Florida Marlins

Gary Sheffield is recognized as one of the greatest players who have ever played the game, and he started his Hall of Fame career with no one other than the Marlins.

Well, technically he didn't start out with the Marlins but it was with the Marlins where he made a name for himself.

Gary was a first round draft pick by the Milwaukee Brewers and he spent four years with the Brewers where he underproduced and was constantly fighting with the front office, calling them racist. The Brewers, finally exhausted by Sheffield's attitude, traded him to the Padres.

The temperature was a little chilly as I stepped out of my front door that day. Earlier, it had reached a high of around 54, but it felt as if it had dropped nearly ten degrees since then.

Nick Johnson, the player that came to the Marlins in the final minutes of the trade deadline, is now a free agent. 

To obtain Johnson, the Marlins had to send starting pitcher Aaron Thompson to the Washington Nationals.

Nick is known for his patience at the plate. During his '09 season he posted a .426 on base percentage—which leads all free agents.

He may not have very good power numbers, but if a team needs consistency he provides it.

During his 35 games with the Marlins, he walked 36 times and was consistently on base every time Hanley was at the plate. 

Florida Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla can flat-out hit.

Uggla has a .826 OPS in his first four Major League seasons and has clubbed 121 home runs, more than any middle infielder in history over the first four years of a career.

Andrew Miller a first round draft pick is headed down to the Arizona Fall League to get some work.

Andrew Miller one of the Marlins top prospects, came from the blockbuster deal of Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera for Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, and Burke Badenhop.

Miller, regarded as one of the top prospects in the franchise is not living up to the hype, and he has had a difficult time with his mechanics. 

At the start of the '09 season he was offered the five-spot in the rotation behind Sanchez. 

Many Marlins fans have already realized that starting pitching is extremely important to win and get to the playoffs, and the lack of consistent pitching was the reason the Marlins couldn't get to the Playoffs this year.

I know this may seem far fetched but Jamie Moyer, who had a mediocre year with the Phillies, could be a good fit for the Marlins.

The Marlins need a veteran anchor in the rotation who has experience, and who better than the 46 year old veteran.

Chris Coghlan the rookie who came out of nowhere is without a doubt the most deserving player for rookie of the year. Since he plays for a low budget team like the marlins he doesn't get that much national exposure so it is unfair he isn't recognized by many writers.

Chris Coghlan has had one of the most historic rookie seasons in Major league History. Breaking many franchise records and historic ones as well.

The Florida Marlins won't be playing baseball after the first Sunday of October, but they shouldn't chalk this up to a loss season.

No one expected these youngsters to end up with a winning record but that is what they have done. This can be an 88-wins season for the fish, if they run the table.

Looking ahead, the team should continue to build on what they have accomplished this year.

What They Have: Great One-Two Punch

The Marlins played flat in their series against the Nationals over the weekend at Land Shark Stadium. Even in their one victory on Saturday night.

They went on the road to play the Cardinals, which was a tough task since the Cards play well at Busch Stadium.

They needed to win a series over there to keep their playoff hopes alive.

They did just that Wednesday afternoon at St. Louis by achieving a 5-2 victory.