Fire Bill Robinson

Yes, the Marlins won in 13 innings last night against their rivals the Atlanta Braves. So, what better time to call for the firing of Marlin hitting coach Bill Robinson than now?

Let's not get all emotional about this. Sure, Robinson has been around for awhile now, even since the Torborg era. Remember that?

And yes, the Marlins have a team batting average of .272 and an OBP of .339. Not bad. But only 329 runs in 75 games? That is only 4.3 runs a game. Our opponents are getting 4.2. The Marlins rank #26 in runs scored in the entire MLB but are #6 in AVG. Interstingly, they are #16 in hits.

The Marlins left 17 men on base last night against the Braves. Routinely, it seemed, squandering any chance to win the game. Sure, they broke through and won it, finally. But they needed to take care of this game when they should have. That is the mark of a good team. And right now, the offense is very inconsistent. The hitters are not advancing the runners - trading outs for runs. Instead, it seems guys forget how to do the basics and are only waiting for the three run bomb to deliver them. This is not the mark of a consistent offense and is certainly not the style of baseball the Marlins are known for.

In the 2003 run, the Marlins were aggressive on the field. They bunted and forced the opposing team to adjust to their game. Then, when they got on base, they ran. And were even more aggressive and daring. Lee, Encarnacion, Pierre, Castillo - pick your poison. They were going to steal on you.

This squad may not run as well as that '03 squad, but they have much better hitters in Delgado and Lo Duca than the Marlins did with just Pudge and Lee (the '03 model, of course - in fact, Derek Lee's success could be evidence enough that Robinson wasn't getting the most out of his players).

Can Bill hit for the Marlins? No, obviously not. But are there tell tale signs that the Marlins are not blossoming under his tutelage? Yes. Here is one more snapshot to consider. LoDuca lead off the 12th inning with a double. He then advanced to third on a balk with NO OUTS. All the Marlins needed was a long fly ball. Encarnacion popped out and so did Alex Gonzalez. Neither hit was strong enough to seriously challenge the Braves to score Lo Duca and Encarnacion looked especially unprepared as he swung at a pitch way outside and was down 0-2 on two bad pitches. This is a situation where you got to think, as a hitter, the pitcher is wild and isnt going to give you anything to drive. Make him work some. Don't go up there hacking. And that, my friends, is where coaching comes in.

Why dont the Marlins go retro - again?

Right now, the Yankees are rumored (by the NY media) to be contemplating dealing Gary Sheffield to - gasp! - the Mets for Mike Cameron and Miguel Cairo.

Why not spare themselves the embarassment and get something of real value - a CFer AND a bona fide pitcher? Why not trade Sheff back to his old team, the Marlins, for AJ Burnett and Juan Encarnacion?

Ok, I know what some of you may be thinking - why would the Marlins make this deal? Well, the Marlins cant find a way to score runs. Their pitching isn't that bad and actually, their statistical averages for hitting aren't that bad either they just seem to be living and dying by Juan Pierre right now. Lowell is struggling on the whole this year. Encarnacion has been solid for the most part, but replacing his bat with Sheffield's would be an instant upgrade to a lineup already sporting two potent bats in Delgado and the manchild, Cabrera.

The Yankees would also be getting a stud in AJ Burnett - something they need since their disappointing free agent crop of pitchers this season isn't living up to billing.

Is this a more attractive deal to the Yankees than Cameron and Cairo? You bet. It will cost them about the same amount of money - the Marlins would obviously demand financial relief in return (Sheff is currently in the 2nd year of his 3 year $39M deal with the Yanks). The Marlins are most likely going to lose AJ and Juan - AJ will probably sign with the Yankees this offseason. Why not give him his druthers and send him there ahead of schedule? Heck, he may not like it as much as he thought and oddly, may opt to return to Florida if the deal is right.

But the fact is, a deal like this would give the Yankees what they desperately need - a CF with great range (Encarnacion can play CF very easily and has a gold glove caliber defense already in RF) and a stud pitcher that could bolster their rotation. It would cost less than Cameron and Cairo, too.

For the Marlins they would be getting the return of an old friend (from that '97 champion team) who can flat out hit. Sheffield could man RF and give a huge lift to this anemic Marlins offense and bring us some swagger again. Sure, we lose out on AJ's arm, but we have enough talent to mend for now. Scott Olsen is the real deal and can pitch at this level right now. You also have Al Leiter seeming to right the ship and Ismael Valdez coming back. Along with Moehler - who has pitched very well but is among the league's worst in run support - the Marlins have enough candidates to round out the rotation and juice up the offense to make up the difference.

Why not? Get the Sheff some home cooking.

Marlins dealing?

Recent reports in the media have verified that the Marlins are currently looking to make changes on the field. This is no surprise, but what is surprising is that the Orioles have confirmed that they were in discussions over AJ Burnett. The possible deal was to have AJ Burnett, Juan Encarnacion and Eric Reed shipped to Baltimore for Jorge Julio, Larry Bigbie, and either Ryan Cabrera or Hayden Penn.

Another deal that seems to be brewing is the Yankees interest in Juan Encarnacion. Faced with needing a CFer, the Yanks may look to Encarnacion to fill that void and in exchange would give the Marlins Paul Quantrill. This would save the Marlins some money (about $2.39M) as they would likely get Quantrill for nothing.

Marlins win 3 of last 4 - streak mounting?

Do I feel a streak coming on? The Marlins have now won 3 of their last 4 games and it only took to this point in the season - about two months - for Jack to realize that the opening day lineup was good enough. Now, two wins later, this team is starting to feel like it is going to take off. Why? Let's have a looksy...

Delgado, in the 7th, was sitting at 3-0. Rogers throws a questionable pitch and the ump called it a strike. Delgado was upset at the call. Then, the next pitch is low and away - but also called a strike. The next pitch Delgado hammers over the 1st baseman's head to beat the shift to drive in Juan Pierre and advance Castillo to third.

Which brings up our next point - in previous games, Castillo not scoring would have proven costly. But Mike Lowell is now a different Mike Lowell than we have seen the last two months. This is the RBI machine that we all know and love. He is able to drive in Castillo and Delgado when he blasts a shot off the scoreboard.

Timely hitting, and under duress. It seems the Marlins are starting to turn the corner finally.