1997 Marlins Post Title Thoughts

[Das Texan 81]

So in case none of you people know, you can watch Game 7 of the 1997 World Series on YouTube thanks to MLB Vault.

 

I watched that game for the first time in 22 plus years last night and its got me thinking about numerous things.

 

1. Jim Leyland was fucking emotional as fuck when they won that game. I forgot how he did a lap around the stadium and might have been the most he ran without stopping in years.

2. The 1997 Marlins were really fucking good.

3. Edgar Renteria was a young fucking stud.

4. Craig Counsell can jump real fucking high.

5. Bobby Bonilla looks like me when he runs the bases. I thought he was gonna need oxygen in the 11th inning. Bobby Bonilla also got insider info and unloaded a pitch earlier. Its an all time classic moment that I dont think gets nearly enough attention.

6. Tony Saunders was real good until he broke his arm. Its real unfortunate.

7. Jaret Wright was also a stud. Still dont know why he never was a real star.

8. Dave Dombrowski was a genius.

9. Alfonseca was a young buck in that game/that season and had a semi underrated career.

10. John Cangelosi sucked and I dont know how he lasted in the bigs as long as he did.

11. Jim Eisenrich was another very underrated player.

12. I hated Devon White in his entire tenure as a Marlin. Game 7 was everything I hated about Devon White, Marlins should have won that game long before the 11th if that idiot wasnt playing.

13. I kinda forgot how much Dennis Cook was a pretty decent pitcher for most of his career.

14. Gary Sheffield mundane Game 7 was a fucking stud his entire career.

15. Dutch Daulton is probably reason A that team won the series with his leadership.

16. There are other thoughts about other players, but I just wanted to mostly focus on Game 7.

 

Now, some other thoughts. 18 year old Das loved that team. 18 year old Das was a young bright eyed kid just into college reaching the pinnacle of high. 18 year old Das was beyond excited, having thought he couldnt lose, while I complain that I hated the Marlins in 94, 95, 96, thats not entirely true. I never expected the team to win, and neither did fans really. They were happy to be there. 1997 comes and it was No Limit time. We grabbed our nuts (or our ovaries) in our hands and squeezed in excitement, pushing all of our fucking chips all in to taste the World Series. It was an exilir. It was magical. And the high that comes from that pinnacle was robbed of Marlins fans. All thanks to one petty little fucker.

 

H. Wayne Huizenga murdered the Marlins. He can rot in fucking hell. He basically brought the Marlins into existence and then due to his own moronic impatience and insistence on selling the team, went all in, which is cool, but he overspent (got a title) and then fucked over the entire Marlins franchise forever by tearing that team down essentially immediatley.

 

John Henry could have never saved that team. And that was a setup fucking disaster from the start, thank you Bud Selig.

Jeff Loria no matter what could have never saved that team, and again thank you Bud Selig for not trying to give the Marlins CPR after the murder committed by H. Wayne Huizenga.

Can Bruce Sherman? Who knows. The Marlins died in 1998 thanks to the greed of one H. Wayne Huizenga.

 

I have hated on Jeff Loria over the years and rightfully so. He was an idiot who had no business owning the Marlins, the Expos or any Major League team. But it really wouldnt have mattered. He won a title and because of the actions of H. Wayne Huizenga, couldnt revive that team. Its sad. Loria got the Marlins a new stadium, but even that couldnt put life back in the franchise (though honestly the moronic logo didnt help and Loria being flat out incomptent 85% of the time of course did nothing but harm the Marlins).

 

H. Wayne Huizenga, like I said, MURDERED the Marlins and he MURDERED baseball in South Florida (at least on the Major League level).

 

1997 was to me what being a fan of baseball was all about. 1998 should have been a victory lap and the dawning of a dynasty, even if you had to sell one / two pieces to make budget, though the Marlins would have been drawing the most fans in the National League in 1998. I'm fully convinced of that. Miami was hooked. They would have made that drive over and over again. The Marlins would be a top franchise and I would still be a Marlin fan. 2003 while fun was a bit empty because of the empty spot of having not been able to wonder what might have been. Instead of taking about the Yankees of the late 90s, it very well could have been the Marlins of the late 90s. That's how talented they were.

 

Feel free to throw out your thoughts on that game, that season or anything in retospect also.

 

Das out.

[SonOfJack 748]

 

Quick link for anyone who wants to watch that classic again

[SongInTheAir 145]

What if Fernandez had gone for two on Devon's ground ball? I know the right play was to go home, of course, but I think he had an easy double play assuming the shortstop could have gotten there in time.

 

Thoughts?

[SongInTheAir 145]

A few retorts:

 

2. The 1997 Marlins were really fucking good.

they were, they were really really good

3. Edgar Renteria was a young fucking stud.

he had such a weird career. Some seasons, it was like he completely forgot how to hit, and other seasons he was one of the best hitters in baseball

6. Tony Saunders was real good until he broke his arm. Its real unfortunate.

he could barely throw strikes, he wasn't going to have sustainable success

7. Jaret Wright was also a stud. Still dont know why he never was a real star.

probably because he threw more balls than strikes in almost every season of his career

8. Dave Dombrowski was a genius.

yup. but his star burnt bright and hot, but burnt out quick. Rusney Castillo, yo.

9. Alfonseca was a young buck in that game/that season and had a semi underrated career.

he was exciting and a rollercoaster type reliever. Like if Fernando Rodney had an extra finger.

10. John Cangelosi sucked and I dont know how he lasted in the bigs as long as he did.

he was fantastic in 1987 and 1995 and somehow rode that into a 13 year career

11. Jim Eisenrich was another very underrated player.

he was so good at what he did, but played a very specific role and didn't hit home runs, so that usually leads to being underrated by most

12. I hated Devon White in his entire tenure as a Marlin. Game 7 was everything I hated about Devon White, Marlins should have won that game long before the 11th if that idiot wasnt playing.

0-for-6 in Game 7, and I hated the way he would catch fly balls

13. I kinda forgot how much Dennis Cook was a pretty decent pitcher for most of his career.

Cook was really solid, and actually exciting as a hitter too

 

 

I was at Game 7, and it was amazing. Section 434, which was not even a section open for usual baseball games.

[Das Texan 81]

If Larry were still alive he would tell you where I would have been sitting for this game.....

[Das Texan 81]

What if Fernandez had gone for two on Devon's ground ball? I know the right play was to go home, of course, but I think he had an easy double play assuming the shortstop could have gotten there in time.

 

Thoughts?

 

He should have gone for 2.

 

Was a moronic atbat by White. Much like most of his Marlins career.

[hovertical 44]

Dutch Daulton was a fantastic trade deadline acquisition and a huge part of why they even made it to the postseason that year. He provided fantastic leadership and added some pop to the lineup as well. As much shit as Loria caught, Das was right that Wayne destroyed beisbol in Miami. Literally destroyed it to the point that if revenue sharing didn't exist it wouldn't be even a remotely profitable enterprise. I was pondering the other day what it would truly take for the team to start filling the new digs again and it would require a good 3 years of having a completely dominant team that hovers or surpasses 100 wins a season and wins at least one title in there somewhere, before fans might finally see it as a destination again. I don't know though, sometimes I think that even that won't do it.

[SilverBullet 832]

Analysis of this game has finally come over 22 years later.

 

Let's see if it takes Fangraphs 22 years to finally write their elegy of the 2018 season that we're all still waiting on.

[CoastieMike 16]

As much as the World Series is remember, that NLCS was great. I was only 7, but the names Glavine Maddux and Smoltz even gave me chills at the age.

[Das Texan 81]

As much as the World Series is remember, that NLCS was great. I was only 7, but the names Glavine Maddux and Smoltz even gave me chills at the age.

 

Eric Gregg robbed the Braves but I was quite ok with that thievery, tbh.

[Das Texan 81]

Dutch Daulton was a fantastic trade deadline acquisition and a huge part of why they even made it to the postseason that year. He provided fantastic leadership and added some pop to the lineup as well.

 

Dave Dombrowski was a genius in the moves he made leading up to that title.

[rmc523 198]

I'd agree that dismantling the team so early in its existence, especially right after winning the world series, was a recipe for disaster for a new franchise. You're definitely not going to win over the people that will make your team profitable.

[SilverBullet 832]

Huizenga dismantling that team when he did it was more damaging and downright awful to this team and it's fanbase than anything Loria ever did.

 

As silly as some of Loria's moves were a lot of franchises have had bad owners who make bad moves and have recovered from it but Huizenga's fire sale seemingly made every future bad move seem even worse.

[DTrain 30]

When World Series tickets went on sale I was faced with a tough decision as a young man with limited income. I could afford tickets for my brother and I for 2 games.

 

I rolled the dice and bought tickets for Game 1 (no brainer) and Game.................

 

 

 

 

 

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[THRILLHO 50]

@Das Texan i can’t add anything. Your original post was excellent.