Marlin Maniac RTD 2/22: Marlins Spring Training Kickoff

Morning Marlin Maniacs. Just a few short days until actual games get underway this vernal season for the Miami Marlins against the mighty Redbirds of St. Louis.

We might not be in the same class as the Cardinals, but we can certainly play them many, many times while taking turns being the home team at Roger Dean Stadium.

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• Miami Marlins keep missing out on stars

Plenty to get through though now that more than just your pitchers and catchers have reported. Early roster buzz and some other scattered baseball chatter will get the ball rolling on this final installment before we get the chance to overanalyze early season showings.

Once a week, the staff here at Marlin Maniac sits down to pull some questions out of a hat that concern everyone’s favorite baseball team.  The answers?  While those get pulled from somewhere else, we list them below for your enjoyment

Avid readers are fully encouraged to submit questions they’d like to see the staff discuss via Twitter, Facebook, or in the comments.  They are also encouraged to come up with a better title than Miami Marlins RTD.  But until that day of deliverance, let’s get to the Round Table Discussion.

How Do You Feel About The Decision To Go With A Four Man Bench? 

Sean Millerick: It’s certainly interesting, and a borderline video game move. It could be brilliant though, if the club stays healthy. The fourth outfielder is a future first ballot Hall of Famer, and three of the four are essentially interchangeable in terms of positioning. Derek Dietrich and Miguel Rojas can play multiple positions, and if J.T. Realmuto was able to play shortstop once upon a time, he can play first now. But…this team never stays healthy. And as such, I’d of felt a lot better paying Chris Carter, Mark Reynolds, or even Chase Utley to hang around.

David Marcillo: With Don Mattingly running/ruining the bullpen, having an extra arm out there seems more important than having an extra bat on the bench. Derek Dietrich and Miguel Rojas can play all over the infield and Ichiro can play all over the outfield. While it may make for some starting pitchers pinch hitting or pinch running in extra inning games, I like the decision, especially in the beginning of the season. It’s not something that is likely to last, as guys will get just-hurt-enough-to-miss-a-few-games-but-not-go-on-the-DL sooner or later, and that will create a three-man bench for a few days, perhaps prompting a position player to be called up in exchange for an expendable bullpen arm.

Seth Moed: Overall, this move does seem to make sense at the moment considering the versatility of those four bench players. With this strategy, the Marlins are able to maintain the depth of their bullpen which needs to continue to be a strength for this team deep into this season in order to obtain a playoff berth. The strong potential of injury will of course make this strategy a risk, but the Marlins will have an easier time finding an extra bat rather than a quality reliever if they need one on the fly down the road.

Eric Quinones: Ideally I’d like to see at least five guys on the bench in case there’s an extra inning game or in the event of double switches throughout the game.  I’d like to see a solid right handed bat come off the bench as well and right now the Fish don’t have that option because Ichiro and Dietrich are both very good left handed hitters. A.J. Ellis and Miguel Rojas are right handed hitters but are known more for their defensive play. Entering Spring Training the Marlins are lacking a solid right handed bat who can pinch hit late in games against the opposing team’s best left handed pitcher. This is an issue that Donnie Baseball needs to find a solution to. 

Are There Any Available Free Agents You’d Like To See The Marlins Add? 

Sean Millerick: Justin Morneau springs most readily to mind. Cheap, veteran guy, with a high ceiling and a floor that would blow the doors off of what Chris Johnson gave us last year opposite Justin Bour. No reason not to try him out, and part of me suspects the Marlins will be joining many other teams in following Team Canada very closely in the WBC.

David Marcillo: Not really, there are a few names that are intriguing, such as Billy Butler, Justin Morneau, Luke Hochevar, and Doug Fister, but none of them would really fit with the current roster without demoting someone else that deserves to be on it as well. I think the Marlins are fine as they are in terms of free agent signings, apart from maybe a depth move or two for players that will start the season in Triple-A (as Baby Cakes). 

Seth Moed: I wouldn’t expect the Marlins to add a sixth starting pitcher, but I’m keeping my eye on a few veteran starters that remain available that hopefully the team is also monitoring as insurance. There’s a highly unlikely chance all five guys in the rotation stay healthy/don’t become a disaster at some point this season – that could come sooner rather than later. Starters like Tim Lincecum and Jared Weaver remain available, looking for another chance with a team willing to take one on them.

Eric Quinones: The player I wanted the team to add is no longer available because he signed with the Yankees. Chris Carter would’ve been a nice fit with the Marlins. He could’ve started at first base against left handed pitchers and would’ve also given the team a powerful right handed bat off of the bench. He was tied for the National League lead in homeruns last season with 41. Other than that I think the Marlins are entering Spring Training with a very solid team, and a team that has playoff potential. 

Favorite Spring Training Memory That You Have? 

Sean Millerick: Well, easy answer would be catching a ball from a player as the Marlins ran off the field after the inning. Still hasn’t happened for me, foul ball or otherwise, across well over a hundred regular and postseason chances. But getting Miguel Cabrera’s autograph in 2004, albeit faintly and on a program, ranks pretty high for me on the Spring memory scale.

David Marcillo: I went to a Spring Training game on a weekday a looooong time ago when I still lived in Miami. Took a day off work and drove up to Jupiter to watch the Marlins and the Cardinals. Brian Moehler was starting and pitched incredibly well. I had no idea who Brian Moehler was, but I was far enough away to not be able to see facial details, so I thought, “hey, this kid is going to be great” Got home and looked up this “Brian Moehler kid” only to realize he was a veteran 33-year-old journeyman pitcher. He made the team though, and pitched decently that season.

Seth Moed: I went to a ton of Marlins regular season games growing up in South Florida as a kid, but only went to one Spring Training game when I was older – nothing too memorable happened. I’ve always loved the feel of Spring Training though, when your expectations are at their highest point. You never know in baseball, when truly any team has a chance to start the season hot.

Eric Quinones:  My favorite Spring Training moments are going to Roger Dean stadium with my dad, my brother, and a friend to eat some hotdogs and drink adult beverages while watching some baseball. I would love to eventually get an autograph from Giancarlo Stanton and Christian Yelich, but just being able to watch some baseball with some of my family members is always a great time for me. 

Who Would You Want To See Naming Rights Go To For Marlins Park?

Sean Millerick: Bacardi or Carnival always made sense to me back when I used to dream regularly of a big semi-local company charging to the rescue to deliver the franchise to big-budget glory. Naming rights are different from ownership though, although I suspect sale talks could be delaying the unveiling. Years later, with a new stadium built, I have to say Marlins Park has grown on me. My fingers are crossed that stays part of the title, with Marlins Park being the home of Whoever Pays A Lot Field.  

David Marcillo: I don’t really care too much about naming rights, I just don’t want it to go to something that’s going to be annoying or embarrassing to say. The Marlins are already an embarrassing enough team sometimes, the last thing we need as fans is to root for a team playing in the “Hanes Harbor” or “Burger King Bowl”.

Seth Moed:  Is Pro Player still around as a company? If so, I’d like that as the new name since I still call the now “Hard Rock Stadium” Pro Player all the time. It would be nice to make that reference and still be accurate about a sports venue in Miami.

Eric Quinones: I don’t care much of who gets naming rights for Marlins Park. I just hope it’s a decent name and nothing embarrassing. 

Next: Resurrection or Rebuild If Team Sells?

And on that inspiring note, we’ll close the discussion. Find some time to follow the Fish this weekend, and we’ll have the answers to another batch of questions next week.