A Look At The Florida Marlins
In Major League Baseball, teams can qualify for playoff play even if they do not win their division. When a team does this, they are called a wildcard team. They have a disadvantage in that they are never given home field advantage during any of the playoff series. The Florida Marlins have been wildcards on two separate occasions and both times walked away with championships. This is not an easy thing to do and therefore the Marlins are a team worth talking about. Here we will talk about their history.
In 1993 Florida was awarded an expansion team. They play in Miami. Since the beginning, they have played their home games at Sun Life Stadium (a stadium that has had several name changes, including Dolphin Stadium.) Beginning in 2012, the club will have a new home: a new park where the Orange Bowl used to be.
The 1993-1996 seasons were not exactly kind to “the Fish”. Starting in 1993 the team finished last in the division, dropping 98 games. Interestingly though, over the course of the next three seasons the team progressively climbed the standings. They went from sixth to fifth to fourth to third. 1996 saw the team fall just two games below . 500. So it was no surprise that Marlin fans became enthusiastic about the team’s steady improvement and future prospects.
From 1993 to 1996 things were bleak for the franchise. They finished their debut season in last place, losing 98 games. It is worth noting, though, that over the next few years, they got progressively better. They crept to 5th, then 4th, then 3rd. By 1996 they ended up only two games below . 500. This gave fans good reason to be hopeful about their team.
The Marlin team came into the series as the underdog. The Indians were coming off an impressive playoff win against the Yankees. Incredibly, after six games the Series was tied three games all. In the decisive seventh game, the Marlins completed their miracle season by edging out Cleveland 3-2 in eleven innings. That seventh game was high drama. It looked like it was going the Indians’ way, but the Marlins tied the game in the bottom of the ninth and won it in the eleventh.
Looking ahead to 2003, we see them again coming in second to Atlanta. Again they were the wildcard. And again, they defeated the Giants in the first round. This time, they would be facing the Chicago Cubs in round 2. It did not look good for Florida, as they were trailing in the eighth inning of the sixth, and possibly last, game of the series. In a mind blowing turn of events, a Cub fan interfered with a Cub player who was attempting to make a catch for the third out. This breathed new life into the Marlin team, who went on to win that game and the next.
If the Marlin team was the underdogs in 1997, they were given no chance to win the series in 2003. The New York Yankees were prohibitive favorites. After an emotionally charged comeback victory over their arch rivals the Red Sox to win the AL pennant, the Yankees came out flat. The young pitching talent of Florida took control, and the Series went to Florida 4-2.
Lately the Florida Marlins have been finishing near the middle of the standings. The team’s payroll has been consistently one of the lowest of the league, which has contributed in no small measure to their present results.
Bobbie Barton is a fitness trainer She likes SportsFanTreasures.com and recommends you check out their info on Washington Nationals Watch and San Francisco Giants Watch