May 16, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Jose Fernandez (16) throws during the third inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Last night the Miami Marlins took on the Cincinnati Reds in the third game of the three game set. Sadly, the Marlins were just looking to get back on track as they came into the game losing seven out of their last eight games. With the team going through a slump, the Marlins turned to the rookie sensation Jose Fernandez. Throughout the season Fernandez has arguably been one of the most exciting and most efficient players on this depleted Marlins roster. Unfortunately, Fernandez’s strong outing wasn’t enough to put the Marlins back in the win column, as they went onto lose the game in extra innings 5-3.

It didn’t take long for the Marlins to get on the scoreboard, after left fielder Juan Pierre hit his first home-run of the season. However, after Pierre’s homerun to right field, the Marlins offense went cold. Pierre’s homerun was the only run the team was able to put up against the Reds. As usual, the Reds starting pitcher, Mat Latos was dialed in. Other than Pierre’s homer, Latos only gave up one more hit before being pulled in the eighth inning.

May 16, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Cincinnati Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips (4) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run during the sixth inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Although they struggled to, the Reds were finally able to take advantage of the Marlins struggling offense, after Brandon Phillips hit a home-run, giving the team a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth inning. With the Marlins inability to produce offensively, many thought the game was over. However, rookies Adeiny Hechavarria and Marcell Ozuna had something to say about that. It all started when Hechavarria hit an early one out triple to put the Marlins in an excellent position to tie the game. With the top part of the lineup due to make appearances, the Marlins definitely liked their chances of bringing Hechavarria home. Veteran Placido Polanco came to the plate in order to hit for the youngster Derek Dietrich. Unfortunately, Placido struck out swinging, leaving the game in the hands of the rookie Marcell Ozuna. In just his 15^th game in a Marlins uniform, everyone was about to see if he could deliver or not. With a man on third and two outs, the pressure was definitely on Ozuna to bring the run home; and he did. Not only was he able to bring Hech home, he also put himself in scoring position as he hit a two out triple. With Ozuna on third, Marlins manager Mike Redmond wisely had Justin Ruggiano come in to pinch hit for Chris Coghlan who is hitting a mere .210 this season. Unfortunately, the move didn’t pay off and we fans were treated to some extra free baseball.

The Reds came out wanting to end this game and as a result, the free baseball didn’t last long. The Reds quickly took the lead back from the Marlins after Brandon Phillips hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Donald Lutz. Apparently the run one run lead wasn’t enough for Jay Bruce as he hit a two run double to score Shin-Soo Choo and Joey Votto. The game quickly got out of hand and the Marlins were once again finding themselves in a difficult position.

Heading into the bottom of the tenth down by three runs, the Marlins had to quickly muster up some offense. With two outs, former extra innings hero Nick Green approached the plate. Many remember Green for his walk-off hit against the Mets a couple of weeks back, in a game that I thought was never going to end. It seemed like he still had some magic left in the tank. Although he failed to get a hit, he was able to get on base via walk, giving some hope to the Marlins and their fans. After what was ruled as a fielder’s indifference, Green was able to get into scoring position. Down by three, with a runner on second and two outs, the Marlins found themselves fighting to stay alive. Outfielder Matt Diaz came to the rescue, after a single to centerfield was able to score Green. Still down two more runs, the tying run came to the plate. The game was left in the hands of Juan Pierre who had hit a home-run earlier in the game. Sadly, he was unable to repeat his first inning at-bat, grounding out to second to end the game.

With yet another game played, the Marlins are still finding it near impossible to get into the win column. They have now lost eight out of their last nine games. With almost all the hope just about gone, the Marlins will turn to Kevin Slowey tonight to take on the second place Arizona Diamondbacks.

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May 2, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Miami Marlins pitching coach Chuck Hernandez talks with pitcher Alex Sanabia (28) during the fifth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies defeated the Marlins 7-2. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Another game for the Miami Marlins and yet another loss for the struggling fish. Although they were able to put together a nice little win streak of three games, the Marlins are back to the square one as they have now lost their previous two games. So far this season has been one of much disappointment for fans and although there weren’t exactly high expectations set coming into the season, the fact that the Marlins are tied with the Houston Astros for the worst record in the league (8-21), is quite upsetting.

Yesterday, the Marlins took a trip to the “City of Brotherly Love” as they were set to begin their three game series with their in-division rival, Philadelphia Phillies. Coming off of a heartbreaking loss to the New York Mets, the Miami Marlins were looking to regain their mojo, sending Alex Sanabia to the mound to compete against a potential National League C.Y Young candidate, Kyle Kendrick. Yes, you read that correctly. Throughout the early portion of the season, Kendrick has been money for the Phillies. Facing a pitcher with a 3-1 record and a 2.43 ERA, the Marlins offense certainly had their work cut out for them.

May 2, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins (11) celebrates with second baseman Chase Utley (26) after defeating the Miami Marlins at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies defeated the Marlins 7-2. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Going against Kendrick is definitely not something the Marlins wanted. Coming into the game, Kendrick was coming off of a complete game shutout against the New York Mets. With the Marlins offense being ranked towards the bottom of the league, Kendrick could easily double down and have yet another strong performance. However, early on that didn’t seem to be the case as the Marlins were able to get on the board early with as Juan Pierre was able to score off of a Placido Polanco double play. Other than the RBI by Polanco, outfielder Justin Ruggiano continued to stay hot after hitting a 428 foot bomb to center field in the sixth inning. Unfortunately, those were the only two runs the Marlins were able to score, with the majority of the offensive highlights coming from the Phillies.

Prior to the opening game against the Marlins, the Phillies were shutout 6-0 by the Cleveland Indians. Many Marlins fans were hoping that Alex Sanabia could Trevor Bauer and the Indians pitching staff was able to do against Philadelphia. Unfortunately, it ended up being the complete opposite, as the Phillies offense torched Sanabia and the bullpen. Although the game was kind of close late, the “men in red” blew the game wide open with a three run 8^th inning. In my opinion, Domonic Brown was the MVP last night for Philadelphia, after he had a very impressive performance, going 3-4 with a home-run, two RBI’s and two runs scored. His performance truly made the difference last night for the Phils.

The Marlins will look to bounce back from their two game losing streak tonight as they send their ace Ricky Nolasco to take the mound as he will go up against the young 22 year old righty, Jonathan Pettibone.

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Apr 25, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Kevin Slowey (45) looks on from the dugout in the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

While the NFL had the spotlight last night for the 2013 NFL Draft, the Miami Marlins were in Miami playing host to the Chicago Cubs. Although both the Marlins and the Cubs are teams that are struggling to find themselves in the W column, these two teams always seem to match-up great against each other, giving the fans an exciting game all the way down to the final pitch. Last night was no different as the Marlins and Cubs put on a show for the audience at the ballgame and for the audience watching at home or at a local sports bar.

The opening game of this four game series featured Miami’s Kevin Slowey and Chicago’s Edwin Jackson. Despite a win-less record, Kevin Slowey has impressed many Marlin fans this season with a couple of quality starts early on in the year. Last night however was easily Slowey’s worst performance of the season, giving up three earned in six innings of work. Unlike Slowey, Edwin Jackson has been a bit of a disappointment to Cubs fans. Jackson, who is 0-3 on the season continued to have his fair-share of struggles last night against a below average Miami offense, giving up three runs and four walks in six innings.

Apr 25, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Chicago Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro (13) connects for an RBI single in the first inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

The Cubs started off the game the right way, after David DeJesus scored off of Starlin Castro’s single to center. With the Cubs holding an early lead, the Marlins needed to counter the Cubs offense. Surprisingly, they were able to do so after Edwin Jackson walked Rob Brantly with the bases loaded, scoring Placido Polanco. For the Marlins, scoring in the first inning has been a rarity this season. Not only were they able to start off by scoring in the first, but they were also able to score twice in the second after Juan Pierre and Giancarlo Stanton had RBI hits. Throughout the season it has not been a secret that the offense is historically bad, ranking last in almost every major category. The quick start was just what the Marlins needed in order to put themselves in a position to win a ballgame.

Unfortunately, the true Marlins offense showed up to play after the second inning, as they managed to only get two hits from the fourth to the ninth inning. The inconsistency of the Marlins offense showed last night. Much like the Marlins, the Cubs had their own problems trying to generate hits.

It wasn’t until late when the game started to get exciting. The ninth inning might have been one of the most exciting innings in a Marlins game this year. The Marlins sent out closer Steve Cishek to pitch the ninth inning. Sadly, Cishek continued to struggle, giving up a home-run to Luis Valbuena. The Marlins yet again were under pressure to score. After being able to match the Cubs run in the first inning, the Marlins felt like they would be able to do it again. The team was in a great position to tie up the ball game as well. With one out in the bottom of the ninth, the Marlins had runners on first and second. Placido Polanco stepped up to the plate with hopes of driving in the game tying run. Throughout the season Polanco has arguably been the Marlins best offensive weapon, as he leads the team in batting average, on base percentage and hits. Unfortunately, Polanco was unable to get the job done, after a fly out to center. With one out remaining and two men on, the Marlins had the right man up to bat; Giancarlo Stanton. Although he hasn’t exactly been money this season, Stanton has been able to get his batting average up over the past couple of games. Marlins fans have seen the clutch gene in Stanton before, but last night we were treated to a strikeout to end the game in a 4-3 loss.

Apr 25, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Chicago Cubs second baseman Darwin Barney (15) celebrates with teammates after defeating the Miami Marlins 4-3 at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

The Marlins look to get back in the win column tonight, as they will send Wade LeBlanc to the mound to face off against Scott Feldman. Not only are both pitchers 0-3, but both of them also have ERA’s over 4.

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Apr 12, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins left fielder Juan Pierre (9) reacts from the dugout in a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Marlins Park. The Phillies won 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

When the Marlins decided to trade away Hanley Ramirez, Omar Infante, Gaby Sanchez, and Anibal Sanchez at the trade deadline last season, the reality of yet another re-building process was beginning to set into a lot of peoples mind’s here in South Florida. With these trades being approved, the Marlins had all but given up on the season. Finishing last in the division, many people thought that it couldn’t get any worse and then it happened. On November 19^th, 2012, the Miami Marlins shot their fans and players right in the heart after they traded Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Emilio Bonifacio, Mark Buehrle, and John Buck to the Toronto Blue Jays for Yunel Escobar, Jeff Mathis and prospects.

At the time, the trade was viewed as a complete fire-sale by the Marlins organization. Although it was approved by the MLB, there was speculation on whether or not the league should let the trade be processed or not. Not only were analyst across the league bashing the Marlins for this shameful move, but fans spread out throughout Dade, Broward, and surrounding counties sharing their thoughts and opinions as well. Fans clearly showed their negative thoughts on the situation. In fact, a few fans even decided to protest the Marlins.

As the offseason continued to grow old, the Marlins were still left with nothing on the roster. Two of the biggest free agent signings by the fish were former Marlin Juan Pierre and 37 year old Placido Polanco. Although Polanco is off to a somewhat decent start, signings such as those aren’t going to help a team that is going through a re-building stage improve. Unlike the exciting offseason of two years ago, this past offseason was the complete opposite.

When the season was closely approaching the Marlins were projected to finish at the bottom portion of not only the National League East, but the entire MLB. Unfortunately, those awful predictions seem to be coming true. So far the Marlins have played 19 games and have won only 4 of them. Currently those 4 wins give them the worst record in the big leagues. In the span of these 19 games, the Marlins are currently ranked 30^th in runs, batting average, and slugging percentage. The one category in which they are not in last is on base percentage; they’re ranked 30^th. Much like the offense, the pitching is struggling as well. The Marlins pitching is currently ranked 24^th in ERA, 23 in quality starts, 27^th in WHIP and 27^th in batting average against. With a struggling offense and defense, the Marlins are not only having a tough time earning victories, but also a tough time putting people in the seats.

Mar 20, 2013; Jupiter, FL, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) reacts in the dugout in the fourth inning during a spring training game against the Washington Nationals at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Recently I was at my local Subway. As I was paying, I saw a slip of paper with the Miami Marlins logo on it. As I picked up the voucher, I was in shock because of what I was reading. In a nut-shell the voucher said “Eat at Subway and get a five dollar ticket to a Marlins game.” I was in disbelief. Is it really that bad attendance wise? Well the very next day I went to a Marlins game against the Phillies. My question was quickly answered; yes, it is that bad. When I arrived to my seats, I looked out to a sea of blue. No, it wasn’t everyone where your blue shirt day. The sea of blue I am referring to is the blue seats of the stadium. The emptiness was pathetic. Due to the lack of people in the seats, I was able to move down to the third base line in the lower level.  It has to be discouraging to the players who have to trout out to the field and be able to count the amount of people watching them.

It is obvious that something has to be done here. There shouldn’t be that many empty seats and this team shouldn’t be this bad. I am personally tired of watching this team night in and night out lose ball games by more than five runs. It happens too often. Sooner or later Jeffrey Loria is going to have to do something. Whether it’s firing his stepson David Samson or firing himself and selling this team, something has to happen. Personally I would like to see him fire Samson and himself. For us fans we will extend our arms to whoever the owner would be. At this point, anything is better than what we have. Unfortunately, I don’t see this self-conscious owner selling the team anytime soon. Instead he will continue to trade away quality players and destroy this joke of a franchise.

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Apr 18, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Jose Fernandez throws against the Cincinnati Reds during the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports

Yes, it is hard to really write a game recap for this game. The now 3-13 Marlins welcomed the Cincinnati Reds to town and were hoping to bounce back from yet another series loss to the Washington Nationals. The Miami Marlins, who have yet to claim victory in a series this season, were hoping to start off on the right foot Thursday night. Rookie sensation Jose Fernandez was set to take the mound to take on Tony Cingrani. Fernandez has been nothing but spectacular to start off his promising career, however; last night he learned that not ever outing in the big leagues will come easy.

In Fernandez’s first two starts he only allowed one earned run. Last night he allowed five of them in the first four innings. Heading into the fifth Mike Redmond decided it was time to pull the young pitcher in favor of John Maine. Unfortunately Maine wasn’t much better and the Reds blew the game open. In two innings of work, Maine allowed four hits, six runs, and five walks on 57 pitches. Certainly, this wasn’t the kind of outing the Marlins had expected when they arrived at the stadium.

Apr 18, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) loses the ball hit by Cincinnati Reds Chris Heisey (not pictured) during the fifth inning at Great American Ball Park. The Reds won 11-1. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports

With the pitching clearly struggling it was up to the Marlins offense to get going. Fortunately for them they had Giancarlo (Mike) Stanton back in the line. In his return to the line-up, Stanton went 1-3 with a walk and two strikeouts. Stanton also had his fair share of troubles on the defensive side too, committing two errors. The lone run for the Marlins came off of a home run in the 4^th inning by outfielder Justin Ruggiano. Next to Placido Polanco, Ruggiano has easily been one of the most effective and consistent hitter on the Marlins. Sadly that isn’t exactly a compliment, since Polanco is the only player on the team who is currently hitting over .300.

Unlike the fish, Cincinnati was “red hot” all night. The Reds pitching staff was near perfect last night after allowing a mere six hits and one run. Along with a terrific performance from the pitching staff, the Reds also got hot on offense. The Reds scored a total of eleven runs off of a twelve hit performance.  Todd Frazier, third basemen for the Reds continued his impressive season, going two for three with three runs, two RBI’s and a walk. To the surprise off a lot of people the Reds have had their own problems, however; facing the Marlins might be just what they needed.

Hopefully the Marlins can erase last night’s disaster and get a much needed victory tonight. This season is certainly hard on all of us fans, players, and coaches. A win tonight would be a nice way to start off the weekend. The game will feature a pitching duel between Kevin Slowey and Mat Latos and the first pitch will be thrown at the regular 7:10 EST.

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