Brewing up a Heart Ache

That 4 game sweep by the Brewers hurt. It hurt bad. Tonight the Fish look to change their luck against Tommy Hanson and the Braves. Dan Uggla and Freddi Gonzalez make their return to Miami. I forsee Uggla continuing to struggle in this series, but it would not surprise me if he hits a HR before he leaves town though.

Has anyone else noticed how Hanley and Uggla are both struggling in their first year apart? Its weird.

 It serves Uggla right for running out of town for more money. I WAS the biggest DUggla fan, and it tore at the heart strings to see him go. But as a Marlins fan I should be used to losing my favorite players every few years.

Desperate Measures

After losing 3 in row to the Brewers the Marlins are fishing for a W anyway they can get it. To make things worse all 3 losses have been by 1 run. And the "Axe Man" John Axford has closed all three games by the skin of his teeth. Brewers fans must have heart attacks (not from brats, cheese, and beer) whenever he enters the game. He is a rocky closer who always makes it interesting.

The Fish have had plenty of opportunities to win all three of these games. The Fish are a combined 5 for 32 with RISP that is an average of .156 . That is unbelievable with such a potent offense. Hopefully they can stop this losing streak tonight!

Did anyone see how mature Nyjer Morgan looked after he hit the HR off of Volstad? 

What a great catch by LoMo on saturday; Web Gem without a doubt! See it here on MLB.com

Around the league

Have you ever seen Adrian Beltre at the plate? Not only is he a good hitter he is quite the entertainer. He flips his bat off of homeplate and catches it by the handle. He also spins and poses like he is on Broadway. Im a really surprised some pitchers have not buzzed his tower especially when he does it on the road. I am still searching for video of these hilarious theatrics.

John Jaso was exposed the other day of having a mediocre arm, when the rangers stole 5 bases on him in one inning; Yes I said 5. In his career he has thrown out only 18 of 73 runners attempting to steal on him (20%). Now that is more mediocre than his arm.

Yesterday (June 5th) there was a 3 way tie for the NL wildcard; Marlins, Giants, Brewers. And the Braves were only 1/2 a game back so almost a 4 way tie. I know that its early to look at the wildcard, but I wanted to check on the competition.

Stanton half way to the cycle Hr 3B Got the hard part done Marlins have never had a cycle in their history

Tables Turned in the Desert

Anibal Sanchez took the mound Tuesday night after his fellow marlin pitchers had gave up 23 runs on 36 hits over the last 2 games. Well call Anibal the "band-aid" because he stopped the bleeding. He held the white hot DBacks to 2 runs and 6 hits over 8 strong innings; before Leo Nunez came in and slammed the door in the 9th for his 19th save of the year. Anibal is having one of the best months in Marlins history (4-0 1.69 era). His numbers this season (5-1 2.57 era) are really impressive. So all you managers and players take notice and give Anibal (& Leo) his due at the ASG. What makes last night's performance even more impressive is the fact that the snakes had won 15 of 17 until Anibal took the mound last night. One blip on the Marlin's radar last night was one half of the Upton brothers. Did you see Justin Upton's bomb last night in the 1st inning? He hit a Sanchez curveball almost to California. Man that kid is strong. It raises a pretty good question. Who is the better Upton? BJ or Justin? BJ is a little more consistent in my eyes (and has been on a better team), but Justin does things and hits balls that most humans could never dream of.

Tonight the Fish wrap up their west coast road trip. One more game against the Snakes, then the Marlins come home to open a 4 game set with the Milwaukee Brewers. But first we have to finish the job in the desert. Javier Vasquez is meeting up with Daniel Hudson of the Snakes. Javy lately has been the Javy of old. Going 13 IP with 10 Ks and only 2 ERs total his last 2 starts. Hopefully that is a positive sign, that he has found his groove. On the other hand Hudson has not been as effective for Arizona, but that doesnt matter when your offense is raking like the Snakes. Hudson allowed 5 ERs to the Astros last time out but received his 3rd straight win after the Snakes posted 7 runs in support.

Tuesday nights game was huge for the confidence of the Marlins. Coming back from being beat to a pulp and winning last night, shows the mental toughness of this team.

"It's just a good feeling to get a win after those last two" Logan Morrison

 They must continue to be confident and work as a team to win. Tuesday nights game was just as important in the psyche as it was in the standings.

Surprisingly Disappointing

The Fish have been beat to chum the last 2 games. 23-4 is the combined score of the 2 games. The staff has allowed 36 hits over that span; Nolasco gave up 15 by himself on Sunday. What the heck happened? Its just as surprising as it is disappointing. The pitching has been great all year long then BAM, they're throwing BP fastballs  that the DBacks and Dodgers have jumped all over. It doesn't matter who plays the Diamondbacks these days but 15-4? Really? Seems like the Fish are so wrapped up in the Heat hype that they forgot to take care of their own business on the field. If they are so concerned with a title coming back to South FLA they need to concentrate on making it the Commissioner's Trophy. Samson why don't you put in your resume with the heat? Another thing that is surprising and disappointing is the fact that no Marlins are even on the radar of being voted into the all star game. What a shame! It just shows how the Marlins are in need of more loyal fans like you and me. Go vote. Here is the ballot. And if you vote 25 times with the Marlins as your favorite team you will receive FREE tickets.

Go Fish!! (we need something soon to forget those 2 losses) 

Team Effort

As the Marlins and their fans wait patiently for the return of JJ (June 7th we hope), the bullpen is taking this opportunity and running with it. Last night 5 relievers combined to give up 1 run, over 9 innings. Not often do you get to say 9 innings from a bullpen, and it was pretty impressive. Another Marlin that is grabbing his opportunity by the gonads is Brett "Willy Mays" Hayes. He is hitting .370 in 27 ABs; His OPS is over 1 (1.026). Brett is doing an awesome job handling the pitching staff on Buck's days off. He masterminded that great performance from the bullpen last night, and went 2 for 3 with a walk. He has a catching ERA of 4.59 this year, that doesn't justify how well he has handled this staff. Its a shame he doesn't get more pinch hitting opportunities on the days in-between his weekly starts. Managers are hesitant to use their back up catchers with good reason. But the SoCal native should see more starts with the way he has handled the bat and the staff this year. John Buck will get the start today against Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw is a studdly left hander boasting a 2.96 ERA. He has 77 punch-outs in only 70 IP (wow). CK will square up with fill in ace Ricky Nolasco. Ricky looks to get his first win against his childhood team, the Dodgers. Ricky is from the SoCal area (Corona) and will have almost a hundred family members there this afternoon. He puts his 4-0 record on the line with an impressive ERA (3.04). That is ASG worthy to me. Go Fish!!

Cali Love

Its a long rainy day waiting for the Marlins to begin their series with the Dodgers tonight @ 10pm. Its kinda of a cool thing for us night owls on the east coast. Get more in the sunshine, well on most days. Javy is set to take on Jon Garland. Garland is a good righty veteran with a record (1-4 4.75) that doesn't reflect how decent he has pitched this year. He has had a lot of success against the fish (5-1 2.36) the past 10 years. Javys record on the other hand does reflect how poorly he has pitched this year (3-4 6.41). But he spun off a gem last Saturday against the Rays. So hopefully he turns the corner and builds on that start. Its great to see all the Cali natives thrive on these west coast swings; must be great to have all this success in front of your friends and family. I know Rich and Tommy are loving it. California dreaming.

Check this out. From the fans of all teams (Espc. the fish) Get well soon Buster!