Thousands of Marlins fans piled into Sun Life Stadium yesterday with high hopes for their Florida Marlins 2011 season. Fans had the opportunity to get players autographs, walk through the clubhouse, and attend town hall meetings in where they had the opportunity to ask the players questions.
The consensus amongst the players and the front office is that this team is expected to not only compete but also go deep into the playoffs. Last season, both poor defense and inconsistent relief pitching prevented the Marlins from reaching the playoffs. During the offseason, the Marlins addressed those issues by acquiring Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica from San Diego, Michael Dunn and Omar Infante from Atlanta, and starting pitcher Javier Vazquez, catcher John Buck, and reliever Randy Choate through free agency.
The other question Marlins fans were concerned with was how Chris Coghlan would make the transition to centerfield for 2011. Coghlan said that he “embraces the challenge of playing centerfield.” Another topic of interest amongst Marlins fans was the apparent interest in the Rangers infielder Michael Young. Marlins President of Baseball Operations, Larry Beinfest said, “We like our club the way it is.” Although he did add that the organization is “always looking to add.”
The additions of Vazquez, Buck, and Choate provide leadership for the upcoming season. When asked about his experience on last year’s Rays playoff team, Choate said, “each guy knew [his] role [in the bullpen].” Newly acquired catcher John Buck was asked whether he had familiarized himself with any of the Marlins pitchers. Buck said that he started familiarizing himself the day he signed by asking for video on the Marlins pitchers. He went on to say that he’ll really “get a true grasp after the third time through the rotation.” Marlins manager, Edwin Rodriguez said that Buck not only provides some pop at the plate but is also a defensive upgrade behind the plate and useful leadership in the clubhouse. The third veteran piece of the offseason was Javier Vazquez. According to the veteran right-hander, Vazquez “is personally not a believer in pitch counts.” This is the type of attitude and ability that the Marlins need from all of their starters in 2011. Marlins ace, Josh Johnson, added that he never thinks about going just six innings.
Aside from the newcomers for 2011, the Marlins have a solid group of young and productive players ready to play in 2011. Marlins young slugger Mike Stanton noted that he needed to be more consistent at the plate as one of his goals for the new season. 2009 National League Rookie of the Year, Chris Coghlan listed “stay healthy” as one of his goals. His goal was said tough and cheek, alluding to his season-ending knee surgery last year due to a postgame celebration on the field. In all seriousness though, Coghlan believes that if he can stay healthy for the entire season, he can be just as productive as he was his rookie season. When asked how he felt about the rotation in Philadelphia, Logan Morrison noted that these pitchers still have to throw the ball over the plate and that the names of the back of the uniform don’t mean anything when he’s at the plate.
With Dan Uggla gone to the Braves, Hanley Ramirez will have a better grasp of the leadership role with the Marlins. In fact, Hanley told Samson that he would like to stay with the Marlins for the remainder of his career because the Marlins gave him a chance and have watched him grow throughout his career. He also noted that despite that fact that the club is young, they are extremely talented. When asked how Hanley will be able to play with newcomer Omar Infante at second, Hanley said that he would be able to get comfortable with Infante on the field. He also noted that during Spring Training, he and Infante would work on communication on the field.
Marlins ace Josh Johnson who led the National League with an earned run average of 2.10 said that he would have traded the accolade for having the ability to start more games toward the end of the season. Johnson’s 2010 season was cut short in September because of an apparent mid-back strain and right shoulder inflammation. As a consequence, Johnson said that he has been working more on his changeup during the offseason as his out pitch. When asked to give his thoughts on manager Edwin Rodriguez, Johnson said, “He doesn’t beat around the bush.” Johnson also said that Rodriguez left it up to him to let the manager know when he was tired. According to Johnson, he had never played for a manager with this kind of approach until last season.
The Marlins are certainly destined for great things in the near future. Their new ballpark is set to open for next season and their payroll is expected to increase. Both the players and the front office are expecting huge success in 2011. So, as opposed to previous Fan Fests in South Florida, this year’s focus was strictly on Marlins baseball.
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