Came across this great article by Joe Frisaro on the topic of splitting duties in the outfield.
“They are close friends who often are paired together in batting practice, and they constantly communicate during the game.
On any given night, one might be making a diving catch at a crucial time, while the next day the other could be blasting a home run.”
Yea with a 12-4 win over the Braves. Fish got back on track tonite with great pitching from Dontrell Willis and hitting with a bang. Cody goes two for five with 2 RBI’s a double and a single. The Marlins never looked back. Dontrell Willis pitched his game and and is now 3-0 on the season. Mark my words on this. Marlins will be in the National East contention with the bullpen that they have built up. Tank comes back tonite to close. He was shakey but got the job done. A nice addition to the bullpen that was already strong. To send Gardner back to AAA was a shock to most Marlins fans. Well when you spend 3 mill on Julio you have to get something back…….. Or maybe not.. Time will tell. The Marlins have set themselves up with so many potential closers that Fredi has alot of options. That is a good thing……..
Lets start with the second game of the series going 11 innings tied 2-2 into midnight with another rain delay. . With the new ruling, games that have been rained out or delayed with a tie will resume the next day where they left off. Great new rule, because in the past MLB always started the games over from inning number 1. This overall saves makeup games and pitchers. It was a strange atmosphere wed night when the Fish and Brewers started the 11th inning at 7:05 pm. They would finish game two that got rained out the night before and then proceed with game three. To set up the situation, Marlins had the lead in the bottom of the eighth 2-1. Brewers came back to tie the game 2-2 thanks to our new great closer Jorge Julio. Ross makes a game saving catch tue. nite with an over the head grab in the rain to save anyone from scoring. The catch made ESPN news. To make a sad story short, the Marlins fall 2-1 to the Brewers. On to the Braves that are hot. Stay tuned. Great story on Cody and Joe at the Marlins website. Check it out. We got more pitchers than we deserve. The bullpen did great except for that guy named Julio.
Cody made it in the ESPN play of the day with an backward running catch in the rain near the warning track. It was in the 10th inning against the Brewers. He had to really twist to make the catch. Josh Willingham also made it in with a forward diving catch in the same game. Nice thing is this “play of the day” is for all sports, and there’s only ten, so great recognition. From the Fish’s site:
Another defensive gem kept the score even in the 10th. This time, with Geoff Jenkins at second, right fielder Cody Ross went back to the wall and pulled in Weeks’ line drive.
The game was rained out and will continue tomorrow at 7:05 ET.
Other things to watch (or listen) for is the much touted face off of Boston’s gyroball wonder Dice-K against Ichiro Suzuki. This also takes place at 7:05 ET. The writer of this will also be a year closer to 40. *Insert shameless birthday plug*
The Marlins showed their bench strength against the Phillies today with a 6-4 win with over 16000 in the stands. Wow, thats a surprise. Olivo didn’t start because of a jammed thumb. Willingham was scratched with a sore back. Whala Cody starts in right field, and Hanley left the game in the first inning with a tight hamstring. Ross started the day off with a double and a run scored to help come back from a 3-0 deficit in the second inning with 4 runs scored. Marlins went on to win the game with help from Traynor, Amezega, Ross, and Boone off the bench. Gardner was brought in the ninth inning after Julio loaded the bases and got out of the inning. Also kudos for Gregg, Messenger, and Owens for no run innings. Pinto struggled a bit. Marlins really giving some strength from the bench. Julio is still trying to find his confidence on the mound, which did not happen today. Enough said on Julio. I really hope he gets his act together. Ross ended up going 1-4 with a nice running catch in right field to save two runs from scoring. Marlins now 4-2 in the season tied with the Mets in second place. Imagine that. Braves are leading the National East with a 5-1 record.
