| Doug Benton. 23rd June, 2005 - 5:17 pm
 Two titles in their 12 year existence is quite a feat for the Florida Marlins, who looked to make a run at number three with some of their moves this off-season. Even though Carlos Delgado is having a fine season and their pitching staff has been lights out, something just hasn?t clicked. At 34-33 coming into their game against the Braves on Wednesday, time is running out for a deep run into October.
While no one person can be blamed for the early season struggles, you can start solving the problem with Juan Pierre. Pierre has struggled thus far, only batting .247 with an OBP of .294. Both of these numbers are down from his career marks, which are .306 and .356 respectively. Pierre is very important to the Marlins? offensive attack because when he gets on base, he forces the pitcher to think about him and the batter, while giving Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Delgado opportunities to drive runs in. Also, hitting is contagious up and down the line-up for all teams. If the leadoff hitter keeps getting out, it sends bad vibes down the order, which puts the offense in a funk that could last the entire game.
Pitching on the other hand has been the only thing that has kept the Marlins in the race up to this point. The only dark points have been the regression of Guillermo Mota and the disaster that has been Al Leiter. Mota?s problem has been resolved due to the outstanding work the Marlins have received from Todd Jones in the closer?s role. Leiter, however, has been assigned to the bullpen with no signs of a speedy return to the rotation.
With all of this said, the Marlins are too talented to be floundering this late in the season. The responsibility has to fall on manager Jack McKeon, who must find a way to rally his team to reach their full potential. The above problems will hold the Marlins back from achieving their ultimate goal of winning the World Series, but it shouldn?t stop them from contending for the NL East title. The only thing holding this group back is the lack of key leaders to energize this team.
In my opinion, these leaders should be Carlos Delgado, Miguel Cabrera, and Josh Beckett. Each of these players are stars and are either earning big paychecks or will be earning those paychecks in a couple of years. These three players must lead by example to help take the Marlins to the level they should be playing at. |
