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I Like Turtles: Marlins Do the Small Things Right

January 21, 2013 in Offseason

Jeffrey Loria ExposThe turtle survives not by any particularly noticeable natural ability. Not on account of its strength, speed, or any other tangible asset. Indeed, no great poetic alliterations or epics are dedicated to the turtle. No great works of art. The turtle survives because of its awareness. Once it is threatened, it withdraws into its protective shell and allows its predators to attack, waste their energy, and then give up and walk away. When one looks at Jeffrey Loria, one can’t help but think of a turtle. His facial features seem to suggest those of a turtle – and this isn’t to say this is a negative quality. Think of the nature of a turtle – they are cautious, slow. When attacked, they retract within their shell. They hide.

Think about the Marlins and their recent moves. The rumbling for years has been that Hanley Ramirez was a prima donna who could sink a clubhouse. Finally, after a couple of seasons he was dealt. Then the rest of the players acquired last season were dealt. The turtle withdrew in his shell and he won’t be coming out until the coast is clear again.

Let’s face it, it wasn’t the spending of the money that was the problem. It was the allocation of the money on players who didn’t perform. The most glaring of these examples is John Buck and Heath Bell. So the turtle, feeling the shadow of a threat pulled the trigger on a deal.

I Like TurtlesYet, there is something the Marlins always seem to do well, and that is comb through other’s trash and find gems. Like a turtle, they, too, live close to the ground. Dan Uggla was a Rule 5 pick. Dontrelle Willis. Jorge Cantu. Todd Jones. Justin Ruggiano. They always seem to find guys who can contribute after being written off. They also seem to find guys who can over-achieve within a defined role. John Cangelosi, Darren Daulton. Lenny Harris. Mike Mordecai. Wes Helms.

Right now the Marlins are adding again using small parts. Nick Green, Matt Downs, Kevin Kouzmanoff, Austin Kearns. They’re bringing back Ryan Webb. They signed Mike Wuertz to a minor league contract.

This is the true nature of this franchise. They will not be able to spend their way to the top – they seem almost uncomfortable with this spotlight. They are more comfortable with tinkering, tweaking. Gradually building. No big sweeps, no high risk, high reward. They are a cautious bunch, moving slowly like the turtle. The difference is that they can afford to keep the players they built up – such as a Giancarlo Stanton. They can retain the players that they had to deal in the past – like Mike Lowell, Josh Beckett, MIguel Cabrera, and even Dontrelle Willis.

So liken the Fish to a reptile. In Loria they have the nature of a turtle, a deliberate and cautious creature that will not venture a short term risk for long term security. Expect the Marlins to continue to tinker and build. Yet once they get to the top, expect them to hold it through caution and great awareness.

 

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John Buck is the Epitome of What the Marlins Did Wrong

November 21, 2012 in Offseason

Want a better handle on how to assess the direction the Marlins are moving in? Look at John Buck.

Back in the 2010 offseason, the Marlins leaped onto the hot stove scene by signing John Buck to a 3 year contract worth $18M at 12:01AM. The catcher had a great season in Toronto, hitting .281 with 20 home runs – the best production of his career. When he signed with the Marlins, he was looking forward to catching for a young, hard throwing Marlins’ staff while also looking to build on his offensive production.

Yet, there was never an emphasis placed on Buck’s offensive production by the Marlins brass. They were expecting his experience, defense, and play calling to be what was needed as the Marlins were reportedly focusing on pitching and defense. Coming out of the 2010 season, the Marlins were 80-82 and could have made the playoffs if their relief pitching held up (27 blown leads). They hoped Buck would help solidify their pitching and provide occasional fireworks.

In fact, the Marlins may not have been able to make a play for Buck if not for the plight of Dan Uggla – who had wanted more money and the Marlins were unable to agree to terms. They dealt Uggla to the Braves for Omar Infante and Mike Dunn which helped them focus on defense and pitching while the power of Uggla was lost. The money saved was tossed towards Buck’s contract.

But what is wrong with this deal? Why pay a guy $6M to provide defense behind the plate when you could get similar offensive and defensive production very easily for much less? Buck batted .192 with 12 home runs last season. He struck out 103 times in 343 ABs while only getting 66 hits. That is horrific offensive production that is not worth $6M a year, no matter what kind of magic he may produce behind the plate. Which was not up to snuff – in 2011 Buck had a caught stealing percentage (CS%) of 17% and last season his CS% improved to 28%. In his first three years at Kansas City, Buck was throwing out base stealers about 34% of the time. Rob Brantly, picked up in the trade with the Tigers for Omar Infante and Anibal Sanchez, had an 18% CS% in a much smaller sample size but also at a fraction of the cost.

In John Buck, the Marlins aimed at trying to get better by spending money on named players. The better option would have been to find better production in contracts with value. The Marlins had to shed assets in order to acquire payroll flexibility. The truth is, they may have been better off trying to go another season with Reyes and Buehrle on the roster, but they were not getting production from these players that drastically effected winning. It is best to deal out of the rut before bing stuck in one.

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The Future of the Fish: 2011 A Look Ahead

November 17, 2010 in Featured, Offseason, The Fish Tank, Trades

So now that the dust is settling on the Dan Uggla trade, we’ve come to learn two basic things:

  1. The Marlins did make a very fair offer to Uggla and his representatives. They opted to take their chances elsewhere, looking to get a 5 year deal at around $70+M. Marlins offered 4 years at $48M. Kind of reminds one of the Pudge Rodriguez exit, eh?
  2. Marlins brass want to be a better baseball team – not provide highlights. Loria has already bemoaned publicly the fact that the bullpen cost the Marlins 27 wins (27 losses after the 7th inning). Beinfest, although admitting Uggla’s talent isn’t easily replaced, stressed that they needed to shore up the defense and find an offense that will move runners. “To replace the home runs, I’m not sure you’re going to replace 30. But is that really our objective? Our objective, really when you think about it, is let’s get guys on base and let Hanley [Ramirez] and [Mike] Stanton and [Logan Morrison] and those guys knock them in. It’s a little bit different because we’ve really wailed the last few years. We hit a lot of home runs in the last four to five years, and this will be a little bit of a different look for us.”

Given this context, does the Marlins’ trade of Uggla now make more sense? Yes. In return the Marlins get Omar Infante, who improves over Uggla in defense, speed, and in making contact. Also, with the acquisition of Mike Dunn, the Marlins shore up their bullpen by getting another lefty arm in there to provide more depth.

The Marlins have also now added catcher John Buck who, like Omar Infante, found his way onto the all star team last season. Given the fact that the Marlins were going to spend $48M on Uggla, and they have inked Buck to a 3 year, $18M deal, the Fish now have $30M to spend.

With better defense, more speed, and putting the ball in play a bit more the Marlins are already making a movement in the direction they intended to go. They also are going to tinker with the idea of bringing along prospect Matt Dominguez to play 3B – who is expected to be a defensive improvement as well – and also by inserting a healthy Chris Coghlan into CF. Once again, defense improves, contact improves.

Rounding out the roster for position players looks pretty promising. Logan Morrison would stay in LF, Mike Stanton in RF, Gaby Sanchez at 1B, Hanley Ramirez anchors SS. Those are four young, but very good hitters to help drive in runs while Coghlan, Infante, and Dominguez can help set the table.

What about the bullpen? As mentioned earlier, the bullpen ranked 9th in ERA needs a makeover. Brian Sanches, Clay Hensley, and Leo Nunez are returning but recent trades have helped, too. The Marlins dealt Andrew Miller for Dustin Richardson from the Red Sox. The 26 year old lefty is expected to help provide depth, but also has pretty solid upside considering the failed attempt to get Miller going.

Also as a result from the now busted Miguel Cabrera deal with the Tigers (a deal which also included Dontrelle Willis), Cameron Maybin was sent to the Padres for two more arms right-handers Edward Mujica and Ryan Webb. Webb is 6’6″ and provides some interesting upside, which is the name of the game when you are dealing away busted prospects.

What emerges is a better baseball team. The Marlins are looking to get back to basics – play sound fundamental baseball with the ability to stay in games but also hold a lead. The biggest problem for this team the past few years has been the inability to consistently put the ball in play. By cutting down on their strikeouts, and increasing the ability to make contact, the Marlins have a better chance at staying in games. In shoring up the bullpen, the Marlins also sustain a better chance of holding a lead and finishing out games with a win.

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Reported: Marlins Ink 3 Year Deal for Blue Jays John Buck

November 16, 2010 in Featured, Offseason, The Latest

It seems the Dan Uggla deal was part of a bigger move to overhaul the Marlins this offseason. With an offense that frequently struck out, and was unable to consistently put balls into play and move runners, the Marlins have decided to go back to their roots and focus on defense, pitching, and “small ball”.

That said, John Buck had a break out year with the Blue Jays this past season and the Marlins are hoping that continues. Buck, who made the All Star team, batted .281 with 20 home runs also has thrown out 28% of base runners with Toronto.

The deal is reportedly for 3 years and $18M. The Marlins have yet to officially comment on the story, however, MLB is reporting this deal is done.

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Dan Uggla Traded to Braves

November 16, 2010 in Featured, The Latest

Looks like one more ex-Marlin will be joining the Braves.

First it was Fredi Gonzalez to replace the man in Atlanta, Bobby Cox. Now, Fish fans have to suffer a bit more while they watch fan favorite Dan Uggla pack his bags for Atlanta, too.

To say it has been a tough season for the Marlins is an understatement as Jorge Cantu parted ways to Texas earlier and Cody Ross ended up in San Francisco only to work his way into a post season celebrity – and with a beard to boot.

Now, “His Name is” Dan Uggla will take his Popeye forearms and big right handed swing north leaving the Marlins with a big gap in the middle of their lineup. In exchange, the Marlins get 2B Omar Infante and LHP Mike Dunn.

Uggla had his most successful offensive season with the Marlins this past year, hitting .287 with 33 home runs and 105 RBIs. He is 13th all time among 2nd basemen with home runs, and he leads all of the majors in home runs among 2nd basemen since he debuted in the bigs with the Fish back in 2006.

We wish you the best, Dan. Just not when you are facing our Fish.

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Marlins Smack Braves Around, Make Mammas Proud

August 27, 2010 in Featured, The Latest

The baby Fish keep growing and getting better. We got proof today with back-to-back jacks to start the game from Cameron Maybin and Logan Morrison. It was the first time in Marlins history this was done.

For LoMo, it was his first ever MLB home run and it came in his 104th AB. Congrats, Wolverine. Here’s to the first of many.

Dan Uggla and Gaby Sanchez also provided some muscle, doing the same thing in the 6th inning, getting back-to-back home runs to continue to put runs on the board. Yet, none was as wild as Hanley Ramirez’s triple – which started with Eric Hinske misplaying Hanley’s flyball to LF then compounding his mistake by missing his cutoff man which enabled HR2Dtoo to steal the third bag with some heads up aggressive baserunning. Hanley would score on a sac grounder from Uggla.

But this was not a night just about the offense – Chris Volstad churned out a solid start. Volstad is one of the starters in the NL with the fewest pitches per start, his average just under 93 pitches an outing. He has had trouble being consistent, staying focused, and getting beyond the 5th inning. Tonight against the Braves, he showed flashes of what can make him a bona fide starter in this league, spreading hits from the Braves bats and getting consistent outs. He kept runners off the bases and it showed as the Marlins just squeezed the Braves, who were 44-17 at home, out of the game.

The Fish continue their great run on the road. Winning 8 out of their past 10, scraping out a couple of wins against the Mets and now coming into Atlanta to face the first place Braves who have the best home record in baseball. Mama must be proud of her babies.

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