The Florida Marlins worked out a trade with the Washington Nationals on Monday as they sent Scott Olsen and Josh Willingham up north to Washington D.C. In return, the Marlins will be getting three young players as they look to add even more youth to their roster.

The Marlins will be getting second baseman Emilio Bonifacio and two minor leaguers: second baseman Jake Smolinski and right-hander P.J. Dean in the five player trade.

I know a lot of Marlins fans are thinking why did the Marlins make this trade? Well both Willingham and Olsen are entering their first year of salary arbitration. Basically it is a paycut on the team salary.

What do you think of the trade Marlins fans?

The Florida Marlins rallied and scored three runs in the ninth inning to tie the game but then allowed a run in th bottom of the innings and the San Francisco Giants beat them 6-5. That is a very tough way to lose a game but I will give the offense credit for coming back in the final inning and scoring three runs to tie the game.

All five of the Marlins runs came via the home run ball. Jeremy Hermida had a two run blast in the fourth inning to put the Marlins on the scoreboard. Pitch-hitter John Baker then hammered a three run shot in the top of the ninth inning to tie the game. it was too bad the Marlins only scored from the home run ball and they weren’t able to score runs any other way.

Matt Lindstrom took the loss as he gave up a rbi sac fly to Bengie Molina in the bottom of the ninth inning. Scott Olsen had started the game for the fish and pitched six innings. Olsen gave up nine hits and four runs as he got the no decision. Joe Nelson gave up two hits and one run while Logan Kensing pitched a scoreless inning in the eighth.

The Marlns and Giants will play once again on Thursday afternoon as they play the rubber game of the three game series. The Marlins could really use a win as they are five games back in the division.

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The Florida Marlins once again lost to the visiting St. Lous Cardinals. On Thursday it was a 3-0 loss as Todd Wellemeyer shut down the Marlins offense and limited them to only four hits on the night. You can’t beat a team with only four hits in most cases, and that was the case for the Fish on Thursday night.

Scott Olsen tossed seven innings and gave up ten hits and all three runs to take the loss. Olsen struckout six batters but also gave up one two run home run. Olsen had problems with Ryan Ludwick who knocked in all three Cardinals runs. Logan Kensing threw the final two innings of the game and held the Cardinals to the three runs so he did a good job.

Luis Gonzalez, Jorge Cantu, Wes Helms, and Dan Uggla all had one hit at the plate but that was it for the entire team. Talk about struggling at the plate against a pitcher that you should be able to score atleast a couple of runs off each time out there. Hopefully the bats come around this weekend when the fish take on the red hot Chicago Cubs.

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The Marlins lost to the Mets 4-1 on Tuesday night.  The Marlins, who are very much in the thick of the NL East race, now fall two games behind the first place Mets. 

Starter Scott Olsen gave up three straight doubles to the first three Mets hitters in the first inning, but only one run would score, Jose Reyes was thrown at at third trying to stretch his double into a triple, Nick Evans hit a double and scored on David Wright’s double.  But, Olsen would settle in and retire Carlos Delgado and Carlos Beltran only allowing one run.   In 5 2/3 innings of work, Olsen allowed just two runs on five hits, walked two, and struck out five.  He left the game with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the fifth inning, turing the ball over to Matt Lindstrom.  Lindstrom got Damion Easley to pop up to end the Mets threat.  However, Renyel Pinto entered the game in the top of the eighth, he walked the lead off man and then gave up a two run homer to Carlos Delgado. 

The Marlins had a total of six hits they were only able to score one run.  As a team, they left nine guys on base.  The Marlins scored their lone run in the bottom of the first.  With two out, Jorge Cantu doubled to left and he would score on a double by Josh Willingham.  The Marlins had a chances to score but couldn’t get the big hit.  In the fifth inning with one out Scott Olsen singled to center field, Olsen would move to second on a single by Hanley Ramirez but, Jeremey Hermida hit into a double play to end the inning; that is just one example of what happend; in the sixth and seventh the Marlins also left runners in scoring position. 

Starters for Wednesday Josh Johnson with a 3.71 era and Mike Pelfrey 9-6 with a 3.67 era.  Game time is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. 

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The Florida Marlins and Chicago Cubs kicked off a four game series on Thursday night and the Marlins were doubled up on the scoreboard.  The Cubs defeated the fish by the score of 6-3.  The Marlins sure had their chances in the 8th and 9th innings but were only able to push across one run.

Scott Olsen took the loss for the Marlins and is now 6-5 on the year.  Olsen gave up six runs on seven hits in the game.  Olsen ran into trouble in the 5th inning when the Cubs scored four runs while loading the bases.  Olsen gave up solo home runs to Ronny Cedeno and Henry Blanco in the game as well.

Matt Lindstrom and Joe Nelson held the Cubs down in the 7th and 8th innings as they pitched good out of the bullpen.

Hanley Ramirez got the Marlins on the scoreboard in the 3rd inning when he took Carlos Zambrano deep for a two run home run.  At that point in the game the Marlins were ahead 2-0 however they wouldn’t score again until the 8th inning when Luis Gonzalez had a rbi sac fly to right field and Alfredo Amezaga scored.  The Marlins had the bases loaded late in the game but they were unable to score any runs.  The offense just coudln’t come up with the big hit when they needed it.

Now they will turn right back around and face the Cubs again on Friday afternoon.  Josh Johnson wil face off against Ryan Dempster.  This could be a tough game for the fish as Dempster throws the ball pretty good at Wrigley Field.  Marlins Baseball Blog

The Florida Marlins defeated the Seattle Mariners 8-3 Wednesday night, taking two out of three games against the AL West club. As they have done all season long, the Marlins used the long ball to power the team to victory, getting two run HRs from Mike Jacobs, his 17th, and Dan Uggla, his 21st. Rookie right hander Ryan Tucker picked up the win, his second in three starts. The win, combined  with a Philadelphia Phillies  loss to the Boston Red Sox, pulled The Fish to within two games of the Eastern Division lead.

Tucker gave the Marlins a solid six inning start, giving up two earned runs on seven hits, striking out four. He featured a lively fastball in the mid nineties, and had good command. He only walked two batters, which was very encouraging indeed, considering the control problems which have periodically plagued Marlins pitchers this year. Suddenly the Marlins’ pitching staff seems to be jelling into a formidable, if still a bit inconsistent, unit. The team that started the season with more question marks than answers, is now starting to evolve into one of the most promising young pitching staffs in the league. Tonight’s performance by Tucker follows another impressive start by Andrew Miller on Monday, giving the Marlins a potent lefty-righty rookie punch. Both youngsters feature electric arms that can bring the heat at 96 mph, accompanied by good breaking pitches. The talent is obvious; the only question was whether they can consistently show the command of the strike zone needed to win games in the major leagues. In addition to these two phenoms, the starting staff has gotten good performances from the “old men” of the staff, Scott Olsen, 24, and Ricky Nolasco, 25, who has emerged surprisingly as the team’s stopper this year. If this young staff continues to perform at this level, the Marlins have to be considered favorites to win the Eastern Division. Admittedly that’s a big “if” because the rookies are still learning how to pitch at the major league level, but the talent is there, and that talent, combined with a Marlins offense that bludgeons the opposition nightly under a  barrage of home runs, could carry this team to victory down the stretch. In baseball, it all begins and ends with pitching, and this young pitching staff is starting to come around. They will be getting a boost soon with the return of Josh Johnson and maybe Anibal Sanchez as well, so the prospects certainly are bright.

In addition to the good start from Tucker and the almost routine long ball display by the offense, the Marlins’ defense played an error free game, and the bullpen closed it out, but not before closer Kevin Gregg got everyone nervous again in the ninth inning. If the Marlins are to contend down the stretch, it is going to take more than just home runs and good performances by the starting pitchers. They are going to have to have more games with a big fat “0″ under the “E” on the scoreboard, and Gregg and the rest of the bullpen are going to have to tighten up their act as well. The Marlins slugging has enabled them to mostly overcome their suspect fielding this year, and the bullpen has been wildly inconsistent. Gregg in particular has been a 9th inning cardiac arrest in progress; even when he does manage to get the save he does so the hard way, walking batters, giving up hits, and in general making Marlins fans sweat every last out. Memo to Kevin: a one two three ninth inning is ok, you know. Every game does NOT need a dramatic ending.

Anyway, two out of three from Seattle is very good, and now The Fish are off to Oakland for three games starting Friday.

It seems like our starting rotation is finally growing out of its growing pains as Scott Olsen, Ricky Nolasco, and Andrew Miller are beginning to pile up an impressive string of starts.

After the Marlins’ 6-1 victory over the lowly Mariners, Miller improved to 5-5 with an ERA below 5.00 for the first time this season.  At the end of April, Miller’s ERA was 9.12.  But May and June have both seen sub-4.00 work from the young lefty.  It certainly seems to be a better performance than former fan favorite Dontrelle Willis who is struggling in Florida (Lakeland, FL).

Meanwhile, earlier in the day Ricky Nolasco was name NL co-player of the week after going 2-0 with 1.23 ERA and 15 strikeouts.

Scott Olsen has been the staff ace all year long, despite only 4 wins.  His 3.27  ERA is by far and away the best on the staff.  It is important to note that Mark Hendrickson’s 7 wins are greatly appreciated, but his late May and June performances deny him from being a part of the Marlins’ Big Three.  (Also, it wouldn’t be mathematically sound.)

With a record of 38 and 32, the Marlins remain striking distance away from the Philadelphia Phillies at 3 games back.  If the back end of the rotation, Hendrickson and rookie Ryan Tucker, follows the Big Three’s lead, there would be no reason the Fish couldn’t catch the Phillies.

I’m not going to do the math, but Jamie Moyer probably has more Major League experience than the entire Marlins’ pitching staff combined.  He also has the best record of any pitcher in Major League history.  Well, I suppose that’s easy considering he began pitching before baseball statistics were kept.

Yes, this old man made the young Fish look silly tonight during the Phillies’ 3-0 win.  It was a waste of a stellar effort by Scott Olsen, who pitch six scoreless innings before letting two score on a wild pitch and an errant throw by Matt Treanor.  If it weren’t for that doubly bad play, Scott “Don’t Tase Me Bro” Olsen might have gone neck-and-neck with Moyer until the end.

But, as we all know, the Marlins enjoy having the worst defense (statistically) in the Major Leagues.  They like it because it keeps games interesting.  After tonight’s game, Fredi Gonzalez said, “it’s fun to expect the unexpected.  Perfect defense is like a mundane 9-to-5 job.”

In all seriousness, with Jacques Jones  designated for assignment, the Marlins can no longer blame a voodoo-like bad luck curse.  It’s an even playing field (unless we’re playing in Houston, right?).  The Fish need to improve their defense if they want to remain in contention.

Meanwhile, the Marlins’ scouts need to 1) get fired, or 2) figure out Jamie Moyer.  He is making too many of his fellow AARP members in Florida jealous and needs to come back down to reality.  45-year-old people don’t nearly throw no-hitters, they eat Early Bird specials and slow down traffic.

The Florida Marlins won 6-1 over the Washington Nationals on Sunday putting the Marlins as 11-7 for the year leading the National League East.  With a couple of big hits and with runs starting in the bottom of the first, the Marlins were ready to get another win at home.

Scott Olsen started off the night for the Marlins pitching seven innings and giving
up only three hits and one run.  With the win Olsen’s record is now 3-0 on the season.  He was relieved by Justin Miller, Taylor Tankersley, and Kevin Gregg to finish off the Nationals for
the night.

It was a night of big hits with Hanley Ramirez hitting two home runs putting him at five for the season and picking up his 14th RBI.  Matt Treanor, Jorge Cantu, Dan Uggla, and Cody Ross all had doubles tonight as well. 

The Marlins are done with the Nationals and are now going on the road for a 7 game road trip starting off in Pittsburgh against the Pirates.

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