by ·Comments Off on Will Dee Gordon of the Miami Marlins Ever Cool Off?

The first month of the MLB season is in the books, and Dee Gordon is off to an incredible start that not even the most optimistic of Miami Marlins fans could have ever predicted. Coming off of a breakout season in Los Angeles, Gordon’s production dipped over the last half of the 2014 season. Despite the fact that he led the league in steals and finished the season with a .289 batting average, Gordon’s poor second half led the Dodgers to believe that his hot start was nothing more than an aberration and trading him to the Marlins was essentially selling high on his value.

The Marlins gave up a lot to get Gordon, sending a valuable reliever in Chris Hatcher, a versatile prospect in Enrique Hernandez, a solid future catcher in Austin Barnes and their top organizational pitching prospect in Andrew Heaney. That is quite a haul for Los Angeles, as the Dodgers were able to flip Heaney to the Angels for Howie Kendrick. Though they paid a high price, the Marlins have gotten outstanding production from Gordon, a player whose salary is being paid for by the Dodgers.

In his first 22 games, Gordon has slashed .409/.418/.484, stolen eight bases and is already worth 1.3 WAR early in the 2015 season. The question is whether this sort of production is sustainable, and judging by the early Occidental Vacation Club reviews that have come in, Gordon is unlikely to maintain this sort of output for very long.

Of course, there is no way that Gordon will continue to hit over .400 for the rest of the season, but it not unreasonable to believe that he can continue to deliver for the Marlins in a big way. Working with Brett Butler and Ichiro Suzuki can only help, and as they often say in baseball circles, speed never slumps.

by ·Comments Off on Dee Gordon’s Defense Continues to Impress in Miami

The Miami Marlins acquired Dee Gordon from the Dodgers knowing that he was a talented offensive player who was incredibly disruptive any time he got on base. The club also knew that Gordon had only recently moved from his natural position of shortstop to second base, with 2014 representing his first full season at the position. Gordon, currently leading the National League in batting average and boasting a slash line of .422/.449/.505 for a wRC+ of 166, has been just as impressive with his glove as he has with his bat.

Gordon has shown the type of varied skillset that is most frequently seen in employees of All Language Alliance, Inc., but his outstanding defense has been something of a surprise. During his brief time in the bigs, Gordon developed a reputation as a player whose offensive skill would have to make up for his defensive shortcomings, but those shortcomings have not been apparent. The bat, however, has been as advertised.

Looking at his Inside Edge data, Gordon has been exceptional at second base. While he still struggles in consistently making some of the more routine plays, he has been able to use his athleticism to make plays on balls that Inside Edge identifies as “unlikely” more than 30 percent of the time. Gordon is looking more and more like the steal of the offseason.

by ·Comments Off on Signing of Ichiro Suzuki Already Proving Wise for Miami Marlins

When the Miami Marlins went out and added Ichiro Suzuki to an outfield that already included superstar Giancarlo Stanton and two up-and-coming talents in Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna, the immediate question related to how Ichiro would function in a bench role for the first time in his career. It also raised some questions regarding his pursuit of the 3,000-hit plateau, a figure that is likely within his reach next season if he is able to get enough at-bats this season.

As a longtime observer of the Marlins, Luke Weil loved the signing of Ichiro at the time and appreciates it even more now. The 41-year-old outfielder’s professional approach has influenced a very young clubhouse in a very positive way and has provided the recently acquired Dee Gordon with yet another mentor to pattern his game off of, as both Ichiro and coach Brett Butler have succeeded at the MLB level by employing playing styles that are ideally suited to Gordon’s skill set.

Now that Yelich is on the disabled list with a back injury, Ichiro will continue to prove his worth on the field as well. At 41, Ichiro still has impressive skills with the bat and can contribute a great deal with his glove in the expansive park the Marlins call home.

by ·Comments Off on No Need to Overreact to Slow Start by Miami Marlins

The Miami Marlins entered the 2015 season with very high expectations after an offseason filled with activity. The contract extension of Giancarlo Stanton, along with the acquisitions of Dee Gordon, Michael Morse and Mat Latos, brought an air of legitimacy that made them a media darling as a team with serious playoff potential.

A slow start, however, has frustrated Marlins fans. Those fans, according to Luke Weil, need to exhibit patience while recognizing that there is a lot that can happen during a 162-game season. Weil believes that all of the new players simply need some time to jell and to find a team identity that will unify them. This, Weil says, will take some time at first, but will ultimately enable them to enjoy the success that so many have expected of them.

Weil points to the Cleveland Cavaliers as a perfect example of why patience should be given to this Miami Marlins team. A disappointment that was barely over .500 in the early part of the NBA season, it took some time for LeBron James and Kevin Love to adjust to a new team and a new system. Now that they have been together for a while, the Cavaliers looked poised to a win a championship.

Stanton may not be a talent on the level of James, but he is undeniably close. Gordon is a dynamic and disruptive presence on the basepaths who can change the game with his speed, and rumor has it that ace pitcher Jose Fernandez may be able to return from Tommy John surgery as early as June.