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| Billy the Marlin eagerly awaits the 2012 Marlins to take the field. |
The Florida Marlins - er, Miami Marlins, as they're now known - have been a truly remarkable franchise for more than a decade now. They haven't been 'remarkable' in the same context as most other 'remarkable' teams, however, in that they're not known for success nor failure. Aside from their magical playoff run in 2003, the Marlins have practically represented the definition of mediocrity. Since 2000, local fans have seen five winning seasons and seven losing ones, never winning or losing more than 91 games in a single season. That's about to change.
Owner Jeffrey Loria finally committed to recruiting star power through free agency this winter with the highly-publicized signings of Mark Buehrle, Heath Bell, and Jose Reyes, three veterans who have impressive track records as all-stars and fan favorites. The trio carry with them 11 combined All-Star appearances, which is just the kind of publicity Loria is looking for. Loria wants to make his team a perennial threat in a tough NL East division where four of the teams could easily be above .500. So far, his work should earn him some immediate rewards, like sellout crowds at the new stadium this season.
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| A superstar? Check. Fast? Check. In compliance with team dress code? Check. Jose Reyes got his dreadlocks cut off earlier this week, selling them online for $10,200 which will go to charity. |
I don't think any of those things should be of primary concern right now, though. Perhaps this change of scenery for three guys who have been with the same team for at least the last half-decade will reinvigorate their baseball competitive juices. Their actual contributions on the field will need to be of great quality for the Marlins to get far this season, but just being there will help the team enormously. All three of these veterans come from winning teams as some point. If you count the one-game NL West Tiebreaker in 2007 between the Padres and Rockies that Bell pitched in as the postseason, then all three of them have played in the playoffs. That is a key factor for this team, seeing as none of the other core players, like Mike Stanton, Josh Johnson, or Hanley Ramirez, have ever gotten used to anything but playing in a cavernous football stadium where fans struggled to cover the lower deck. The veterans will show the young guns how a team gets to the promised land known as the MLB Postseason.
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| Already on the best power hitters in the league, this season should be a major learning experience for right fielder Mike Stanton. |
In 2011, the Marlins earned a valuable lesson. The team surprised the baseball world with an early 30-20 start, but then the baseball gods wreaked havoc. They started the month of June 1-19, causing new-found manager Edwin Rodriguez to resign mysteriously. Florida's chances at the postseason were shrunken beyond visibility, and the team wallowed back into their mediocre ways of old. Had there been some winning blood on the team, that would not have happened so dramatically.
To say that the Marlins' roster before these upgrades was lacking "winning blood" is nothing personal; it's just that none of the core players on the team have ever been to the playoffs or come close to it. With the additions of Reyes, Buehrle, Bell, and Guillen, the Marlins are in good shape. Loria should be pleased with the return on his investments. After all, he's already accomplished one of his goals; to get his team in the headlines. With the correct moves he's made, his team should be in the winning column more often than not this summer.
