Florida Marlins 2002 Season Preview

by Adam J. Ulrey

Could the Marlins sneak into the playoffs?

The Marlins are a team that most observers think are just on the verge of being a playoff team. They have assembled one of the best young starting rotations in the game and their everyday lineup is solid. This organization has all new ownership and coaching staff and you wonder if that will have a positive or negative effect on them as the season rolls along. Theyıre in one of the toughest divisions in all of baseball, but if their pitching comes through this team could surprise and maybe sneak in as a wild card.

There were really no changes to the everyday lineup from last year and with this being a young team look for many players to continue improving. Derek Lee, who started off slowly but rebounded to have a very nice year, will handle first base. He clouted 21 homers and added 75 RBI's to go along with his .282 average. He plays an adequate first, but the Marlins coaching staff is still looking for him to reach his full potential.

The speed on this team comes from the top of the lineup with second baseman Luis Castillo. Castillo had a down year after hitting .334 in 2001, slipping to .263 last year. He also needs to get his OBP back up after dropping from .418 to .344 last year. With his OBP being down so were his stolen bases. In 2000 he had 62 steals, which dropped to only 33 last year. The biggest disappointment on this team last year was the play of shortstop Alex Gonzalez. All of Gonzalez's offensive numbers have gone into the tank since he hit the scene two years ago with 14 homers and a lot of hope for the future. He is on a short leash and if he doesn't get off to a good start you might see a change by the Marlins. Over at third will be Mike Lowell who reached his career high in RBI last year with 100. He added 18 homers and improved his batting average by 13 points over the previous year. Lowell also is a very good fielder, making only 9 errors last year. At catcher is one of the finest defensive catchers in the game today: Charles Johnson. He is known for his glove, but for a catcher he carries a solid bat, averaging 17 homers and 70 RBI's over the last six years. He will help make this young staff better with his skill behind the plate and the way he calls a game.

The outfield is one of the better power hitting outfields in the game and they are solid defensively. At 29 years-old Cliff Floyd could have one of those breakout years that some many have been waiting for. It's not like this guy hasn't been putting up good numbers, as he hit career highs in homers with 31 and 103 RBI. For the third year in a row he hit over .300, with a .317 average last year. He also has great speed for a man his size, stealing 18 bases to make him even more dangerous. Next to him in center will be Preston Wilson, who saw his numbers drop from the previous year because of injuries. Look for him to rebound, as he is one of the premier center fielders in the game. He still hit 23 homers and added 20 steals to go with a solid .274 average. He also is a tremendous gloveman, with his speed to get to the gaps and hold teams to singles or take away hits. Right field is a story in itself as Kevin Millar, who once played in Independent ball and has been a solid bat off the bench for years, finally had a good year to win the job. Millar had career highs in almost every area, hitting 20 homers, 85 RBI along with a .314 average to lead the team.

The Marlins will only go as far as their pitching staff will take them. Their ace is Ryan Dempster, who led the team in wins with 15 last year. He saw his ERA really jump last year to 4.94 after logging in at 3.66 the year before. Look for him to get more in line with his 2000 season. He is one of the leading strikeout artists in the NL, netting 171 last year. Following Dempster will be right-hander Brad Penny who is on the verge of putting it all together. Penny went 10-10 with a very respectable 3.69 ERA to go with 154 strikeouts. He also had a tremendous 3-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio, which is remarkable for someone who is only 24 years old. A.J. Burnett has got what people in the game call a live arm. He started 27 games last year, putting together a very solid year with 11 wins and an ERA of 4.05. He also pitched a no-hitter that was bizarre due to the fact that he walked 9 batters. If phenom Josh Beckett lives up to all the hype this guy could be the best pitcher on this staff. He only got four starts, but boy talk about making an impression: he went 2-2 with an ERA of 1.50, notching 24 K's in 24 innings. The fifth spot in the rotation just came over in a trade, veteran Julian Tavarez. Tavarez will no worse than Matt Clement and actually could be an upgrade as Clement has been a disappointment in both San Diego and Florida.

The bullpen just got better with the trade of Antonio Alfonseca, who wouldn't watch his weight and seemed to be a pain in the clubhouse. To me closers are overrated and you can get by with a decent reliever. With Alfonseca, who has 21 blown saves in the last four years, gone the job goes to Braden Looper and Vladimer Nunez. Either should be just as good as Alfonseca and will give manager Jeff Torborg many options. Looper was to have been the closer when he was in the Cardinals' minor league system, but after being traded to Florida he has been waiting for the opportunity to show his stuff. Looper has averaged 71 appearances in his three years with the Marlins and has gotten better in every one of them. They will also have lefty Vic Darensbourg back for his fifth Marlin season. He is their situational lefty with only 48 innings in 56 appearances last year. Jason Grilli and a bunch of rookies will fill out the rest of the bullpen. This is a young staff with a good upside, but a lot will depend upon how well Torborg manages them. They have the potential to send out four pitchers who could all win between 12-15 games. They also have six guys who could each hammer 20 homers or more, so the potential for the offense is sky high.