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2012 MLB Team Preview: Miami Marlins

Posted by on 9 March 2012, 2:55 am

New Miami Marlins Logo.

Welcome to Miami…Marlins.

As the team formally known as the Florida Marlins not only got a different name to go with their new uniforms, they got a new home and manager too.

Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria kept his promise about investing in the team once they got a new stadium, as he opened his wallet wide. Loria went on an off-season spending spree that probably made George Steinbrenner smile up in heaven.

Still everybody knows that money doesn’t guarantee anything but rich players. You can’t buy camaraderie, nor can you pay off bad attitudes but the Marlins seemed to be more reckless, than tactful in this regard.

Now the only question is can the Marlins adjust to life in Miami enough to be contenders in 2012, or will it be a season of full of growing pains?

Let’s take a peek….

THE POSITIVES:

Skipper Ozzie Guillen is one of my favorite personalities in all of baseball. Guillen tells it like it is but he has such a naturally funny demeanor that is also so competitive that it is riveting. The Marlins really hit one out of the park by making Gillen the new clubs first manager. Guillen is so popular amongst baseball fans and with the game itself that he could fill half the ballpark on his own.

The Marlins starting rotation looks good, as it features ace Josh Johnson who when healthy, which ESPN reported is now a fact; Johnson is without one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. Behind Johnson in the 3-5 slots will be the two other young Marlin pitchers, Anibal Sanchez and Ricky Nolasco along with new Marlin Carlos Zambrano to make up the backend. I would bet that the other acquired arm, ex-White Sox Mark Buehrle will slide into the number two spot and that adds up to a fairly concrete rotation.

The Marlins also acquired some serious offensive talent in ex-Mets shortstop Jose Reyes, who the Marlins locked in for six years, at $106 million. Reyes should complement Marlins superstar Hanley Ramirez in the infield. Reyes is an immensely and gifted baseball player but has endured major injury setbacks. Reyes has a feisty attitude that does not always fare so well with fans but maybe sometimes a fresh start is just what the doctor ordered.

And last but certainly not least, the Marlins inked ex-Padres closer Heath Bell to a 3-year, $27 million deal to solidify the bullpen. Since becoming a full time closer in 2009, Bell has been named an All-Star for all three seasons, and racked up 132 saves in total. He is one of the best in the business and should be a real luxury for the Marlins to have at the end of games.

THE NEGATIVES: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: Miami Marlins’ »

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2012 MLB Team Preview: Arizona Diamondbacks

Posted by on 8 March 2012, 11:03 am

Old-School D-backs Logo.

The Arizona Diamondbacks are coming off their most successful season since 2007, finishing up with a 94-68 record and easily stole the NL West away from the 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants who were eight games back.

Losing the NLCS to the Brewers in five games was certainly a quicker exit than the D-backs had hoped for, but with a new season on the horizon only one question remains.

Can Manager Kirk Gibson get his D-backs back into October in 2012 for a second year in a row?

Let’s have a look…

THE POSITIVES:

In order to stay a contender in the NL West the D-backs needed to solidify their starting rotation. The division is pitching heavy with the Giants and Dodgers, and the D-Backs’ run-of-the-mill but good rotation needed a boost. And trading for Oakland Athletics ace Trevor Cahill certainly gave them that, as he will compliment Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson nicely in the third spot. In 2011 Cahill finished with a 12-14 record, posting a 4.16 ERA, with 147 strikeouts and threw 207 innings in total but that is not the Cahill the D-backs are hoping to see. They want the Cahill who finished 18-8 in 2010, with a 2.97 ERA but the best bet is that he will fall somewhere in middle. Still, that is enough to make the D-backs rotation complete and better than they were in 2011.

Led by All-Stars Justin Upton and Miguel Montero, the D-backs already had an impressive offense in 2011 and all are coming back again. They did acquire Twins Jason Kubel to a 2-year, $15 million with an option for a third, which brings another lefty bat to the D-backs outfield. The signing presumably means that 24-year old Gerardo Parra is out of a job, which made little sense since Parra has hit 60 homers in his three seasons with the D-backs and won a Gold Glove in 2011. Regardless, having either guy as a back-up outfielder is not a bad thing and Kubel is coming off an injury from last season, which held him to play in just 99 games.

Last season the bullpen got better over time, and it features a dominant closer in JJ Putz who had 49 saves, with an ERA of 2.17 in 2011. And adding relievers Takashi Saito and Craig Breslow in the off-season only makes them better.

THE NEGATIVES: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: Arizona Diamondbacks’ »

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2012 MLB Team Preview: Washington Nationals

Posted by on 6 March 2012, 10:57 pm

Washington Nationals Logo

As the Washington Nationals head into their eighth season, they finally have something to get excited about.

What started last off-season by signing Jason Werth, the ownership has continued that they want this team wants to contend now.

The franchise’s best divisional finish was in 2011, as they placed third place in the NL East with an 80-81 record just a game short of .500. The Nats did go 81-81 in 2005, but that was only good enough for last place that season.

Even though the Nationals have brought little success, the organization seems to be headed in the right direction but is it enough for the team to compete in 2012? Or is it another season of continual rebuilding?

THE POSITIVES:

Being the worst is finally paying-off…. Since becoming the Nationals in 2005, the team has been the literal bottom feeders of the NL East, until finishing in third last season. From 2008-2010 the team only won a combined 187 games, which did give the Nationals a lot first round draft picks and now the results are starting to emerge.

The Nationals starting rotation has much improved by trading for Gio Gonzalez and signing Edwin Jackson in addition to Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman.

Gonzalez is coming off a great 2011 with the Oakland Athletics, as he went 16-12, with a 3.12 ERA and those numbers should get better coming from the AL.  As for Jackson, who inked a one-year deal with the Nationals, is presumably hoping to hit the free agent market again following 2012, so expect him to want to perform as best he can. Last season he went 12-9 splitting time between the White Sox and the Cardinals, and pitched just shy of 200 innings.

The Nationals bullpen was already good with duo Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen but they went out and solidified it by signing now ex-Phillies closer Brad Lidge. This should pose for few problems at the end of the games, and having a solid group of relievers is so vital for a team down the stretch; and especially since it takes pressure off the starters a bit, which the Nats can benefit from.

THE NEGATIVES: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: Washington Nationals’ »

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2012 MLB Team Preview: St. Louis Cardinals

Posted by on 4 March 2012, 10:35 pm
St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

To keep with tradition, I will start my 2012 MLB team by team previews with the defending 2011 World Series Champions, the St. Louis Cardinals.

The 2012 Cardinals will look a lot different from last year’s team, as the two biggest faces of the franchise are no longer there.

POSITIVES:

The Cardinals won the World Series without ace Adam Wainwright who got hurt last Spring Training and was out for the season after needing Tommy John surgery.

Getting a pitcher back, who in 2010 posted a 20-11 record, with a 2.42 ERA, striking out 213, with five complete games and two shutouts in just over 230 innings pitched is surely a HUGE boost.

Wainwright is one of the best pitchers in baseball, and at 30 years old is just entering what is considered to be his prime years.

Wainwright and Chris Carpenter were one of the best one-two pitching combos in all of baseball before the injury and I expect them to be that again.

NEGATIVES:

It seriously still boggles my mind that the Cardinals let baseball’s best player, Albert Pujols, walk after winning the World Series.

Pujols was the face of the Cardinals, a leader and wanted to finish his career in St. Louis but the Cardinals didn’t want to pay the market price for a player of Pujols caliber.

I have spoken to some Cardinal fans and the sheer disappointment in losing Pujols. One even when as far as to say: “I would give back the 2011 WS to have Pujols for life.”

That seems a tad extreme, but Pujols was that kind of player.

So, does losing Pujols cripple the Cardinals heading in to 2012?

Well, the Cards will certainly look different, as Pujols’s star power is irreparable and so is his bat.

Luckily for St. Louis fans, the NL Central has lost a lot of its competitive edge across the board but is that enough to make up for losing Albert’s bat?

The Cardinals did sign Carlos Beltran but don’t hold your breath that he will ever be what he was back in 2004 or 2006, blame the Mets for overpaying him for his real worth. Beltran has been going downhill for a few too many seasons to expect a resurge at age 35.

Also, the Cardinals are without the other most familiar face skipper Tony LaRussa who retired after last season.

LaRussa was a mastermind in the postseason by mixing up of a so-so bullpen into a championship caliber group.

Hopefully the players can adjust without the man who has led them the last 16-seasons, but also remember that pitching coach Dave Duncan is taking a leave of absence for 2012 season to be with his ailing wife so that is another familiar face that will not be around.

PLAYER(s)/GAME-CHANGERS TO WATCH: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: St. Louis Cardinals’ »

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Maybe New York Yankees Alex Rodriquez respects Ryan Braun herpes

Posted by on 27 February 2012, 5:02 am
Ryan Braun

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Let me be clear by stating that Alex Rodriguez has never said anything about Ryan Braun’s failed drug test having to do with him taking medicine for herpes.

Of course A-rod wouldn’t because he knows better, as Derek Jeter would have failed way before Braun… right?

Kidding again. But now to the point, as this Braun saga is getting annoying but I wanted to weigh in my opinion.

So, there are three things that bothered me after I heard that Braun’s 50-game suspension got overturned last Thursday.

Quick Summary of the Braun Saga (for the readers who live in a cave):

Last Thursday the news broke that Milwaukee Brewers Ryan Braun had beat the system.

Braun’s urine tested positive for a banned substance last October, but he will not serve one day of the standard 50-game suspension given to first time offenders.

It marks the first time an arbitrator has ever reversed a player’s appeal of the embargo set by MLB for a drug testing violation.

Braun’s legal eagles had the 50-game suspension overturned due to a loophole found in MLB’s Drug Treatment and Prevention Program Policies.

His lawyers made the case that the samples were wrongly handled by the authorized CDT Sports Collector, aka the test’s collector, which insinuates that there was possible tampering.

In the MLB Collection Procedures and Testing Protocols, the policy states that the sample is supposed to get to FedEx as soon as possible. Read policy HERE, page 18.

In Braun’s case the collector said that FedEx was already closed so he kept the sample in his fridge overnight and sent it out when FedEx reopened.

And that is the grey area that has won Braun his freedom from suspension, but what about his test results?

1) Braun you talk too much:

Braun finally addressed the matter for the first time last Friday, which was one-day post-verdict, at the Brewers Spring Training facility in Arizona.

To me Braun’s words sounded scripted and angry. He went on and on as if he was persecuted and unjustly framed due to a “fatally flawed” testing system.

He disclosed that the test’s collector did not follow the guidelines set under MLB’s Collection Procedure; there was no mention to whether Braun did or didn’t juice, or if the test was tampered with. He beat the system, but why does this seem to only happen in MLB?

The long-winded explanation triggered that feeling when you know someone is lying because they’re talking too much about why it is not their fault and in the end they come-off looking guiltier.

2) So ultimately Braun’s defensive team won citing incorrect protocol but what about his test results changed?

The answer is nothing.

Maybe you will find comfort in knowing that MLB Commissioner’s Office ‘vehemently disagrees’ by the outcome, but personally I find that a little hard to believe. Continue reading ‘Maybe New York Yankees Alex Rodriquez respects Ryan Braun herpes’ »

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NL MVP To Ryan Braun Screw You Matt Kemp

Posted by on 23 November 2011, 12:07 am

The BBWAAvoters really screwed up this time.

Ryan Braun

Image via Wikipedia

I mean the AL MVP debate was at least passable, but everybody knew who the NL MVP for the 2011 season was going to be.

It would seem that the BBWAA’s blunders are coming from letting their wishes interpret all duties by having an open mind.

It was Los Angeles Dodger Matt Kemp, but he came in second and not a close one either to Milwaukee Brewers Ryan Braun.

Let me make it clear, that Braun was undoubtedly worthy of being involved in the 2011 MVP discussions and right till the end too.

The problem is Kemp’s regular season numbers were undeniably atop of the NL; and it is a travesty he didn’t win the award.

Still, there is no reason to not give huge congratulations to Ryan Braun, who had a spectacular 2011 season in Milwaukee.

Here is the 2011 NL MVP voting results: Continue reading ‘NL MVP To Ryan Braun Screw You Matt Kemp’ »

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New Miami Marlins Trying To Spend Like New York Yankees

Posted by on 12 November 2011, 1:46 am
Photo by Rafael Amado©

Image via Wikipedia

The team formally known as the Florida Marlins is now officially part of the city they have represented for 19 seasons.

The now Miami Marlins got more than just a name change last night, as the franchise unveiled a new logo, along with fresh uniforms in the team’s new $515 million ballpark, called “Marlins Ballpark.”

The Miami Marlins will open up the 2012 season in their well deserved new home, led by new skipper Ozzie Guillen, who is sure to spice things up all on his own.

Well, Guillen might have a lot to look forward too, as the latest news swirling Miami is that owner Jeffrey Loria is only just getting started.

The latest from MLB Trade Rumors is that the Marlins played host earlier this week to both Albert Pujols and Jose Reyes. And Fox Sports Ken Rosenthal reports that the Marlins made “substantial offers” to both superstars.

Also, Jon Heyman of SI tweeted that Guillen has also attempted to entice newly free agent Mark Buehrle, who pitched for him with the Chicago White Sox, to make a move south too. Buehrle also made a personal visit to Miami and according to Heyman got an offer too. Continue reading ‘New Miami Marlins Trying To Spend Like New York Yankees’ »

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