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EVENTS AD PARTNERS
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1999 Recap: Under new ownership, the Marlins improved 10 games over 1998 and avoided a second straight 100-loss season. Rookie shortstop Alex Gonzalez made the All-Star team and Preston Wilson made a late bid for Rookie of the Year. Matt Mantei developed into a top closer, allowing the Marlins to cash him in for even more prospects. 1999 Highlight: Dual comebacks of Alex Fernandez from shoulder surgery (7-8, 3.38 ERA) and Mike Lowell from cancer (.313-2-9 in 83 at-bats). 1999 Lowlight: Suffered the worst loss in franchise history on the last day of the season, an 18-0 slaughter on Sunday (Oct. 3) at Atlanta. Manager: John Boles (104-133 in two seasons with Florida) Coaches: Jack Maloof (hitting), Rich Dubee (pitching), Rusty Kuntz (first), Fredi Gonzalez (third), Rusty Kuntz, Tony Taylor (infield), Joe Breeden (bench) Camp Site: Space Coast Stadium, Viera, Fla. Reporting Dates: Pitchers and catchers on Feb. 19; full squad on Feb. 23 Additions RHP Dan Miceli, OF Brant Brown, RHP Ricky Bones Subtractions: RHP Brian Meadows, OF Bruce Aven, OF Todd Dunwoody, 3B Kevin Orie, RHP Dennis Springer, RHP Rafael Medina Spring Cleaning: The fruits of the 1997-98 fire sale are tangible, but not quite ripe for the 2000. In the meantime, the Fish need to figure out if outfielder Mark Kotsay and first baseman Derek Lee are everyday major league players. Andre Dawson, the newly hired assistant to the general manager, will be a welcome addition to Hall of Fame inductee Tony Perez as special instructors. Cliff Floyd returned from a variety of injuries and gave Marlins fans reasons for hope in 2000 by hitting .343 in September. Luis Castillo (shoulder) and shortstop Alex Gonzalez (broken arm) are supposedly back to full strength. The pitching staff shapes up as Fernandez followed by RHP Ryan Dempster, RHP Vladimir Nunez. The back of the rotation will be an interesting battle among LHP Jesus Sanchez and future aces RHP A.J. Burnett and RHP Brad Penny. The Marlins biggest challenge in 2000 is to attract a fan base. The attendance at Pro Player stadium has dropped dramatically over the past two seasons, following the 1997 World Series win. Owner John Henry is looking to build a new downtown stadium, but needs fan support to get it done. The team must also find some consistency in the pitching rotation, and the return of Alex Fernandez to full-time duty could help the team in that department. Spring training will be a time when Manager John Boles can see who can help this team reach its goal of being respectable once again, or Boles may just be watching them go through the paces of another long season. Key Acquisition: Rule 5 draftee Jared Camp has a chance to make a difference in the bullpen for the Marlins, and with a fastball clocked at 97 miles per hour, could become the closer of the future (forgive me Braden Looper). Camp is starting with his third organization but will add needed depth to a chronically overworked bullpen. The Future is Now: First baseman Derek Lee lost his job after hitting just .190 through the seasons first two months, and his three home runs did little to offset the loss of Cliff Floyd to injury. Lee played well in the minors, and came back in September to hit .278 over the last month. But Lee must step up early, or be replaced by either Brant Brown or Kevin Millar. Lee was once a can't-miss prospect, brought to Florida in the deal that sent Kevin Bown to San Diego, but even at the age of 24, he must produce, or see himself headed elsewhere. Pivotal Player: Someone has to teach the bevy of young pitchers how to win, and Alex Fernandez is the man for the job. Fernandez was kept to a strict pitch limit last season, which caused a bit of tension between himself and John Boles. Fernandez has to be a team player, and come back strong as a role model. Opportunity Knocks: The Marlins have cleared the decks to give Mike Lowell the third base job. Lowell has the talent to succeed, but his health must hold up. It took Lowell half of the 1999 season to get his strength back following cancer treatment. Lowell slugged 10 of his 12 homers after the All-Star break and hit .275 with five HR in September. The Fish have big plans for Lowell, who could live up to the hot corner standard set in the NL East by Chipper Jones and Scott Rolen. Prospects to Watch: RHP A.J. Burnett, RHP Josh Beckett, RHP Amaury Garcia, RHP Jason Grilli, SS/2B Pablo Ozuna, SS/2B RHP Brad Penny, OF Julio Ramirez, LHP Michael Tejera
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