It turns out that the Miami Marlins approach Opening Day worth more than ever, according to the financial magazine Forbes. The magazine released their annual estimates on the value of MLB franchises on Wednesday. They valued the Marlins at $520 million. That is a 16 percent increase from last season. However, Forbes estimates that the team lost over $7 million dollars.

Read more about whether the Marlins ownership has a legitimate case for their fire sale in November on Fishstripes, as Michael Jong examines the findings from the Forbes magazine report.

- 2013 Miami Marlins Season Preview: Optimize the Marlins lineup-Fishstripes

Lead writer Michael uses The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball to optimize the Miami Marlins lineup. The results of his optimization lead to an unorthodox leadoff hitter for the Marlins.

-New Orleans Zephyrs-Miami Marlins game provides chance for fans to see major league team-The Times-Picayune 

The Miami Marlins will take on Triple-A affiliate New Orleans Zephyrs on Saturday afternoon as their final prep for Opening Day. It will be a great fans for New Orleans fans as this will be their first opporunity to host an MLB team since 1999, when the Houston Astros came in to play the Zephyrs.

-Marlins wrap up Grapefruit League play with loss-Marlins.com

March 28, 2013; Jupiter, FL, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Justin Nicolino (34) delivers to the St. Louis Cardinals during the spring training game at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Barr-USA TODAY Sports

Justin Nicolino pitched for the Marlins for the first time this spring and delivered a great start for the Fish. He scattered six hits and a walk in his five-inning start, while striking out three. Unfortunately, the Cards scored one run off him in the first. That turned out to be the lone run in the game.

-Miami Marlins might plug roster holes with trades- Bradenton Herald

Although the Marlins roster is set for the most part, there are still a few holes the team would like to fill. The internal options for some of those positions are not exactly what the team is looking for. The team could look to make some trades to fill these voids.

-Miami Marlins: World Series hero Edgar Renteria retires- Sun Sentinel

Edgar Renteria has not played in the major leagues since 2011, but was still holding out hope that the right team would come calling. He decided last week that he no longer could play the game and decided to call it quits. Renteria will always be remembered in Miami for bring the city it’s first baseball championship.

Mar 10, 2012; Jupiter, FL. USA; Miami Marlins second baseman Donovan Solano (73) prepares to tag out St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Tyler Greene (27) on a stolen base attempt at Roger Dean Stadium. The Marlins defeated the Cardinals 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-US PRESSWIRE

Larry Beinfest has been a busy man.  In the last couple of days, he’s been acting like a travel agent, sending plane tickets to Chris Coghlan (again) and Donovan Solano. While he was at it, he put a red tag in Gaby Sanchez’s locker, along with a Greyhound bus schedule. However, Gaby probably has a return ticket via first-class air in the near future. What do these moves mean for the Marlins?  What are the choices and opportunities for the Marlins as the trade deadline looms?

By sending Gaby down, the Fish lost one of the five non-pitchers on the 25-man roster hitting below the Mendoza Line. That leaves John Buck, Bryan Peterson, Chris Coghlan, and Donnie Murphy as the holders of less-than-distinguished sub-.200 averages. While it’s only likely to be for a few games, the player at the top of the hitting heap, Omar Infante (.326), has a few days off to go home to Venezuela to spend some time with his family on the passing of his grandfather.

Against expectations and against probability, the Marlins continue to play well, taking two of three from the Indians during interleague play. Outstanding pitching is still keeping the press conferences happy.

So, the upshot over the weekend is that Infante and his bat are gone for a few days. Cogs and his yo-yo performance are back up, along with Donovan Solano. Gaby Sanchez is headed to New Orleans to work the kinks out of his swing. Finally, Emilio Bonifacio landed on the DL following a thumb sprain picked up on a dive back to the bag.

Chris Coghlan is a known quantity at the big-league level, and he’s up to plug a hole in the outfield.  With a slash line of 105/128/132, he’s not exactly a hot prospect, but he brings plenty of big-league experience to the table, at least until Bonifacio’s thumb heals. Although he was Rookie of the Year in 2009, Coghlan’s sophomore slump is getting a little long in the tooth. The Marlins do have a potential 5-tool superstar playing in Jupiter right now.  If 20-year-old Christian Yelich continues to perform the way he has been, we might see him move up to AAA to get some innings in anticipation of a big-league callup to play left field.

Logan Morrison has moved to first with the designation of Gaby to the Zephyrs. First base is Morrison’s primary position, having spent his minor-league career at position three.  However, all is not roses, as he still struggles to get to 100% with his knee.  Greg Dobbs will rotate in when LoMo takes a day off.

Columbian native Donovan Solano will most likely be filling in for Omar Infante during his absence. Solano was the last player cut from the 25-man roster this spring, and was manager Ozzie Guillen’s toughest cut to make.  He hasn’t kept up with his .429 average from this spring, but he’s a singles hitter, which is what the Marlins need more than anything right now.

John Buck is another player with one foot on a banana peel. His better-than-OK defensive skills are keeping him up right now, but his near-total lack of offense is making Brett Hayes look better and better. It’s tough to think about getting rid of a catcher who can gun down runners at second from his knees, but the Marlins need base hits and run support, and they need it soon.

The season just passed the first quarter mark, and the trade deadline is around ten weeks away. There are some big holes in the Marlins’ bats right now, so Beinfest is probably studying slash lines instead of ERAs and win/loss/save stats. Fortunately, the Marlins are in high cotton with its pitching staff. So…who might be available that can really stroke the ball?  I think that with the clubhouse meltdown that appears to be continuing in Boston, Kevin Youkilis just might get hung out as trade bait. From our side of the table, John Buck might be an option, as might Scott Cousins or Donnie Murphy. The Bosox really wanted Giancarlo Stanton last year, but my guess is that the sun would rise in the west before that happens. Other players that might be interesting are Toronto’s Adam Lind, ex-Red Edgar Renteria, if he can be coaxed out of retirement, and (though it’s a stretch) Torii Hunter, depending on how he works out his family issues with the Angels.

May 6, 2012; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis (20) watches the game from the dugout during the fifth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-US PRESSWIRE

• Catcher: Ivan Rodriguez
• First Base: Derrick Lee
• Second Base: Luis Castillo
• Short Stop: Edgar Renteria
• Third Base: Mike Lowell
• Left Field: Miguel Cabrera
• Center Field: Juan Pierre
• Right Field: Gary Sheffield
• Designated Hitter: Jeff Conine

Then two weeks ago, we completed the poll for the first two starters on this team. Here are they as they stand now:

1. Josh Beckett
2. Kevin Brown

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Aug 28, 2009; Miami, FL, USA; A Florida Marlins logo is seen near the on deck circle before a game between the San Diego Padres and the Florida Marlins at Land Shark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

• Catcher: Ivan Rodriguez
• First Base: Derrick Lee
• Second Base: Luis Castillo
• Short Stop: Edgar Renteria
• Third Base: Mike Lowell
• Left Field: Miguel Cabrera
• Center Field: Juan Pierre
• Right Field: Gary Sheffield
• Designated Hitter: Jeff Conine

Here is then how the optimized starting lineup would look:

1. Luis Castillo
2. Derrick Lee
3. Ivan Rodriguez
4. Mike Lowell
5. Gary Sheffield
6. Juan Pierre
7. Miguel Cabrera
8. Edgar Renteria
9. Pitcher/Jeff Conine

(more…)

• Catcher: Ivan Rodriguez
• First Base: Derrick Lee
• Second Base: Luis Castillo
• Short Stop: Edgar Renteria
• Third Base: Mike Lowell
• Left Field: Miguel Cabrera
• Center Field: Juan Pierre
• Right Field: Gary Sheffield
• Designated Hitter: Jeff Conine

Here is then how the optimized starting lineup would look:

1. Luis Castillo
2. Derrick Lee
3. Ivan Rodriguez
4. Mike Lowell
5. Gary Sheffield
6. Juan Pierre
7. Miguel Cabrera
8. Edgar Renteria
9. Pitcher/Jeff Conine

(more…)