlins.

 

 

This is how the season went so far:

 

1. Low expectations for pre-season.

2. Marlins get off to hot start, media jumps on the bandwagon.

3. Marlins start to cool down, but they are still in contention for the NL East so the media stays with them.

4. As of recent, the Marlins have been ice cold (at least with the bats) and the media starts to get off the bandwagon.

 

For most of the season, the Marlins haven't been praised as much as I would have liked them to be, but its not like everything the media has said has been negative, and they have only been criticized. The Marlins aren't a bad team, in fact they're far from it. They are an average, maybe slightly above average team that could suprise people by making the playoffs. In my opinion, they aren't playoff worthy, but they are able to make them.

2 is all wrong. All I heard after the hot start was that we couldn't keep it up and we'd fall back to 4th place by June. There really wasn't any bandwagon jumping until Hanley and Uggla were named to the All-Star Game.

Guys a dumbass. Have some damn faith and talk about something positive. We've all seen crazy things happen in the NL East(phillies won the division when they were down 7 games with 17 games left). We still have 30+ games left, plenty of time to turn this around.

Guys a dumbass. Have some damn faith and talk about something positive. We've all seen crazy things happen in the NL East(phillies won the division when they were down 7 games with 17 games left). We still have 30+ games left, plenty of time to turn this around.

 

Well, he doesn't really say that they can't make it. It's more like he's frustrated at how they're playing, and wants to see them prove him wrong. I don't see that fire in their eye that they had earlier in the season. They need a boost, and I think freddy has to give it to them. Although, the crowds should be good for these next three games. Hopefully the crowd can raise the intensity at the stadium.

33-39 since May 26th says it all.

Why May 26th? That's a pretty random date.

 

I think 13-14 since the All-Star break tells more than that. Or 40-42 since May 15th. Or 27-27 since June 15th. We've basically been a .500 ball club for a few months now.

 

 

That said, I half agree with the singing sportswriter. I agree that they haven't been playing like a playoff team since the break (1 game under .500 isn't terrible, but not playoff worthy), but I don't agree that they have been coddled and not criticized but the local and national media. You never hear about them enough locally for they to be coddled and the national media has been nothing but critical of the Marlins.

 

 

This is how the season went so far:

 

1. Low expectations for pre-season.

2. Marlins get off to hot start, media jumps on the bandwagon.

3. Marlins start to cool down, but they are still in contention for the NL East so the media stays with them.

4. As of recent, the Marlins have been ice cold (at least with the bats) and the media starts to get off the bandwagon.

 

For most of the season, the Marlins haven't been praised as much as I would have liked them to be, but its not like everything the media has said has been negative, and they have only been criticized. The Marlins aren't a bad team, in fact they're far from it. They are an average, maybe slightly above average team that could suprise people by making the playoffs. In my opinion, they aren't playoff worthy, but they are able to make them.

2 is all wrong. All I heard after the hot start was that we couldn't keep it up and we'd fall back to 4th place by June. There really wasn't any bandwagon jumping until Hanley and Uggla were named to the All-Star Game.

 

 

Well if you consider Baseball Tonight, they seemed to be talking about the Marlins more and more each day when we were in first place near the beginning of the season.

This article is pretty spot on. Cote isn't being negative. He's simply saying that the Marlins should receive some flack for playing badly. He's not being NEGATIVE. He's saying that people should react appropriate to the way the team is playing. I agree with him. This team has been pretty self defeating at times this year with bad mistakes. They have talent.

This article is pretty spot on. Cote isn't being negative. He's simply saying that the Marlins should receive some flack for playing badly. He's not being NEGATIVE. He's saying that people should react appropriate to the way the team is playing. I agree with him. This team has been pretty self defeating at times this year with bad mistakes. They have talent.

That's pretty much the way I read it. I think more than anything the article speaks to accountability. Maybe to say they've been coddled is a bit much since they don't get enough attention to warrant the word coddle but they have not exactly been held accountable. I don't understand why some people get so defensive because I don't think Cote's being negative either but suggesting that a little kick in the ass is not such a bad thing.

 

I could be wrong but I've been getting the impression that Marlins management are starting to lean in the same direction as Cote.

This article is pretty spot on. Cote isn't being negative. He's simply saying that the Marlins should receive some flack for playing badly. He's not being NEGATIVE. He's saying that people should react appropriate to the way the team is playing. I agree with him. This team has been pretty self defeating at times this year with bad mistakes. They have talent.

That's pretty much the way I read it. I think more than anything the article speaks to accountability. Maybe to say they've been coddled is a bit much since they don't get enough attention to warrant the word coddle but they have not exactly been held accountable. I don't understand why some people get so defensive because I don't think Cote's being negative either but suggesting that a little kick in the ass is not such a bad thing.

 

I could be wrong but I've been getting the impression that Marlins management are starting to lean in the same direction as Cote.

 

I thought the article was well done, and right on the mark. They haven't recieved much critisizim at all because of the strong start. But the time has come for everyone to get real about what this team is, and that is a HORRIBLE defensive team, and a hot & cold offensive team. Its not a reciepe to win, unless you have luck and a real hot streak. This team has never had that long win streak that can separate you from pretender to contender.

 

This team is made up of pretender material. Mike Jacobs, Josh Willingham and Jeremy Hermida are the main culprits, especially Hermida. He has not lived up to his draft position, and I am sure he & Willingham will be moved this off-season. They have not had the offensive numbers and clutch hitting necessary for this team to succeed. Willingham's SO's % has increased the last two years, while his BA has dropped from .277 in 2006, to .265 last year and .263 this year.

 

Erick, that really was way out of line. Why attack the Dolphins ? They have nothing to do with the article, or the way the Marlins are choking this opportunity away. The Dolphins are starting to take the steps back towards respecatbility, and I will bet you this, the Dolphins will get back into the playoffs before the Florida Marlins and this ownership get back into the baseball playoffs.

 

They had a chance to be this years Colorado Rockies, but they have yet to take the chance by the cajones and run with it. And their history this year doesn't say they will. Their longest winning streak can't be more than 6 or 7 games, and its gonna take a streak at least that long if not longer to win this thing. Do you really feel this team has that in them ? They look beaten, and giving up. The offense has just gone south and there is nothing there to give it a swift kick in the arse. Manny Ramirez would have done that, but at a price that I do agree was too high to pay. So why wasn't there another deal on the table ? They basically did nothing else to help the offense. Yes they brought in more pitching, but that was coming back no matter what from injuries. They had a chance to go get a stud catcher, and dropped the ball there too.

 

Plain & simple, this ownership doesn't really want to win this year, as that is not in their plans, as it would cost too much, and we know that all they do is pinch pennies. :confused

This article is pretty spot on. Cote isn't being negative. He's simply saying that the Marlins should receive some flack for playing badly. He's not being NEGATIVE. He's saying that people should react appropriate to the way the team is playing. I agree with him. This team has been pretty self defeating at times this year with bad mistakes. They have talent.

That's pretty much the way I read it. I think more than anything the article speaks to accountability. Maybe to say they've been coddled is a bit much since they don't get enough attention to warrant the word coddle but they have not exactly been held accountable. I don't understand why some people get so defensive because I don't think Cote's being negative either but suggesting that a little kick in the ass is not such a bad thing.

 

I could be wrong but I've been getting the impression that Marlins management are starting to lean in the same direction as Cote.

 

I thought the article was well done, and right on the mark. They haven't recieved much critisizim at all because of the strong start. But the time has come for everyone to get real about what this team is, and that is a HORRIBLE defensive team, and a hot & cold offensive team. Its not a reciepe to win, unless you have luck and a real hot streak. This team has never had that long win streak that can separate you from pretender to contender.

 

This team is made up of pretender material. Mike Jacobs, Josh Willingham and Jeremy Hermida are the main culprits, especially Hermida. He has not lived up to his draft position, and I am sure he & Willingham will be moved this off-season. They have not had the offensive numbers and clutch hitting necessary for this team to succeed. Willingham's SO's % has increased the last two years, while his BA has dropped from .277 in 2006, to .265 last year and .263 this year.

 

Erick, that really was way out of line. Why attack the Dolphins ? They have nothing to do with the article, or the way the Marlins are choking this opportunity away. The Dolphins are starting to take the steps back towards respecatbility, and I will bet you this, the Dolphins will get back into the playoffs before the Florida Marlins and this ownership get back into the baseball playoffs.

 

They had a chance to be this years Colorado Rockies, but they have yet to take the chance by the cajones and run with it. And their history this year doesn't say they will. Their longest winning streak can't be more than 6 or 7 games, and its gonna take a streak at least that long if not longer to win this thing. Do you really feel this team has that in them ? They look beaten, and giving up. The offense has just gone south and there is nothing there to give it a swift kick in the arse. Manny Ramirez would have done that, but at a price that I do agree was too high to pay. So why wasn't there another deal on the table ? They basically did nothing else to help the offense. Yes they brought in more pitching, but that was coming back no matter what from injuries. They had a chance to go get a stud catcher, and dropped the ball there too.

 

Plain & simple, this ownership doesn't really want to win this year, as that is not in their plans, as it would cost too much, and we know that all they do is pinch pennies. :confused

 

the offense is cold now and has been for a while. that means eventually it will get hot again and that long winning streak youre talkin about should come. and hopefully its while wer still in contention. Mike jacobs and Josh willingham should get moved this offseason but not hermida. i know i know you havent seen anything from him yet and blah blah blah. Point is, he's still 24 years old, showed signs of greatness, and still has a TON of potential. We have to keep him.