Andrew Miller RIP

On Wednesday, Andrew Miller pitched three innings against the Atlanta Braves, giving up four hits, four bases on balls, four runs. He was the loser. It was probably his last start of the year, leaving him with a record of 1-5 with an ERA of 8.54. He is out of options, meaning he cannot be sent to the minors next year against his will.

An informative blog, mlbcontracts.blogspot.com, reports that from his 2006 contract, Miller is receiving $1,790,219 this year. And get this: He has a clause where he can opt out of his contract and go to arbitration if he so chooses. Whatcha wanna bet?

Jeremy Hermida RIP

At the game the other night a buddy asked what had happened to Jeremy Hermida, who seemed to have vanished from BoSox box scores. Well, he’s in Oakland, where he’s batting .196 for the year, .154 since joining the A’s 11 games ago. Remember 2005 – a grand slam in his first Big League at bat with the Marlins, only the second person in history to do that. He’s a mere 26 – a cautionary tale, perhaps, as we look at young prospects filled with hope.

Gaby and Mendez

On Tuesday night, I saw my third game in person in a row – first time since 2003, I’m sure. Early in the year, I was worried that Gaby didn’t have enough power for a first baseman, but he won the game with his 19th of the year – a powerful shot into the left field blue seats, and he’s likely to gain some power with age, maybe into the 25-30 range. But the interesting surprise of this late season is Adalberto Mendez, who on Tuesday night against the New York Mets pitched seven solid innings, 89 pitches with only two walks. He’s the anti-Miller. Put the ball in play and hitters get out two-thirds of the time. He had three solid double plays behind him, a racing outfield that caught some solidly hit balls (Stanton in particular made a great catch), and Brad Davis (home run hero of the day before) threw out two runners at second. The Mets managed 10 hits against Mendez, but only one run. He’s 28, from Santo Domingo, listed as a skinny 6-2, 160, and this is his first stint in the Big Leagues, after eight years in the minors. He was a Rule 5 Minor League pick from the Cubs in 2007, was in Jupiter in 2008 and Jacksonville in 2009. This year, he was in Jacksonville and New Orleans, accord to MiLB.com. His career minor league ERA is 3.98. Not overpowering stuff, and he didn’t get the win, thanks to Veras blown save, but still he made for an enjoyable night. A possible No. 5 starter next year?

Putting Your Cards on the Table

After that horrendous Sunday game in which the pitchers seemed to hold the ball for hours and then threw balls to the Chicago Cubs, I was at the St. Louis Cardinals game Monday that zipped along with a complete game shut out for Volstad, shortest game in Marlins history at 1:52. And here's what I learned about our starting shortstop, replacing Bonifacio, who was sick at the last minute, who was replacing Hanley who has a little something or other.

So our shortstop, just up from AA Jacksonville -- Ozzie Martinez, 22, from Carolina, Puerto Rico, 5-10, 190 – batted .302 in Jacksonville, with 5 homers. Thirteen stolen bases, nine caught stealings – not much speed. He was btw drafted the same year as Andrew Miller and Sinkbeil -- 2006. Whereas they went in the first round, he was taken in the 11th round, out of Porterville College in California.
Would kind of like to see more speed out of a shortstop, but still …
Volstad, btw, was the 16th pick overall in the 2005 draft.

Was this the worst inning I've ever seen in person?

Sunday, against the Chicago Cubs: The Marlins were down 2-0 and Andrew Miller could have been touched up for more in the first, but he managed to contain the damage. Then came the second. This is against a lineup of Chicago Cubs minor leaguers – not a single regular.

Wellington Castro, who was later to get his first ML home run started with a walk (the first of the inning). Pitcher Jeff Samardzija sacrificed him to second. ONE OUT. Sam Fuld singles to right, Castro to third. Coach visits the mound. Passed ball by Mike Rivera, runners move up. Darwin Barney walks (second walk). Bases loaded.

Edwin has seen enough. Brett Sinkbeil is brought in. Sinkbeil was the 19th player taken overall in the 2006 draft. Miller was the sixth player overall in that same draft. Bunch of young talent here. About to explode.

Sinkbeil walks Jeff Baker (third walk), run scores. Micah Hoffpauir walks (fourth walk), run scores. Tyler Colvin walks (fifth walk), run scores. Coaching visit to mound (this from MLB.com). Perhaps coach suggested he throw strikes. Bobby Scales strikes out swinging. TWO OUTS. Brad Snyder gets his first major league hit with a single to center, two runs score. Wellington Castro (who walked to start the inning) hits a ground rule double. Another run scores. Samardzija (who foolishly made a sacrifice out early in the inning) is smarter this time. He walks (sixth walk).
Fuld flies out. THREE OUTS.

There is something absolutely deadening about walks from a fan’s view. The team tied a Marlins’ record with 12 walks for the game.

Before the game, I joked with a friend that Miller was facing a minor league lineup. Question: How many runs would he give up? Four runs in six innings, said R. In fact, he gave up five runs in an inning and a third.

Bunts and Damn Bunts

Bonifacio – OK, so he’s been doing well this year – batting .299 at the moment, but I still have major reservations about this guy. On Friday night, against the Chicago Cubs, he did one of his fake bunts, which almost always becomes a strike. I think his theory is that it draws the third baseman in and then next pitch he can slap one by him or something, but the third baseman is already in, and so I don’t know what it accomplishes. Maybe he just likes to pretend he's bunting, because he can't do it very well. I can't find any stats category for fake bunts or trying to bunt for a single, but if there were one, Bonifacio's lack of talent in this category would be exposed. Last night it happened in the seventh, runners on second and third, two out, and he does one of his clever fake bunts and what is the ultimate outcome? A strike out – he essentially gave a strike away. If I were Edwin, I would tell Bonifacio no more bunts – fake bunts or real bunts.

Andrew Miller ! ? !

First on the fact that Marlins do so well on the road. My friend R said, "They like playing in front of crowds!"
Second -- I was feeling good about Andrew Miller last night. He handled Utley in the first, Howard in the second -- this despite he does awful against lefties. and then in the third he allowed a run (after a run in the first), but two runs in three innings is pretty darn good for Miller.... and then two in the fourth, but he kind of looked in control .... And gosh, somehow it got to be seven runs in five innings, but only five earned, with those two errors by the first baseman in left field... and zoom, there was another loss at home...

Home and Away

After a winning road trip, the Marlins come home. These stats below I think are through Saturday, not Sunday, but the trend remains the same. Of all the teams playing .500 ball or above, the Marlins have the fewest wins at home. In fact, measured by home victories, they would be tied for last in the NL East, with Washington. if you only counted road victories, they'd be tied with the Yankees. Only Giants have more road victories.

At home, they’re batting .256 with 919 total bases in 68 games. On the road, they’re .258 with 1068 total bases in 73 games. ERA on the road is 4.25, at home 3.75 – a half-run average, probably due to the big pitcher friendly home park.

Mike Stanton – at home – batting .250 with 6 home runs, on the road .353 with 14 home runs.

Hanley – 13 HR at home, batting .313, 9 HR on the road batting .292 -- so we can't blame it on Hanley.

So what’s this mean? Not sure.

Glass Half-Empty Kind of Guy

In the Marlins victory over the Nats on Saturday, 4-1 with an excellent outing by Anibal and a save by Hensley, the whole pitching staff giving up a measly one walk, I couldn't help notice that the Marlins struck out 14 times (the Nats 5). ESPN.com shows that Marlins are second in the National League for strikeouts, behind only Arizona. They are 11th in walks.... and btw, they are second in stolen base percentage with 78. And since the All-Star break (Edwin era) they are second to last in sacrifice hits -- can that be taken as a measure of not being a small-ball team?

Whoops and Stanton in Center?

OK, well, I was a bit extreme yesterday in saying that Andrew Miller will be the ace of the staff next week. First of all, there's a chance JJ may still pitch (why do I doubt it?) but I forgot last Anibal Sanchez, who last I heard was (a) not injured and (b) not suspended. So Miller is only our (dependable?) No. 2 starter for the upcoming stretch. ...

Anyway, here is some recent comments from French:

"Good point about Maybin catching balls that Cody couldn't have. Maybin also seems more aggressive at the plate, not caught looking so much, or swinging wildly at bad pitches. I liked Cody too, but I don't miss him.

"In theory, they ought to be in a good position to trade a couple of young guys who have had some success in the majors and bring in a heart-of-the-order lefty bat. Morrison, Bonifacio, Coghlan, Gaby, Maybin, and Miller all should have some trade value. My guess is that the won't trade Uggla, because it will just reinforce all the issues they have with MLB and within the community if they shed salary.

" I'd also like to see them keep Morrison, but if Coghlan wasn't hurt, I might feel differently. Maybin is the obvious first choice for center. I wonder if they could move Stanton or Coghlan to center. . . It will be interesting to see which players are asked to learn which positions in the various winter leagues. . ."

Edwin before the fall

Well, I was going to wait till the end of the season to analyze Edwin Rodriguez, but ... but Josh is injured, Ricky is injured, two starting pitchers are about to serve suspensions, Sean West (who he?) is injured. Next week, Andrew Miller is the ace of the staff and that means the win-loss record for the rest of the year is going to be awful. So ... Edwin never makes me mad in game calls the way Fredi did. That means he doesn't do a lot of small ball. He seems smart in the way he handles some of the young Marlins (and there are a lot of them), and Bonifacio has blossomed as Edwin has moved him around, giving him starts in various positions, and sitting a struggling Stanton or Hanley, all smart moves. Anyways, the numbers: Fredi was 35-36 when he left on June 23. After the Monday double-header, the team was 70-67, meaning Edwin has been 35-31. I hope they keep him around for next year.

We Can Never Forget

With Andrew Miller's disastrous showing on Wednesday night against the Phillies, I looked it up:
1 -- Andrew Miller lasted four innings on Wednesday night, giving up 11 hits, three walks and seven runs. He has one win, one loss for the year, with an ERA of 6.16.
2 – Burke Badenhop has two wins for the year.
3 – Cameron Maybin is batting .239 with eight home runs and 26 RBIs.
4 – Mike Rabelo – who played 10 games in April with Toledo Mud Hens, the AAA team of the Tigers, and then vanished – not listed on mlb.com.
5 – Eugelio de la Cruz – who appeared in three games for the Padres last year and was not in the majors this year.
6 – Dallas Trahern – you remember him, right? He pitched a few innings with the New Orleans Zephyrs last year, 1-3 with a 6.28 ERA. He is not listed as having played this year at mlb.com or its minor league equivalent, MiLB.com.
7 – Miguel Cabrera, whom the Marlins traded to Detroit before the 2008 season for the above six players. At the moment, he is batting .333 with 33 home runs and 110 RBIs.

Where to Play Them?

Michael Jong at Marlinmaniac.com raises an interesting question about positions in the future. Morrison is a first baseman. (The website calls him Nick Johnson Lite.) Gaby is a first baseman. Jong speculates about moving Gaby to third base, which would be a huge switch.) The other problem with out-of-position is that we have at least three natural second basemen (Uggla, Coughlin, Bonifacio), two of them playing in the outfield. And now we throw in yet another outfielder, Scott Cousins, 14 HR in Triple A this year. So (purely speculation) maybe they do get rid of Uggla. And now they've tried Bonifacio at third base -- talk about power positions with no power.

Maybin and Ross

On Sunday against the Braves Maybin, 6-foot-3, stretched his hand over the fence to catch a home run ball and save the game. I've always been suspect of Maybin's abilities, and I always liked Cody's hustle, but Cody at 5-10 probably wouldn't have caught the ball.

Opening Day Gripe

Well, OK, who could possibly complain about a solid opening day victory in which the Marlins score 12 runs? Well, uh, me.... Bottom of the first. Lead off hitter gets on, steals second, scores on batter No. 2's hit. And up comes Hanley, one of the most feared young hitters in baseball. And ... what? three-run homer? sac fly? No ... he bunts.... Why oh why? I sure hope some sports writer asks Fredi and he says it was Hanley's idea and he's going to talk to him about it ....

Managers and outfielders and relievers

1 -- How many times have you seen lineups like the Marlins have been posting recently in which the outfielders hit sixth, seventh and eighth. It happened several times before the arrival of the fabulous Maybin.
2 -- I am going to look back, when I have time, to see how many games Fredi-Pinto lost us after we acquired Rhodes, a solid left hand reliever, and still Pinto was sent out there for continuing disaster.

Marlins Outfield?

Trivia question: when was the last time that a team had each of their infielders with more home runs than any outfielder?

Oh, Hanley

I love him, but look at these batting averages -- first 2008 and and then three-year, from espn.go.com:

Leading off inning -- .323 -- .342
Bases loaded -- .167 (one for six) -- .313
Runner on first only -- .345 -- .272
Runner on second -- .200 (7 for 35) -- .289
Runner on third -- .222 (2 for 9) -- .382
Runners on first and second -- .192 (5 for 26) -- .255
Runners on first and third -- .143 (1 for 7) -- .200
Runners on second and third -- .000 (0 for 4) -- .346
Runners in scoring position -- .193 (16 for 83) -- .293
Runners in scoring position, two out -- .200 (10 for 50) -- .270
Close and late -- .286 -- .337

Maybe he's pressing too much this year to justify his big contract, or maybe he's not bearing down enough cuz he has the big contract? Dunno ...

DOMINOS FALLING IN L.A.: Is Miggy Trade Next?

Ronnie sez: What connection does the Orlando Cabrera for Jon Garland trade have for the Marlins? On the surface, nothing -- the Angels shipping a Gold Glove SS to the White Sox for a solid starting pitcher. But behind the surface, this could mean a Miggy trade to L.A. is coming soon. The reason: The Halos already have a full contingent of starting pitchers, so getting an innings eater like Garland could make it easier for them to ship a young arm -- as part of a package of players -- to the Marlins for the great Miguel Cabrera. (See today's LATimes for a sharp analysis on this.) Still holding out hope to see No. 24 hitting cleanup next year, but the train, they say, may already be on the tracks.

Miggy: Go West, Young Man -- and maybe Dontrelle

ESPN "Hot Stove Report" sez Angels and Dodgers are best fits for the Miggy trade. ...
This is from LA Times:

The Marlins would like the Angels to include second baseman Howie Kendrick and top pitching prospect Nick Adenhart in any trade and would like the Dodgers to include pitcher Chad Billingsley or top pitching prospect Clayton Kershaw, perhaps both. The Marlins traditionally insist on top young pitching in any deal.

If the Marlins ask for two pitchers as part of a package of three or four players, neither the Angels nor Dodgers figure to have the depth for a deal, unless Florida expands the trade to include pitcher Dontrelle Willis. The Marlins would free an estimated $20 million in payroll next season by trading Cabrera and Willis.

The Angels, according to another major league source, do not want to trade four players straight up for Cabrera, 24, who has a .313 career average in 4 1/2 big league seasons and has averaged 31 home runs and 115 runs batted in the last four years.

Though they have refused to part with Kendrick the last two winters, the hard-hitting second baseman is not considered untouchable.

But the Angels would trade Kendrick only if they felt the package was right -- they don't want to trade Kendrick and Adenhart and third base prospect Brandon Wood and one of their catchers, Jeff Mathis or Mike Napoli, for Cabrera.

If the Marlins do insist on four players, including Kendrick, they might be willing to add second baseman Dan Uggla, 27, who hit .245 with 31 homers and 88 RBIs last season, to the deal.

Cabrera is expected to make between $11 million and $12 million in arbitration next season, but he is a much cheaper alternative to free-agent third baseman Alex Rodriguez, who is reportedly looking for $30 million per year for at least eight years.

New Angels General Manager Tony Reagins met with Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras, in Anaheim before the GM meetings. Tuesday was the first day teams could discuss monetary figures with free agents, but Reagins said he did not extend any formal contract offers.

"We're still in the information-gathering process," Reagins said.

As for growing speculation that the Angels are the front-runners to sign Rodriguez, Reagins said, "I don't know where it comes from. Obviously, some of it is from people seeing our need, but I don't like to comment on speculation."

The Angels could explore the possibility of signing free-agent third baseman Mike Lowell, who earned most-valuable-player honors while leading Boston to a World Series win over Colorado. But they don't want to go four years on Lowell, who reportedly has a three-year offer of about $40 million to return to the Red Sox.

The Angels won the American League West for the third time in four years this season but were hit hard by injuries and swept by Boston in the first round of the playoffs.

"If the season started today, I like our club, when healthy," Reagins said. "I like our starting pitchers, our bullpen, and if we have a healthy Garret Anderson, Gary Matthews Jr. and Vladimir Guerrero, I think we're pretty good. I don't feel pressured to make a huge move, but if you can get better, that's what you want to do."