Archive for May, 2010

Check this out: Anibal Sanchez, 2008: 51 2/3 IP, 241 BF, 5.57 ERA, 4.87 FIP Sanchez, 2009: 86 IP, 383 BF, 3.87 ERA, 4.60 FIP, Sanchez, 2010: 62 1/3 IP, 266 BF, 2.89 ERA, 2.99 FIP I know the guy from 2008, and I recognize the guy from 2009 a little, but who is this pitcher who is dominating for the Marlins in 2010? Quietly, Sanchez has been the team’s second-best starter on the year, racking up 1.8 fWAR (FanGraphs) or 1.2 rWAR (Rally’s WAR, from Baseball-Reference) so far this season. Where is this effectiveness coming from?

Entering this weekend’s series versus the Philadelphia Phillies, we knew one matchup was going to be a thriller to watch: Saturday night’s tilt between aces Roy Halladay and Josh Johnson. The matchup did not disappoint, with Johnson throwing a great game in seven innings but being outdueled by one of the best pitchers of our generation. Halladay threw a perfect game, yet another great accomplishment on the mantle of a sure-fire Hall of Famer. Overall, the Marlins lost two in the series, but you can’t blame the pitching staff for that. Marlins bats were quiet, as the team scored just [...]

In two of the three games this series, the Marlins were afforded a tight lead over the Atlanta Braves late in the game. In all three games, the two teams were very close. In the two Marlins losses, however, the bullpen disastrously blew the games wide open with horrendous pitching. Games 2 and 3 were some of the worst bullpen performances that I have witnessed in recent memory. Series Hero: Nate Robertson (0.252 WPA) Series Goat: Brian Sanches (-0.374 WPA) Impressed By: Robertson (6 IP, 5 K, 2 BB, 0 HR, 0 R, 2 H) Depressed By: The entire bullpen [...]

The Maniac has had a hectic few weeks, and they’re getting even more hectic. As such, content is a little slow right now, but will be forthcoming. As my big job raps up in the next week or two, I should have more time to devote to the site. As for today, I will have a Fish-Cap for the Atlanta Braves series and the last part of the draft history series up tomorrow. Thanks for your patience everyone.

The second era of Marlins baseball begins with the terrible fire sale of 1998, when the team was gutted by then-owner Wayne Huizenga and left to rot for a few years of pathetic baseball, and ends with the triumphant return of the Fish to the World Series, when they beat the New York Yankees in six games in what is now essentially a forgotten series. Among the player who were drafted, the Marlins found three players who contributed significantly to the team in later years. Player Draft WAR as Marlin Kevin Olsen 1998 0.1 Josh Beckett 1999 9.6 Josh Wilson [...]

Did you know that Baseball-Reference now has Rally’s WAR (rWAR) integrated everywhere on the site? Amazingly, that also includes its draft tool, something I have already used in the past for its convenience. With those things integrated, I figured it would a cool idea to take a look into the history of the Marlins in terms of the draft. I may return to the topic of the expansion draft later on, but right now I’d like to focus on the annual MLB draft. The Marlins first began drafting in 1992, a year before their inception. I like to think of [...]

The Marlins head back home after a long, 20-game stretch without a rest day. Monday was their first break in a long time, and I’m certain they’ll need all the rest they can get going into this three-game set against the Atlanta Braves. This is the first time this season that the Braves and Fish battled, and it should be a fun series to watch. Atlanta Braves (23-21) @ Florida Marlins, May 25-27, Games 46-48 NL East Standings Tm W L Win% GB PHI 26 17 .605 – ATL 23 21 .538 3.5 FLA 23 22 .520 4.0 WSN 23 [...]

Warning: This is not a prognostication piece by me. This is more of a history lesson than anything else. Do not take it as anything more than that. Chris Coghlan’s top comps by PECOTA are Alex Ochoa (ick), Brent Brede (who?), Tommy Dunbar (who again?), and John Kruk (I guess that’s a good thing, if he doesn’t turn to broadcasting later on). But recently, as I was thinking about comps for the current season struggles of Coghlan, a name popped into my head that I don’t think anyone wants to see. This comp does not imply that Coghlan’s career will [...]

Recently, I was thinking about Chris Coghlan’s season-long slump and how it compared to another slump from a Marlins player just last season. Maniac readers from the beginning know that I spent a good deal of this space defending Dan Uggla and his performance last season. I mentioned how Uggla’s BABIP was very low and that he still was maintaining a high walk rate and plenty of power. Sure enough, Uggla’s batting eventually perked up, enough that he was able to post a .355 wOBA that was pretty close to his projected totals at the start of the season. What [...]

The Marlins capped off the series versus the Chicago White Sox with a 13-0 bashing, but the series was otherwise disappointing. Against two of Chicago’s best starters, the team faltered and was outscored 12-1. Series Hero: Josh Johnson (0.111 WPA) Series Goat: Ricky Nolasco (-0.187 WPA) Impressed By: No one. Depressed By: Nolasco (5 1/3 IP, 8 R, 3 K, 0 BB, 2 HR)