Marlin Maniac » 2011 » July

Marlin Maniac Live Chat, @Atlanta Braves

Michael Jong — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 22:26:04 +0000

Commentary: Marlins and Braves

Ehsan Kassim — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 18:13:47 +0000

Editor’s note: This is the second of our new authors, Ehsan Kassim, better known as @ehsank24 on Twitter. He’ll be contributing weekly here at Marlin Maniac on Fridays, writing both on fandom or on his own bits of analysis on the current happenings in the world of the Fish. Please welcome him to the MM family.

Since this is my first post over here at Marlin Maniac, I thought I would like to start off by giving a little background on myself, which will actually be relevant to this article.

Background

I am 19-years old, born and raised in Coral Springs, Florida. I lived in Coral Springs for about most of my life. I became a big baseball fan during the now infamous 1998 MLB season. This was my first interest in any sort of sport. I was not a Marlins fan at the time. I was actually just watching to see if my favorite player, Ken Griffey Jr, would be able to catch Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire for the homerun chase. In 1999, I went to my first baseball game and first Marlins game ever. It was a 2-1 victory for the Fish over the Colorado Rockies. Ever since that hot July day, I have been a diehard Marlins fan. Now, if I weren’t not a diehard Marlins fan, I would still love baseball. I would just be a diehard Braves hater. I have never liked that franchise and I hate the city of Atlanta. I hate Atlanta mainly because I lived there for two years after moving there in 2008. My strong hatred for the Braves started when I became a Marlins fan. They were always the team I wanted the Marlins to beat the most. This continues to today.

… [visit site to read more]

I admit that Emilio Bonifacio has improved

Michael Jong — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:29:45 +0000

Hi, my name is Michael Jong, and I have been an Emilio Bonifacio hater for two and a half years now.

Hi, Michael!

It is not easy for me to admit being wrong, but it is important for Marlins fans to hear the truth about this. The man still colloquially known as Bonerface has actually improved his game at the plate, having thus become a slightly better player. Witness the horrifying numerical truths.

Bonifacio PA AVG OBP SLG wOBA

2007-2009 722 .248 .303 .314 .277

2010-2011 571 .279 .347 .361 .335

Taken at face value, those numbers are a huge improvement. Of course, taking anything like that at face value would also be pretty ridiculous. There are underlying reasons behind Bonifacio’s success these last two seasons, some of which may be projectable into the future while others may need more regression than fans would care to admit. Yes, he is looking good now, but how good will he look in the future? Let’s take a closer look at his game between these two time periods.

… [visit site to read more]

History: Florida Marlins Inaugural Season 1993, Pitchers Edition

James C. Etzbach Jr. — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:43:44 +0000

Last week we discussed the inaugural season Marlins hitters and, as I promised, this week I will continue that discussion highlighting some of the most prominent members of the Marlins inaugural season pitching staff.

Starting Pitcher: Charlie Hough #49

While most of the players on the Marlins inaugural season roster were just beginning their careers, Charlie Hough was completing his quarter century long knuckle-ball crusade. Charlie, like current Marlins manager Jack McKeon, probably knows what it was like before the earth cooled and dinosaurs roamed the land. Due to the throwing mechanics involved, knuckle-ball pitchers are a unique and rare breed. Pitchers able to successfully throw the knuckle-ball get to bask in the glory of having a lengthy career and driving both hitters and catchers batshiat crazy in the process. He is famous for being the opening day starting pitcher for the Marlins in 1993. His visage is currently emblazoned on the outfield wall at Joe Robbie/Pro Player/Dolphin/LandShark/SunLife Stadium. Charlie also finished his career with the fish, retiring at the ripe old age of 46 after the end of the 1994 season.

Starting Pitcher: Jack Armstrong #77

Jack Armstrong is in no relation to Stretch Armstrong though he does have one of the best names for a pitcher ever! I personally had the privilege of witnessing Jack pitch the Marlins to victory over the Atlanta Braves during the first game of the inaugural season series between the two teams at old Atlanta Fulton County Stadium. The Marlins swept that two-game series, by the way. Jack was only with the Fish for one season and was last seen wearing a Texas Rangers uniform in 1994.

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Marlin Maniac loves Out of the Park 12! (Sponsored)

Michael Jong — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 21:44:34 +0000

The Maniac is taking some time away from obsessing about the real Florida Marlins to tell you a little bit about his obsession with the fake Florida Marlins, as in the Fish as managed by him on Out of the Park 12, … [visit site to read more]