Who Are Those Guys?

The best minor-league team in the majors faces Pittsburgh. @cal body 1 no indent:It’s easy to be cynical about the Florida Marlins. They’re owned by a smarmy art dealer who destroyed baseball in Montreal, and a not-as-smarmy yet colossally douchebaggy team president. They trade away their star players (Dontrelle Willis, Miguel Cabrera) every season and then whine incessantly that no one will give them a stadium.

But forget the lousy leadership for a second and remember that the Marlins still field a hell of a team. Hanley Ramirez is arguably the best shortstop in baseball, while Dan Uggla, Jeremy Hermida, Mike Jacobs, and Josh Willingham are each capable of hitting 25 home runs a season. In the end, it’s all about the players. So while the jagoff ownership thanks you for your patronage by handing you a cheap, crappy wall calendar tonight (first 10,000 fans? There’s gonna be a lot of leftovers!), just remember to look out for those five players. Enjoy them while you can, before the Marlins trade them away for more prospects. Tonight they take on the Pittsburgh Pirates; the first pitch is at 7:10 at Dolphin Stadium.
Fri., April 4, 7:10 p.m., 2008