Great Week For Marlins All Around
May 10, 2008
This has been an amazing week for the Florida Marlins, who have a current MLB-best 5 game winning streak. Any week where starting pitchers Andrew Miller, Burke Badenhop, and Ricky Nolasco all throw for wins has to make Marlins fans feel confident about the future.
Since this past Sunday, the Marlins have averaged 6.6 runs per game, while only giving up 2 runs per game. Compare those statistics to the Phillies who averaged 6 runs per game, but gave up 5.2; the Mets who averaged 5.5 runs per game, but gave up 3.25; and the Braves who averaged 6.2 runs per game, but gave up 3.8. The offensive production was relatively the same between the NL East contenders, only 1.1 runs per game separating the four teams this week with the Marlins on top. However, the Marlins gave up substantially less runs during the week than their division foes, especially when compared to the Braves and Phillies.
In his Friday outing, Ricky Nolasco showed signs of being a great pitcher when he went up against Washington Nationals ace Tim Redding (well “ace” at least prior to this game). Nolasco got his second win of the season by giving up only 4 hits and 2 walks in 6 innings. The 25-year-old right hander only pitched one bad inning, but was able to limit the damage to 1 run.
Jorge Cantu is trying to do his best Miguel Cabrera impersonation at third base by knocking in 6 runs and hitting 2 home runs this week. Cantu’s batting average is 35 points higher than Cabrera’s so far this season. He also has only 1 home run and 6 RBIs less than Miguel, who is making a reported $10.8 million more than Cantu in the 2008 season. The current Marlins third baseman is also trying to fill Cabrera’s shoes on the field by already committing 6 errors this season. Although his offensive numbers might not last throughout the season, it is nice to have a capable replacement for one of the Marlins all-time greats.
Florida fans also received good news off the field this week. On Friday night, news sources announced that the Marlins organization and Hanley Ramirez are close to signing a multi-year contract, a deal that should put a smile on any Marlins fan’s face. The 6-year deal is reported to be worth $70 million, averaging just under $12 million per year. Compare this to fellow NL East shortstops Jimmy Rollins and Jose Reyes who’s salaries on their current contracts average to about $8 million and $5.8125 million per year respectively. Although Ramirez may be getting paid significantly more than the other two shortstops, his talent and potential are definitely worth the price.
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