Merry "Chris"-mas

Have a good one out there, as we read two stories of Mr. Coghlan - one on his memories of Christmases as a kid, and the other on how the guys his late father worked with still remember that kid.

Misdirection

The Marlins try to sign a young Cuban pitcher to a long-term deal, and Josh is reportedly not angry.

Mr. Marlins Discovered

Jeff Conine may be Mr. Marlin, but I'm giving the title of "Mr. Marlins" to Fredi Gonzalez, because I know of no other person who has been so involved in so many versions of the Marlins. His Wikipedia bio shows not only that he was the first coach in the Florida Marlins organization, the manager of the Marlins' AA team in 1997, the third base coach for the Marlins in 1999 and 2000, and the Marlins manager since after the 2006 season, but his first managing job ever was with what previously had been the second incarnation of the Miami Marlins, and in 2002 he was with the Richmond Braves, which was the transplanted original Miami Marlins.

Friday's Flashes

Rickey gets a 58% raise. (fishstripes)

Jose Ceda seems healthy. (mlb)

Gookie gets caught. (mlb)

Nick Johnson's almost a Yankee. (nypost)

Eri Yoshida will be pitching in the US. (baseballmusings)

Cracked Stat Report: Baseball Verses Football

One of the many problems that is pointed out about the baseball park that for at least the next five minutes is known as LandShark Stadium is that it actually is not really a baseball park. A football team known as the Miami Dolphins has tromped all over the playing field for the latter part of every season of the Marlins' existence, and for the last two years the U. of M. Hurricanes has done even more of the same.

The question explored here is what effect, if any, this shared arrangement has had on the win/loss records of everyone involved. To examine this, we'll be using historical data from Baseball-Reference.com, and for the Dolphins from Phins.com, whose records thankfully include the pre-seasons. We'll go back through every season up to 1995, since the strike of 1994 truncated the dual-use part of the season early, and the Phins.com stats don't go back to '93.

First, does the first pre-season football home game mess up the first home Marlins game that follows it? This game can be as soon as the next day after (as in 2002) or as late as ten days later (as in 2004). The record shows that from 1995 on the Marlins have a 6-9 record in the first home baseball game after the first home pre-season football game, although in the last eight years they have evened it up to 4-4.

One would think that baseball games scheduled to be played the day after a football game would be affected by a more roughed-up condition of the field. The record shows that, so far, that negative effect is being suffered mostly by visiting teams. Since 1995 the Marlins are 8-4 in home games played on the day after a football game. It's reversed though when the Marlins start a home series 2 days after the ravages of football, as the Marlins in that situation have a 3-6 win/loss record.

Adding it all together, from 1995 to 2009 the Marlins have (by our count) a 464-409 win/loss record (.532 win percentage) in home games played before the first pre-season home football game, and a 192-151 record (.560 win percentage) in home games played afterwards (including post-season games, in which the Marlins have an 11-6 home record, which if taken away still leaves the Marlins with a .555 win percentage during football).

If you think that we will now be giving up a natural advantage once the team moves to the new digs and away from football, it should be noted that so far in the Fredi Gonzalez era the Fish sport a .522 home win percentage before football starts (94-86) but only .476 during football (30-33). (Maybe this is why Jeffrey was so ready to eject Fredi last season.)

Now how did the Dolphins do, playing off and on the dirt of the diamond? The Dolphins usually play only 1-3 regular-season games a year on baseball dirt, but I would've guessed there would still be an effect. There may be, but there appears to be a dividing line between two different eras. From 1995 to 2002 the Dolphins went 16-0 (!) in home games played during baseball (after baseball ended they were 30-18), but from 2003 to the present their win/loss record on the sandy infield is at 4-7 (after baseball 22-20). The Fins haven't won a game on top of the diamond that counts in the standings since 2006.

And just to finish it up, the Hurricanes have won both games that they have played on the baseball field.

Monday's Happenings

The Fish announce four minor-league signings. (sun-sentinel)

And here's another one. (heraldtribune)

The Marlins announce a holiday deal for tickets that cost less than parking. (blogs.trb.com/)

Andy Fox lands a coaching job with the Mariners' AA team. (oursportscentral)

Another lawsuit against the stadium loses on appeal. (courthousenews)

With Paulino's re-signing, the catching position is considered solid. (mlb)

And the Fish may have enough money for Capps. (fishpond)

Tender Is The Night

The Marlins must tender contracts to ten players by 11:59 ET tonight, or watch them sign elsewhere. (mlb)

UPDATE: Alfredo is now a free agent. And the Nats let Scott Olsen loose. (palmbeachpost)

MORE: And just like that, Scott Olsen re-signs with the Nats. (mlb)

Here's Your Hat, Matt

Lindstrom is shipped to Houston for minor league pitcher Robert Bono, minor league infielder Luis Bryan, and a player to be named. Beinfest says of his empty bullpen, "It's something that we're looking at".

UPDATE: Clark Spencer explains that the trade was made for that "player to be named", whose name is now known.

IN-OTHER-NEWS: The Pirates pick up John Raynor in the Rule 5 draft, and the Maniac discusses him at the Rum Bunter blog.

Gload Goes

Ross does the Wes-Helms Shuffle, signs with Philly. (.sun-sentinel)

Marlins are Keeping JJ

It seems the Rangers literally offered up their future to acquire Josh, but the Fish didn't budge. (i-yankees)

Chilly Indy Heating Up

Lindstrom and Pinto and Uggla, and even Anibal and Alfredo, are being talked about at the Winter Meetings.

In other news, Fredi spent his Friday not shooting deer.

Weekend Stuff

The Marlins have signed six minor-league free agents and are actively shopping Matt Lindstrom.

Today's Stuff

Billy Wagner stays in the NL East. (associatedcontent)

Now that the turkey leftovers are done, the Marlins and Hunt-Moss construction just gave out 100 Christmas trees to Little Havana residents. (kiksmedia)

Larry says "We feel pretty good about this club" but then he says "we're definitely going to be active" looking for trades at next week's Indianapolis meeting. (mlb)

Joe Frisaro gives his take on what the Marlins are looking for. (mlb)

And San francisco is "showing persistent interest" in Danny Boy. (mlb)

Samson is confident that the parking garages will be built, even though the city's taking its own sweet time in getting the money. (mlb)

For those missing live baseball, two Venezualian Winter League teams will play two regular-season games this Saturday and Sunday at the Homestead Baseball Complex. (miamiherald)

And the Miami Hurricanes will start its season Feb. 17 at home against Rutgers, and will pop in a game with the Marlins March 3. (miamiherald)

Full Moon News

To celebrate tonight's full moon I finally totalled up the win-loss record of the 2009 Marlins during the different phases of the moon, and during the times between the phases. Here it be...

      ,_______._______._______._______._______._______._______._______.
      ||  new  |       | first |       |  full |       |  last |       |
year  ||  moon |       |  qtr  |       |  moon |       |  qtr  |       |
------||-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|
2009  || 10- 6 | 10-10 |  8- 9 | 16-13 | 11- 8 | 15-10 |  9- 5 |  8-14 |
------||-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|
2004- || 43-43 | 70-59 | 41-48 | 49-69 | 46-34 | 60-58 | 40-37 | 50-62 |
 2008 ||       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |
------||-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|
total || 53-49 | 80-69 | 49-57 | 65-82 | 57-42 | 75-68 | 49-42 | 58-76 |
------||-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|
win-% || .520  | .537  | .462  | .442  | .576  | .524  | .538  | .433  |
------''-------'-------'-------'-------'-------'-------'-------'-------'

In the original post I made light of the possible validity of this metric; now it's getting ever-so-slightly spooky. The totals at the end of the last six seasons show the Marlins have consistent yearly losing records in games played during the first quarter phases, and have had winning records each year during the full moons. And they weren't that great, and getting much worse, in games played between the last quarter and new moon. Of course we must be within the statistical bounds of probability here. Of course.

Things Etc.

The Marlins don't offer arbitration to Donnelly, Gload, Calero, or Nick Johnson. (mlb)

Juan C. says trading Hanley makes no sense, and that someone told him the Marlins will be raising payroll next year. (sun-sentinel)

In fact, the Marlins raised their average player salary by 52.95 percent in 2009, tops of all MLB teams. (bizofbaseball)

And the 2009 squad made some extra second-place money, too. (fishstripes)

Former Fish owner John Henry seems to have a problem with the current Fish' front office's tactics. (fanhouse)

And Cliff Eastham has a problem with calling the Marlins "the Fish". (bleacherreport)

The Hurk went 7 innings in Puerto Rico on Sunday. (mister-baseball)

As for Dan Uggla (remember him?) it looks as if the Rangers aren't interested in him after all. (mlb)

Weekend Notes

Michael Hill says Josh is staying next year, but now Hanley's is reportedly being dangled in front of the Red Sox.

Andre likes his chances for the Hall, and someone compares the Marlins' possible future to the Giants' recent history.

More Things

The Marlins Hot Stove Radio Show will start up again this weekend, but without Glenn Geffner as a host. (MLB)

Fish-foiler Jamie Moyer goes to the hospital. (abclocal)

Coghlan receives more accolades. (MLB)

Some Things That Happened

Pujols wins the NL MVP award. Hanley came in second. And Coghlan got a vote, too. (MLB)
----------------------------
The Marlins donate 460 turkey meals to residents of Little Havana, an area traditionally more accustomed to pork than pavo. (cbs4)
----------------------------
Samson visits Target Field, hoping to find bargains before Black Friday. (MLB)

Today's News-in-a-Line

The Marlins may be playing in Puerto Rico in 2010, and with Cantu still on the team.

Some Weekend Stories

Chris Coghlan describes his brand of faith to Dan Le Batard. (miamiherald)

Peter Gammons says that "Florida's Cody Ross has long intrigued (the Red Sox); if the Marlins would do a Ross-Manny Delcarmen (whom they tried to get in July) swap, that could be a possibility." (espn)

Hanley should be bracing for the arrival of an enormous celebratory monstrosity from Jeffrey. (torontosun)

Anatomy of an Impasse

The first news seemed to have come from ESPN.com...
'Agent Matt Sosnick told ESPN.com that negotiations between the Marlins and Johnson have reached an 'impasse," and Johnson expects to play under a one-year deal in 2010....
'"Based on our conversations, there's no chance of doing a long-term deal with the Marlins," Sosnick said. "We made it clear that it was going to be this year or it wasn't going to happen. It was now or never. And the Marlins agreed."...
'Johnson and his agents used Zack Greinke's four-year, $38 million contract with the Kansas City Royals as a framework in contract discussions. Sosnick said talks broke down when the Marlins declined to offer more than a three-year deal -- which would buy out only one year of free agency for Johnson. Sosnick declined to discuss any differences over money in negotiations....
'...(")We were willing to give the Marlins what we thought was a significant break, but they just weren't comfortable going to the fourth year."
'Florida general manager Michael Hill declined to address the status of talks Friday.
'"Josh is our player, he's under [contractual] control, and we like him a lot," Hill said. "But we don't comment on any of our contract negotiations publicly."'
----------------------------
Then Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post came up with some money figures...
'Johnson, 25, is entering his second winter of arbitration but was hoping to sign a four-year contract worth at least $40 million.
'The Marlins were believed to be willing to go no longer than three years for about $22 million.
'When the sides could not resolve their differences, the Marlins said they preferred to go year-to-year.
'"They made it very clear they only wanted to talk about a one-year deal,' Sosnick said.'
----------------------------
MLB.com reported using information credited to ESPN and the Post.
----------------------------
Juan C. of the Sun-Sentinel got more Sosnick quotes...
'"No one's getting any kind of a discount now," said Sosnick, who also represents Ricky Nolasco. "This was the last chance for a team to get a bargain for Josh... They money wasn't even the issue. It was shocking they wouldn't do a fourth year. Josh Johnson is going to sign one of the biggest free agent pitching deals in history. If it's in the National League, he's just going to come back and keep beating the Marlins."...
'Sosnick said President of Baseball Operations Larry Beinfest told him guaranteeing a fourth year was too rich for his blood. A team spokesman said the Marlins do not comment on contract negotiations, adding "We refuse to negotiate through the press."
'"The way it was sold was like they were doing us a favor by offering three years," Sosnick said. "We were willing to discount the free agent years by a lot, both of them. They wouldn't even talk about [the fourth year]...This is his last year there for sure."...
'"...They'll trade [Johnson] and get prospects back for him. There are going to be a lot of teams calling in the next couple of days."
----------------------------
Finally Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald got more of the softer side of Sosnick...
'"I don't know if things are totally done, hopefully not. But it is one of those business things in baseball that you kinda don't want to have to go through," he said....
'Asked if there was any chance that negotiations could be revived, Sosnick replied: "I think Larry is an honest guy. He made it clear to me that it [a 3-year deal] is not happening. Given that, I believe him."...
'"If they're not willing to give four years to Josh Johnson, I don't know what pitchers they're going to sign," Sosnick said....
'"It their business. I'm not judging their decision-making, because the Marlins seem to make a lot of very good decisions when it comes to personnel."'

MORE: Early in-depth commentary at Marlin Maniac.

Today's Supposed Fish Stories

While Selig whines about the bad economy and about how some teams (who he wouldn't identify) lost money last season, ESPN's Jayson Stark calculates that not only each club makes more money than you could dream possible, but also that teams like the Marlins who annually keep a huge chunk of their revenue-sharing cash instead of pumping it towards the players should be charged a tax on the difference.

Juan C. speculates on who will fill up the 40-man roster before the Rule 5 draft cutoff deadline of tomorrow.

The Marlins will be hopping to Greensboro on April 3th.

The Hurk is playing winter ball in the land of mofongo.

Bye Bye Diamantes?

Well, that didn't take too long...a day after the Global Scouting Bureau stopped its relationship with the Florida Winter Baseball League, the FWBL suspends the rest of this year's games.

Here's Juan C. Rodriguez's story on the shutdown.

Today's Top Stories

Loud Miamians (are there any other kind?) protest the lack of stadium work given to locals. Marlins cry foul, say the building site is filled to the rafters with locals and more wiil be needed soon. Locals vow to continue to be loud. (MiamiHerald)(cbs4)(nbcmiami)

IN-RUMOR-NEWS: The Marlins are reported interested in Billy Wagner (along with most other teams), and are shopping Ricky Nolasco (along with most other Marlins).

IN-OTHER-NEWS: Alleged criminal mastermind Renyel Pinto flaunts his finger in Facebook. (miaminewtimes)

Coghlan is NL ROY

(MiamiHerald)

Tonight's Uggla Report

Danny's agent says Uggla would rather not be moved from second base. (Yahoo)

Today's Trickle

Uggla Update: The Braves also are reported interested in him. (foxsports)

Bryan Peterson's smacking the ball around for the Solar Sox. (baseballamerica)

Ugglathon Continues

Interested parties for his services seem to include the Orioles, Giants, Red Sox, and Dodgers.

Some Alumni Doings

Former Fish Josh Willingham spoke to some middle-school kids from Tuscumbia, Alabama.
----------------------------
Future former Marlin Dan Uggla flew from Vegas to Tennessee to co-host a benefit golf tourney with former Marlin David Weathers, who is also now a former Brewer.

From Chicago to Vegas

FOXsports is live-blogging from the Chicago GM meeting. The blog noted this about the Marlins earlier today...

"The Marlins have received calls from three teams on second baseman Dan Uggla and two on first baseman Jorge Cantu. Club officials will meet at the general managers' meetings to determine whether trading either or both will be necessary to meet payroll.

"The early signs are that the Marlins, after trading outfielder Jeremy Hermida, can afford both Uggla and Cantu. But the team still might want to move Uggla to clear second base for Chris Coghlan or Emilio Bonifacio.

"Hermida no longer fit with the Marlins, who are committing to Cody Ross in right field and Cameron Maybin in center. Left-hander Hunter Jones, the more advanced of the two pitchers the Marlins received from the Red Sox, is viewed by some scouts as a fringe major leaguer. The Marlins see him as a potential seventh-inning man."

MEANWHILE: Danny and Cody let loose in Vegas,"off the Strip, at the Hard Rock, this weekend. The All-Star second basemen and outfielder were spotted as they checked out the sexy scene at Body English Saturday." (lasvegassun.com)

Return From Somewhere

I'm back from another mini-vacation. Sorry I skipped out on you. Here's some stuff I missed...

FishStripes becomes a potential Powerblog with the addition of GameFish from HLD&S.
----------------------------
Another recent addition to the Marlins blog-jam is Marlins Hood, whose mission statement declares "I have
unfortunately noticed that most Marlins blogs suck and shit. Therefore, I feel it is my duty to provide a forum
for the informed, knowledgeable, and hood Marlins fan." Go have at it.
----------------------------
Cameron may be out of the operating room by now.
----------------------------
Joe Frisaro discovers the Marlins plan to shrink the payroll in 2010 from what it was in 2009, even though some of last year's regulars will be due a raise in 2010, which would make those regulars players for some other teams in 2010 unless the front office listens to advice like Mr. Pinto's.
----------------------------
Make your Douglas fir all toasty warm with this Florida Marlins tree skirt.

Moves Now and Future

Jeremy was traded for Hunter Jones and Jose Alvarez, Proctor signs with the Braves, Collins, St. Claire, Espada, and Cornelius are to be the new coaches, and Nick Johnson, Calero, Donnelly and Gload may file for free agency.

This Could Be It (Second Try)

The Yanks again could be the champs tonight if they beat the Phillies. Pedro and Pettitte pitch.

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Scanning the Headlines

Craig gives you ways to follow the Fish in the AFL, and to see the Rising Stars Game with Matt Dominguez and Bryan Peterson.

Peterson went 3-for-4 with 2 RBI on Monday, ESPN blogger Jason Grey talks about what he sees in Dominguez, and Juan C. tells us recently-shut-down Stanton won't be rushed to the bigs.

This guy will give you "a FREE COPY of the Pre- Game warm up designed and incorporated for the Australian National Team and the Florida Marlins AAA Affiliate, New Orleans Zephyrs."

This other guy thinks the Marlins would trade Tankersley for Brandon Moss.

And another guy thinks the Marlins are one of the teams that may want Akinori Iwamura.

"Florida Marlins owner wants to step down", says the headline,... but not the story

UPDATE: Iwamura goes to the Pirates, and the Maniac sees this as a lesson in leverage.

This Could Be It (2009 Season Edition)

The Yanks could be the champs tonight if they beat the Phillies. Former Marlins draft pick Cliff Lee and former Marlin A.J. Burnett start tonight.

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

World Series Game 4

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

World Series Game 3

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Inaugural Game Photos

I went to the first-ever FWBL game last night, and took some fuzzy photos at the event.


Here the Diamantes and Naturals lined up to be introduced.


Here's a really fuzzy shot of the first pitch in FWBL history.


And here's the celebration for Joash Brodin after he hit the first homer in Diamantes history.


There was a reasonable crowd there.


The crowd started to thin by the 7th inning.

Since we had a 30-mile drive and it was already half past 10 we left after the 7th, which was too bad, as the Diamantes tied the game in the ninth and won it in the 10th.

Baseball in Miami, Now and in the Future

Samson gave a media tour of the stadium site, showing off the growing columns of the new Musberger overpass. Sarah Talalay gives us a great overview of what's happening down there. Samson also crows about the 65 percent of construction workers being local, but is reminded the Marlins still need a place to play in 2011.

Speaking of local, tonight wll be the first night of the Miami Diamantes' domination of South Florida sports. As Juan C. reported, many of the players have a history in South Florida. Tickets are still being sold.

World Series Game 2

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

World Series Game 1

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Randy Can't Stop Tinkering?

Craig's concern about St. Claire's obsession with fixing pitchers' mechanics gets verification through this Brian Sanches comment: "I would classify him more as a mechanics guy. He wants to make sure everything is in line with the plate. He's always in the video room."

Also that article also says the Marlins won't make any announcements about new signings until after the Series. So sit back and have some popcorn.

Mathematician Says Hanley Should Be NL MVP

"(Bruce) Bukiet’s method uses 2009 regular season stats for each player on each team’s roster. He then applies a mathematical model known as the Markov Process to predict the number of runs.

"To determine MVP and Cy Young winners, he considers how many extra wins each player would have contributed to a team of otherwise all average players in his league based on his performance during the regular season.

"For hitters, this involves quantifying each player’s offensive performance in the Markov model in comparison to others who play the same position....

"In the National League, Bukiet, an associate dean of math at New Jersey Institute of Technology, says Florida Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez deserves the MVP award, contributing 5.6 extra wins, while the Cardinals' Albert Pujols is close behind at 5.4 extra wins."

He also predics the Yankees have a 70 percent chance to win the series. This will be checkable in a few days. (stltoday)

Randy St. Claire Declares He's New Fish Pitching Coach

The former 9-year MLB pitcher, Expo minor-league guy, and Nationals pitching coach tells the press he's hired. The Marlins haven't o-fish-ally said anything yet, and are continuing their search for more coaches while other teams hire our old coaches.

AL Championship Game 6

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

AL Championship Game 6

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Time For the Diamantes

The Florida Winter Baseball League will make its debut next week here in SoFla as the Miami Diamantes start a three-game series against the Seminole County Naturals at FIU University Park stadium next Friday. Along with the Naturals, the other two teams in the league (the Lake County Black Bears and the Space Coast Surge) are located in the central part of Florida, necessitating lots of long bus trips between Miami and the orange groves. The league's self-stated objective is to provide "a high visibility showcase for the unseasoned professional baseball player market, catering to not only rookie and Single A level ball players, but also to baseball managers, coaches, scouts, and umpires." They'll be marketing themselves as "the 'preferred US alternative' to Latin and Caribbean winter league baseball." Ken Griffey Sr. is the league commissioner. Who knows? This may actually be interesting.

Wednesday's Worries

There's a bunch of brou-Ha-Ha over the inevitable news that the new parking garage at the new Marlins stadium will cost more than projected. This, though, is a non-issue, as traffic down those tiny streets will be so gridlocked during each game that no one will be able to get to the parking garage anyway.

Tonight the Yanks will try to get Joe to the big show by eliminating the Angels...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

NL Championship Game 5

The Dodgers may be sent home tonight, along with Vin Scully, who plans to return next year, but as he says, "if you want to make God smile, tell him your plans." So I'll be warming up the XM and turning down the TV.

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Alejandro, We Hardly Knew Thee

The wait for the yearly injury is over - De Aza was placed on waivers by the Marlins and picked up by the White Sox. (chicagotribune)(FishPond)(PBPost)(SunSentinel)

Tewsday Nues

Mark Wiley speaks of his surprise at his dismissal and of his future with the team, or elsewhere.

Juan C. takes the Maniac to task for not thinking Coghlan was ROY material.

Here's Fangraph's take on Coghlan and Carroll.

Jack chuckles that Sabathia's going on short rest tonight.

Speaking of tonight....

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Today's Story

Nick Johnson ponders his time with the Fish, and his future with or without them. (MLB)

Now here's tonight's playoff action...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

One Sunday Glob

Andrew makes his first AFL appearance. (PBPost)

Now here's tonight's NL Championship game...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Saturday's Globs of News

Jeffrey flies Fredi, Samson, Beinfest, Hill, and Jennings for a less-than-two-day trip to Paris, to do what everyone always does in Paris - talk baseball, of course. Says Fredi (and probably his poor wife), "(W)e weren't there to sightsee." (FishBytes)

Apparently Jeffrey wanted to fire Fredi in May, but now everyone's all sunshine-and-roses (until the first loss of next season, that is). (PBPost)

Get ready to scratch one off the list - it looks like Professor Rick is heading for the Brewers' pitching coach job. (MLB)

Samson is striving to make sure that all the latest technology of the modern surveillance state will be in place and operational at the new ballpark, Says he, "We'll know who is in the ballpark, where they're sitting and what they've bought. We're not trying to be George Orwell." (True, since Orwell was the writer who tried to warn us about such tactics.) (MLB)

It's the AL game tonight...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Today's Pile o' Things

Braman's appeal is rejected - will he find another hobby? (MiamiHerald)

Stanton is the Marlins' Minor League Player of the Year, Cristhian is the Marlins' Minor League Pitcher of the Year. (FishBytes)

The Maniac interviews Juan C. and discusses Jorge Cantu.

Frisaro gives more pitching coach speculation. (FishPond)

Here's today's games...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

NL Championship Now

It's 5-1 Phillies in the 5th at 9:55 PM ET...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Stuff That's Out There

Proctor has no hard feelings, trusts his agent. (tcpalm)

Matt Trueblood discusses how Uggla would fit in with 8 teams that may want him. (bleacherreport)

Get rid of the umpires! (wsj.com)

Time Off

I'm going on a weekend trip. So here are yesterday's scores...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Here are today's games....

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

And here are tomorrow's games...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

MORE: And here is Monday's game...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Coaches Abandon Ship

Bo Porter and Steve Foster join Mark Wiley and Andy Fox as former Marlins coaches. Tosca, Presley and Arsenault sign up for another go-around. Bryan Price may sign with the Marlins, but not Leo Mazzone. Meanwhile, Scott Proctor will be shooting clays as a non-Marlin, David Davidson was released, and Andy and Dallas are in AAA. (TCPalm)

IN-OTHER-NEWS: Paul Lo Duca accused of not paying his stud fees. (thoroughbredtimes.com)

Today's Stuff-a-rooney

Speculation on the Marlins new pitching coach starts (here)

With the $3 billion-plus retractable-roofed ballpark well underway, the NFL now decides that it wants a roof at LambShank Stadium. (SportingNews)

Here's today's playoff scores...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

180 Days till Opening Day

Here's some stuff on this playoff-starting day...

Former-Fish Miguel Cabrera hit a 3-run homer, but it wasn't enough as the Tigers lost the AL Central title to the Twins. (Yahoo)

The Marlins start to add salary by replacing Wiley and Fox while offering them new positions. (FishStripes)

Fredi says'"I feel comfortable we can go forward" and wants to find replacements for Wiley and Fox "as quickly as possible. I hate dragging this kind of stuff out a lot." (sun-sentinel)

Hanley will be getting a Silver Bat from Louisville Slugger. (bizjournals.com)

Darren Daulton will be auctioning off his 1997 World Series Championship Ring next month. (philly.com)

Sean can't even drive the girls' choir home from the rectory without attracting attention. (philly.com)

As of this typing, the Yankees and Phillies already won, and the Cards-Dodgers game is in progress...

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Congratulations! You're Fired!

This should have been a time to revel in the many accomplishments of the 2009 Marlins team, but instead it's time to once again watch another manager that is highly-praised and regarded in many circles, and who lead a team that few thought would get to where it eventually got to, have the threat of the boot hanging over him because he did not satiate a certain person's over-inflated concepts.

Or he might clash with the new ballpark's wallpaper, or whatever.

Firing the Cuban-American manager of a ball club building its new home in Little Havana is an innovative P.R. move.

HOLD-THOSE-RESUMES: Looks like Fredi is staying. (MLB)

This Be It

Closing Day. Quick post. Sorry.

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Two More Games

The Marlins continue the battle for second-place money today as they play the Phillies on national TV.

Anibal and Cole start today. It'll be up to Cody whether he feels good enough to play.

Since 1993 the Fish have played only 4 regular-season games on October 3rd, and they have lost each time, including against the Phillies in 2004. Philadelphia is 2-2 in their last four October 3rd games.

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History in the Future

Along with Nolasco making history on Wednesday, Chris Coghlan tied the MLB rookie record for hits in September. The Sporting News' Stan McNeal declares Chris the Rookie of the Year, but not MVP for Hanley.

Hanley has tonight off, and Nick returns to the line-up. Handicappers give Philly the advantage, though the Marlins are on a 4-game win streak at the CBP. It's the Hurk verses Joe Blanton - Rick's last four starts have been Marlins' wins, but Joe has won his last three starts.

In their history the Marlins have only played 5 regular-season games on October 2nd, but they won the last 4 of them, including against the Phillies in 2004 (The Phils are 2-3 in their last five 10/2 games).

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HOORAY!: Fish win.

Marlins Put Braves on the Edge

Congratulations to Ricky Nolasco for a amazing historic performance. Kudos to Leo Nunez for making the end of the game almost too interesting. And a slap on the back to Brendan Donnelly, whose only pitch, a wild, dust-crusted thing, was just close enough to allow Paulino to throw out the tying run at third to end the Braves' hopes for playoffery.

It's the final day off before a lot of days off. Tonight's games below...

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Post-Playoff-Possibility Play

4 games left; one more chance to mess with the Braves, and then the Phillies. It looks as if Jeremy's over and done; Hanley will take a breather; Nick may be back, but maybe not Cody.

The OK-lately Ricky Nolasco goes up against the recently-unhittable Javier Vazquez.

The Marlins won their last September 30th game and are 2-2 in their last four, including a win over Atlanta in 2005. The Braves have lost their last four September 30th games.

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This Could Be It, Zombie Edition

5 games left, 5.5 games back. The Marlins need a cosmic realignment just to even think of reaching the playoffs. The clubhouse resembles a medical ward, with Gload wearing a surgical mask and Josh, Nick, John, Jeremy, Brett and Fredi in various states of snifflage. Supernatural forces need to descend to revivify their lifeless efforts and help slap a few sloppy singles in a row.

Josh valiently fights off the flu to start against Tim Hudson tonight.

Here's some fun trends on this game from crunchsports.com...

"As a team the Marlins are 7-0 in their last 7 games during game 2 of a series and are an impressive 14-3 in Johnson's last 17 starts during game 2 of a series. They are also an impressive 33-13 in Johnson's last 46 starts. And take this one for what it's worth, but they happen to be 1-4 in Johnson's last 5 Tuesday starts.

"On the flip side, the Braves are 13-0 in their last 13 games versus a right handed starter and are themselves 19-7 in their last 26 during game 2 of a series. Dating back some years though, they are an impressive 10-3 in Hudson's last 13 starts versus the Marlins..."

Both the Braves and Marlins are 3-3 in their last 6 September 29th games - the Braves lost their last 9/29 game and the Marlins lost their last two.

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BINGO!: Marlins win 5-4, but Rockies win 7-5 in 11 innings, and the grounds crew at LambShank Stadium can start laying out the sod over the baseball diamond.

Must-Win - The Final Chapter

6 games left, 5 games back; Braves 2.5 games ahead. The Marlins can't lose no more, and Colorado and Atlanta must obligingly lose for the rest of the season. Hopefully the Fish sent the flu crew up early to sneak into the Atlanta clubhouse and cough on the lockers. Every little bit helps.

The Braves are on a six-game win streak, and Jurrjens has won his last three starts. The Marlins are 4-2 at Turner Field this year, and Anibal's last start was his best this year.

In September 28 games, the Fish have won their last two after losing the previous two, while the only win the Braves had in their last five was in 2007. The Marlins and Braves have never played each other on 9/28 before.

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UGH: Marlins lose again.

Must-Win-to-Hold-Back-Oblivion

7 games left, 4 games back of the WC lead, and 1.5 behind Atlanta. And it keeps getting tougher. Johan beat the Marlins last year on this date. Josh Johnson has got the team flu and has been scratched - Chris Volstad will start today against daytime-away-game-loving Pat Misch.

And just because Maine didn't like his music selection, now Cody may be out for the rest of the year - he's out of today's line-up at least.

Both the Mets and Marlins have won 3 of their last 5 September 27th games. But, along with last year, the Mets beat the Fish in 9/27/2003.

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WARM-UP-THE-FAT-LADY: Fish lose; Rockies, Braves, Giants win.

Must-Win-to-the-Nth-Power

8 games left, 5 games back. I was at the game last night, which supposedly had the third-highest attendance this year at LambChop (EDIT: you're right - it should be 'LambShank') Stadium. It was crowded, which giving away tons of tickets to teachers, firefighters, and the military would do. A crazy festive time was present, with a decided lack of Mets fans as compared to earlier games. Tonight though, no free tickets, as Sean Paul takes the Super Saturday stage after the game.

"Big Game" Sean West starts tonight against Marlins-killer John Maine.

The Mets haven't lost on the final Saturday of September since 2002. The Marlins beat the Mets last year on September 26. The Marlins won their last two September 26th games, while on September 26 the Mets have lost their last three games.

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HAPPY-RECAPPY: Fish win 9-6.
MORE: Rockies lose too.

Must-Win, Mets Edition

9 games left, 4 games back in the WC. The lost Mets would love to do to the Fish what the Fish did to them the last couple of years. It's Ricky Nolasco against Tim Redding tonight.

On September 25's both the Marlins and Mets won their last game, lost the previous two, and won the preceding two.

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LOST: Leo lets it get away as the Mets win 6-5. Colorado wins, too.

Must-Lose

The Marlins are off, but the Rockies, Giants and Phillies play tonight.

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GOOD: Rockies, Giants lose.

Must-Win Part Eight

10 games left, 5.5 games back in the WC. Cole Hamels verses the Hurk tonight. Hamels is "3-1 with a 1.43 ERA" over his last 5 starts, but is "2-5 with a 4.19 ERA in 10 starts" lifetime against the Fish. Rick gave up "a run and four hits in six innings" in his last start but allowed "nine runs in 6 1/3 innings" lifetime against the Phils. The Marlins have won in VandenHurk's last three starts.

In September 23rd games, the Phils have lost their last two after beating the Marlins in 2006, while the Marlins have lost their last five in a row.

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WIN!!!: Lidge blows another gift our way, as Ross, Chris, and Hanley combine for Jorge to tie and Brett to do the walk-off - Fish win 7-6.

Double Hanging-On-By-Fingernails Must-Wins

12 games left, 5 games back in the WC, Atlanta tied with the Marlins. Craig totals up the situation facing the Marlins.

The Marlins escaped Cincinatti with a 2-2 record, which at any other time of the year would have been celebrated as a vast improvement, but at this juncture almost signals disaster. And now Philly, who has owned Landshark Stadium this year, returns for three more games, two tonight.

The ancient past also reeks. The Marlins in their history have played the Phillies 4 times on September 22nd and have a 1-3 record against them (the last time was in 2006). The Fish have lost their last 3, and 4 of their last 5, September 22nd games. The Phillies have won their last 6 September 22nd games.

First game is Josh vs. Joe; second game is Anibal vs. Jamie. Time to make a new history.

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SPLITSVILLE: Marlins lose one, win one - Colorado wins.

Sun-sational

AA Jacksonville wins the Southern League title. (MLB)

Get-Out Must-Win

13 games left, 4 games back. West and Wells are on the mound today. It's a rainy day in Cincy.

The Reds won their last two, and four of their last five, September 20th games. The Marlins lost on 9/20/2008 and are 5-3 in their last 8 Septmeber 20 games.

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OUT?: Fish lose, Rockies win.

Must-Must-Must-Win

14 games left, 4 games back. Atlanta's now a half-game behind the Marlins.

One more streak last night's game ended was the Reds' run of 57 wins when leading after eight innings. They were the only NL team this year to not blow a 9th-inning lead - until last night.

On this very special day it's best for Craig to give tonight's game preview.

Both the Reds and Fish won last September 19th. They are both 2-3 in their last 5 September 19th games.

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DID-DID-DID-WIN: Gload's homer was the difference - Marlins win 3-2.

Cincinatti Must-Must-Win

15 games left, 5 games back. Atlanta's now a half-game ahead of the Marlins and starts a series with the Phillies tonight in Atlanta, where Philly has a 2-4 record this year. The Giants are 3.5 games back in the Wild Card and play at Dodger Stadium for the weekend, where they are 2-4 against the Dodgers this year. The WC-leading Rockies are in Arizona, where this year they are 3-3 against the Diamondbacks.

Yes, yes, the Marlins have lost 9 straight at Cincinatti. The Reds are also on a tear at home, winning their last 8 home games.

Here's hoping the Hurk's back isn't hurting, as he's back hurling tonight. Homer Bailey starts for the Reds.

The Marlins and Reds both have a 3-5 record in their last 8 September 18th games - Florida won last year, while Cincinatti's last win was in 2007.

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STREAKS-DEFEATED!: Fish win 4-3.

Cincinatti Must-Win

16 games left, still 4.5 games back. Colorado and San Francisco are off, but the Braves are a half-game behind the Fish and finish up with the Mets tonight. Today coolstandings.com gives the Braves a 5.6 percent chance of making the playoffs and the Marlins 4.8 percent.

Cody and Dan are on hitting streaks. Brett starts tonight in place of Cameron.

The sordid history is that the Marlins haven't won at the GAB since April of 2006 and the Reds just finished sweeping the Astros there. But the Marlins Express must continue to roll on. Anibal starts for the Fish, and the Reds start Matt Maloney, replacing Johnny Cueto.

Both the Fish and Reds in September 17th games have the exact-same win-loss record for the past five years - a win last year, preceded by four losses. They have never played each other on a September 17.

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OUCH!: Fish lose 3-2.

Afternoon Must-Win

(FIXED) 17 games left, but now 4.5 games back. They're back on the right track, just got to keep it moving. Josh Johnson and Joel Pineiro are to start today.

Florida won on September 16 last year after losing three September 16ths in a row. St. Louis has lost four of their last five September 16th games - the win was in 2006.

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OW-RIGHT!: Leo looked more inclined to injure than save, but Holliday finally obliged him - Fish win 5-2!

P.O.: Cardinals pissed off over Nunez's performance. (PBPost)

Another Midwest Must-Win

18 games left, still 5.5 games back. The Fish are facing Cy-Young candidate Adam Wainwright, and Sean West starts for the Marlins.

Both Florida and St. Louis did not play on Sept. 15th of last year. The Marlins on 9/15's have won their last two games after losing the previous six. The Cardinals lost their last September 15th game after winning the previous four.

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WHICH-GUY-IS-CY?: Adam pitched great but Sean got a career-high 9 strikeouts and the win for the Fish!

Next Year's Schedule Is Out

The 2010 season starts at Citi Field against the Mets and ends at home aginst the Pirates. Here's some more highlights...(MLB)

19 Games to Go

Firstly, Craig reports on how much it will cost to go to Marlins home games next year.

The Fish start their hopefully-improbable-rest-of-the-regular-season 6.5 games behind the Phillies for the NL East lead. Philly has the night off tonight.

The Marlins are 5.5 games behind the leader Colorado and 1 game behind the Giants in the Wild Card race - Colorado and the Giants face off in San Francisco late tonight.

The Marlins tonight are in St. Louis - Nolasco and Wellemeyer start.

In September 14th games, the Marlins have won 3 of their last 4, and the Cards have lost their last 5. Both Colorado and San Francisco have gone 2-2 in their last 4 September 14th games, though that includes the Giants beating the Rocks in 2006.

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OOF!: Game was close until Lindstrom let it leave the yard - Fish lose 11-6, Colorado loses.

Sunday in the Park

The Marlins got back to the day before yesterday in the standings, but with two less games left in the season. Time for an afternoon get-away game.

Two iffy pitchers start today - Chris Volstad and John Lannan.

The Marlins beat this team last year and in 2004. In their last 6 September 13th games the Marlins are 5-1 and the Nats/Expos are 2-4.

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GAME-CALLED: The returning rain stopped any possible comeback in the 9th - Fish lose 7-2. Colorado loses, Philly wins the early game.

Saturday Stuff

Cody's doing great, Jeremy not so great, Ross and Wes are battling for the pinch-hit team record, and Marco Estrada will make his first-ever MLB start vs. Anibal.

The Marlins beat the Nationals on this date last year and in 2007.

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BOOM!: Marlins win the rain-delayed game 11-3, and fireworks go off at midnight.

Weekend Warriors

First, congrats to Kiko for getting his identity back. Phoenix police saw a poorly inflated tire and pulled over a guy who tried to use Calero's driver's license and social security card as ID. The guy, who's name is Oscar Corral (or is it really?), was rung up on a pile of charges. We learn two things from this - that Kiko's real name is "Enrique Calero Carrion"; and that if you want to steal someone's identity, keep your tires inflated.

The Marlins and Nats come to town, and both will be leaving after this series is over. Washington haven't won here since July 1, 2008 - sounds like a fine tradition to me.

Josh Johnson and J.D. Martin are the starters. (the J.D. stands for John Dale.)

Florida is emerging from a tough spate of September 11th games. After a win in their first season (1993) the Marlins didn't win another September 11th game until 2006 - a total of 7 losses. But the Fish won their last two September 11th games, including against the Nationals in 2007 (both teams had 9/11 off last year). The Nationals have lost 3 of their last 4 9/11 games.

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ARRRGH! Fish lose 5-3, are now 6 games behind the Phils and 6.5 behind the Rocks.

I'm Not Putting the 'S' Word Here

First some blogospheric notes: Craig discusses how the Hurk is doing...

And the Maniac, in these two posts (Part 1)(Part 2) reveals how Fredi's bullpen management is ass-backwards.

At this moment (5:30 PM ET) Colorado is beating Cincinatti; Philly starts later, so there's playoff implications throughout the evening.

Sean West and Bobby Parnell start in the Citi tonight.

The Marlins won 4 of their last 5 (and 8 of their last 10) September 10th games. The Mets on September 10's have won their last two after losing the previous five.

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I'M-PUTTING-IT-HERE---SWEEP!: Fish win 13-4, Phillies lose, Rockies win.

Next Must-Win Game Tonight

Brendan, Gaby and Chris are back.

It's tough when the Fish go 3-1 in their last 4 games yet lose 1.5 games in the Wild Card standings. Ain't gonna be easy.

If you look real quick (since 5:30 PM ET) you can see the Marlins' official site promoting playoff coverage of the Isotopes, even saying the Isotopes are still the Marlins' AAA team. Oops.

It's Nolasco against Misch tonight.

Both the Mets and Marlins won last year on 9/9. The Mets, though, have won their last 3 September 9th games, while the Fish have gone .500 in their last 4.

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STATUS-QUO: Marlins win, but so do the Rockies and Phillies. The Giants lose though.

The Mets Won't Go Quietly

First, Craig catches us up on who's returned, who's returning, who may return, and who definitely won't return.

The Marlins play 3 at Citi Field starting tonight. If you thought the Mets may be torn between giving the Marlins some payback for ruining their playoff hopes two years in a row, or holding back to get better positioning in the offseason player draft, your answer comes tonight in the form of Carlos Beltran, who returns to the Mets' starting lineup tonight ready to harpoon some fish.

The Hurk takes his rather frightening record against the Mets to the mound tonight, while Tim Redding will try to contain Cantu.

The Marlins lost their last 3 September 8th games. The Mets won their last September 8th game (which was in 2007) after losing 4 in a row (2 of those losses to the Marlins in 2003 and 2004, both Josh Beckett wins).

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AWRIGHT!: Fish win 4-2.