Marlins: Camp tour | Outlook | Cact Five things to know about the Florida Marlins:
1. Jason Heyward is 20. Mike Stanton is 20. rank and ranked Stanton third. Heyward will almost certainly open the 2010 season in the big leagues with the Braves. Stanton is likely headed to the minor leagues with the Marlins. “I’d be lying if I said we weren’t [tempted to keep him],” manager Fredi Gonzalez said. In reality, giving Stanton more time makes sense, and not just from a financial standpoint. While he displayed great power this spring, he also had trouble with off-speed pitches.
2. The other hot Marlins prospect, first baseman Logan Morrison (20th on list), had a better chance to make the team this spring, but also looks headed for more time in the minor leagues. The Marlins love Morrison for his ability on the field, but also for his leadership skills, which he has displayed even at age 22. The Marlins have Gaby Sanchez available to play first base until Morrison is ready.
3. Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria was openly disappointed that his low-budget team didn’t make the playoffs in 2009 (”We should have been one of the eight,” he told reporters when spring training began this year). And there are plenty of people who think that if the Marlins falter this year, Loria will fire Gonzalez (and that Gonzalez will then take over the Braves after Bobby Cox retires). “Fredi is the manager, and we are moving forward,” Loria said at the start of camp.
4. The Marlins haven’t yet gotten much out of the big Miguel Cabrera trade in December 2007. Of the two big names coming Florida’s way, outfielder Cameron Maybin has played just 62 big league games for the Marlins and was still fighting to hold a job this spring, while left-hander Andrew Miller is 9-15 in his Marlins career and is likely to begin 2010 in the minor leagues. As of now, the player who has helped the Marlins most is probably 27-year-old right-hander Burke Badenhop, who won seven games with a 3.75 ERA while pitching mostly out of the bullpen last year.
5. A year ago, some scouts believed that the Marlins might have had the best five-man rotation in the National League East. The names are the same now, but the feeling isn’t. While Josh Johnson has developed into an All-Star and is now the unquestioned ace, each of the other four ended up in the minor leagues at some point in 2009, either through ineffectiveness or injury rehabilitation. This spring, the Marlins came to camp with Johnson and Ricky Nolasco guaranteed spots, and Anibal Sanchez soon joined them. The final two places were less certain, with Chris Volstad considered the front-runner for one, and Rick VandenHurk, Hayden Penn and Clay Hensley as the other top candidates.
