April 16, 2000
Florida Marlins 6, Chicago Cubs 5
CHICAGO (AP) - Cliff Floyd hit a home run that barely curved around the right-field foul pole in the 10th inning Sunday, giving the Florida Marlins a 6-5 win over the Chicago Cubs. The Marlins trailed 5-0 early before coming back. With one out in the 10th, Floyd hit a 2-1 pitch from Ruben Quevado (0-1) for a home run that brought an argument from the Cubs. First basemen Mark Grace and manager Don Baylor claimed the ball was foul. But first base umpire Mark Hirschbeck ruled it fair, and replays appeared to show he was correct. Dan Miceli (2-0) picked up the win with 1 2/3 innings of relief and Antonio Alfonseca pitched the 10th for his fourth save. Trailing 5-0 against Jon Lieber, the Marlins batted around in the fourth to tie it.
April 15, 2000
Chicago Cubs 4, Florida Marlins 2
CHICAGO (AP) - Rookie Scott Downs allowed four hits in seven innings for his first major league win as the Chicago Cubs took advantage of two Florida errors to beat the Marlins 4-2 Saturday. Mark Grace hit a sacrifice fly and two runs scored on miscues in a three-run first as the Cubs won for the fourth time in five games. Downs (1-0), called up from Double-A last Sunday, gave up two runs and struck out six. Ryan Dempster (1-2) gave up four runs -- two earned -- and four hits in 6 2/3 innings. He struck out nine, including the last two batters in the first, part of a stretch in which Dempster retired 19 in a row. The Cubs used two Marlins errors to open a 3-1 lead in the first. Kevin Millar led off the fifth with a homer to make it 3-2.
April 14, 2000
Florida Marlins 9, Chicago Cubs 4
CHICAGO (AP) - Danny Bautista hit a three-run homer and Alex Gonzalez added a two-run shot to lift the Florida Marlins to a 9-4 victory Friday over the Chicago Cubs. Sammy Sosa hit a solo homer for the Cubs. Alex Fernandez (2-1) gave up four runs, eight hits and two walks over seven innings. He struck out three. Andrew Lorraine (1-1) gave up five runs and five hits in 5 2/3 innings. Lorraine struck out a career-high eight batters. After Gonzalez gave the Marlins a 2-0 lead in the first inning with his first homer of the year, Lorraine retired 17 of the next 19 batters he faced. Mark Grace tied the game at 2 with a two-run double in the bottom of the first and he scored one out later on Damon Buford's single. Sosa hit his third homer with two outs in the fifth. The Marlins rallied for four runs with two outs in the sixth.
Marlins outright catcher Martinez
CHICAGO (AP) - The Florida Marlins sent catcher Sandy Martinez to
Triple-A Calgary of Friday. Martinez, 27, a non-roster invitee
this spring, was batting .143 in seven games and had struck out
in his last six at-bats. He became expendable when the Marlins
acquired catcher Paul Bako on April 11 from Houston. Martinez
batted .167 in 17 games for the Chicago Cubs last season and .232
in 36 games for Triple-A Iowa. He was behind the plate for Cubs
rookie Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout game on May 6, 1998.
April 13, 2000
Milwaukee Brewers 4, Florida Marlins 0
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Jason Bere allowed three hits and struck out nine in seven innings to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to a 4-0 victory over the Florida Marlins on Thursday night. Bere (2-0) allowed two singles in the second inning, escaping a bases-loaded jam by striking out pitcher Brad Penny (1-1) to end the inning. Bere also allowed a third-inning single to Brant Brown. In his first start, Bere allowed one run on five hits with eight strikeouts in six innings, a 9-1 victory over St. Louis. David Weathers pitched a hitless eighth and Bob Wickman finished the four-hitter. This was Milwaukee's first shutout since July 30, 1999, against Montreal. Luis Lopez hit a two-run double and scored on Bere's single to right, and Ron Belliard homered.
April 12, 2000
Floida Marlins 11, Milwaukee Brewers 4
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Alex Gonzalez's two-run single in the fifth inning keyed the Florida Marlins' 11-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at frigid County Stadium on Wednesday night. The temperature was 41 degrees at gametime, and it dropped precipitously as bitter winds whipped off Lake Michigan and turned the field into an icebox. Jaime Navarro (0-2) walked six batters in 4 2/3 innings, including Cliff Floyd, Preston Wilson and Kevin Millar to load the bases in the fifth. Gonzalez then brought home two runs with a single to put Florida up 5-3. Jesus Sanchez (1-0) got the win while allowing six hits and four earned runs in five innings. Jose Hernandez homered in the second inning and had a run-scoring single in the fourth for the Brewers.
April 11, 2000
Houston trades catcher Bako to Florida
HOUSTON (AP) - Backup catcher Paul Bako was traded Tuesday from
the Houston Astros to the Florida Marlins for cash and a player
to be named. The move allows Houston to keep rookie Mitch
Meluskey on the roster. Bako, acquired in a trade with Detroit
last year, likely would not have cleared waivers had the Astros
tried to demote him to the minors. Bako, 27, hit .256 with 17
RBIs in 215 at-bats in 1999. As the club's third catcher this
season behind Tony Eusebio and Meluskey, Bako was 0-for-2 in the
first seven games. To replace Bako, the Astros promoted infielder
Julio Lugo from their Triple-A team at New Orleans. Outfielder
Matt Mieske eventually is expected to take the roster spot, when
he returns from the disabled list, possibly as early as Thursday.
April 10, 2000
Milwaukee Brewers 4, Floida Marlins 3
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Geoff Jenkins homered and Milwaukee's bullpen had another strong outing as the Brewers beat the Florida Marlins 4-3 Monday in County Stadium's final home opener. Jenkins' solo homer put Milwaukee ahead in the second, and the Brewers then capitalized on wildness by Vladimir Nunez (0-1) in the third. he loaded the bases by walking Henry Blanco, Marquis Grissom and Mark Loretta, and Jeromy Burnitz hit a two-run single. Jenkins' sacrifice fly scored Loretta. Florida scored twice in the fifth on an RBI single by Brant Brown and a sacrifice fly by Mike Lowell. Jimmy Haynes (2-0) allowed three runs and seven hits in six innings. Shiny new Miller Park, rapidly approaching completion 100 feet behind the current field, will open in 2001.
April 9, 2000
Florida Marlins 7, Colorado Rockies 6
MIAMI (AP) - Preston Wilson hit a controversial home run and Mike Lowell drove in four runs to give the Florida Marlins a 7-6 win over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday. Wilson's two-run homer down the left-field line off Pedro Astacio (0-2) in the first inning appeared to be foul by about six feet. But third-base umpire John Shulock called the ball fair. After an argument from Rockies manager Buddy Bell and third baseman Terry Shumpert, home plate umpire Ed Rapuano did not reverse the call and the Marlins led 2-0. Lowell hit a three-run double in the fifth and a solo homer in the eighth to lead the Marlins. Ryan Dempster (1-1) pitched 7 1/3 innings, giving up five hits and three runs with nine strikeouts. Antonio Alfonseca earned his third save.
April 8, 2000
Colorado Rockies 4, Florida Marlins 2
MIAMI (AP) - Florida shortstop Alex Gonzalez's eighth-inning error allowed the tying and go-ahead runs to score as the Colorado Rockies beat the Marlins 4-2 on Saturday night. Marlins starter Alex Fernandez (1-1) had been cruising with a 2-1 lead when the trouble started. With one out, he loaded the bases before Mike Lansing hit a hard grounder that appeared to be an inning-ending double play. Instead the ball skipped under Gonzalez's glove into center field, allowing two runs to score. Vic Darensbourg replaced Fernandez and later walked Todd Helton to give the Rockies a 4-2 lead. Jose Jimenez (1-0) pitched a scoreless seventh inning for the win. David Lee pitched the ninth for his first career save. Mike Lowell homered for the Marlins.
April 7, 2000
Florida Marlins 4, Colorado Rockies 3
MIAMI (AP) - Brad Penny, backed by Kevin Millar's tiebreaking three-run triple, won in his major league debut as the Florida Marlins beat the Colorado Rockies 4-3 Friday night. Masato Yoshii (0-1), acquired from the New York Mets during the offseason, made his Colorado debut and led 1-0 until the sixth when Luis Castillo and Alex Gonzalez walked, and Preston Wilson hit a game-tying, double. Stan Belinda relieved and walked Mike Lowell, loading the bases. Millar then drove the ball into the right-center field gap. Mike Lansing homered twice for Colorado, including a two-run shot off Dan Miceli in the eighth that pulled the Rockies within a run. Antonio Alfonseca pitched a hitless ninth for his second save in three chances. Yoshii gave up three runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings, struck out five and walked three.
April 6, 2000
Florida Marlins 5, San Francisco Giants 4
MIAMI (AP) - Cliff Floyd hit a two-run homer with two out in the ninth inning and the Florida Marlins rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the San Francisco Giants 5-4 Thursday before a record-low turnout of just 7,741. Trailing 4-3, the Marlins led off the ninth with a single by Kevin Millar against John Johnstone (1-1). Following a sacrifice and a foul out, Floyd hit the first pitch over the left-field scoreboard for his first homer. For the second time in 24 hours, the Marlins drew the smallest home crowd in the franchise's eight-year history. San Francisco squandered a strong outing by Joe Nathan, who had a career-high nine strikeouts in seven innings. Dan Miceli (1-0) retired one batter in the ninth. Barry Bonds hit a two-run homer for San Francisco.
Marlins owner Henry says chances dim for new ballpark
MIAMI (AP) - Florida Marlins owner John Henry is no longer
optimistic about building a new ballpark to spur fan interest.
The Marlins drew the smallest crowd in the eight-year history of
the franchise Wednesday night, then broke the record Thursday
afternoon. Attendance for the past three games against the San
Francisco Giants was 9,524, 8,365 and 7,741. "Our prospects for a
ballpark are dim at this point, so it's a little disheartening,"
Henry said. "We're breaking records every day." On Opening Day
Monday, Gov. Jeb Bush scuttled Henry's plan to finance
construction of a $400 million downtown stadium primarily with
cruise taxes. The Marlins have no alternative plan, but say they
need a ballpark with a retractable dome because of the frequent
summer rain in South Florida. Henry said attendance this week has
been worse than he expected.
Boy hurt at Marlins game awarded $1 million
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) - A boy who was struck in the head
with a baseball before a Florida Marlins game in 1997 has been
awarded more than $1 million by a jury. Andrew Klein was awarded
$1.05 million from the team and stadium by the state court jury.
He has permanent brain damage since being struck by a ball during
batting practice as he took part in a pregame program at Pro
Player Stadium. Andrew, then 8, had been selected to take part in
the "Bullpen Buddies" program, where he and about 100 other
children were brought down near the field to ask questions of
team officials and get player autographs. But the St. Louis
Cardinals were taking batting practice while the program was
taking place and a line drive hit by Ray Lankford came into the
stands and struck Klein in the left temple. Klein suffered a
frontal lobe injury to his brain.
April 5, 2000
San Francisco Giants 11, Florida Marlins 9
MIAMI (AP) - Rich Aurilia hit a three-run homer with one out in the ninth inning and the San Francisco Giants came from behind twice to beat the Florida Marlins, 11-9, Wednesday night. Trailing 9-7, the Giants started the ninth with singles by Barry Bonds, Jeff Kent and pinch hitter Felipe Crespo to score a run against Antonio Alfonseca (0-1). Following a forceout, Aurilia hit his first homer on the first pitch. The Giants overcame a 5-4 deficit on Kent's three-run homer in the fifth. They blew leads of 3-0, 4-1 and 7-5. John Johnstone (1-0) gave up one run in 1 1-3 innings. Robb Nen pitched a perfect ninth for his second save. Kevin Millar had a two-run homer and an RBI single for the Marlins.
Marlins drop cruise tax plan for ballpark
(AP) - In the wake of opposition from Gov. Jeb Bush, the Florida
Marlins dropped a plan Wednesday to use cruise taxes to help
finance a new ballpark. The Marlins didn't offer an alternative
funding proposal but said they remain committed to building a
ballpark downtown. "It is obvious that with the actions of the
governor, it would be pointless for us to continue our efforts to
secure a cruise passenger surcharge," Marlins senior vice
president Julio Rebull Jr. said. Team owner John Henry said he'll
wait until the next homestand to discuss options for financing
the project. To the Marlins' surprise, Bush announced Monday that
he opposed the funding plan being considered by the Legislature.
The governor disclosed his position only hours before the
Marlins' season opener.
April 4, 2000
San Francisco Giants 3, Florida Marlins 0
MIAMI (AP) - A night after totaling 12 hits and six runs in front of a sellout crowd, the Florida Marlins managed just four hits off Russ Ortiz and lost to the San Francisco Giants 3-0 before 9,524 fans on Tuesday night. Ortiz (1-0) pitched eight innings, striking out five and allowing three walks. Ortiz retired the side in order in the sixth and seventh after allowing at least one batter to reach base in each of the first five innings. No one got past second base against him until the eighth. Ryan Dempster (0-1) pitched five innings and allowed three runs on five hits and five walks. He walked four of the first nine hitters, but gave up just one run on Jeff Kent's sacrifice fly in the first. Ellis Burks homered and J.T. Snow added a sac fly.
April 3, 2000
Florida Marlins 6, San Francisco Giants 4
MIAMI (AP) - For one night, at least, the Florida Marlins looked a lot better than they did in 1999. Or in 1998. Alex Fernandez outpitched former teammate Livan Hernandez, and the Marlins beat the San Francisco Giants, 6-4, Monday in the season opener for both teams. Fernandez allowed eight hits and three runs in seven innings. He also drove in a run in the sixth, taking a 3-2 pitch to right field for a single and a 5-3 lead. Offseason acquisition Dan Miceli pitched a perfect eighth, and Antonio Alfonseca gave up a homer to Ellis Burks in the ninth in getting a save. Preston Wilson went 2-for-4 with two RBIs for the Marlins, who had 12 hits and won their fourth consecutive opener. Bill Mueller hit a two-run triple for the Giants.
Gov. says he'd veto cruise tax to build Marlins stadium
(AP) - Only hours before the first pitch of the Florida Marlins'
season, Gov. Jeb Bush said he'd veto a cruise tax proposal to
help finance a new ballpark, leaving its future in doubt. A
$4-a-day tax on cruise ship passengers posed too much of a threat
to the industry, which pumps millions into the Miami-area economy
and employs an estimated 6,700 people, Bush said Monday. Marlins
owner John Henry envisioned a $400 million stadium in downtown
Miami with a retractable dome, 38,000 seats and a view of
Biscayne Bay. He hoped to have the park ready for the 2003
season. The Marlins won the World Series in 1997 but lost $34
million. Then-owner Wayne Huizenga dismantled his high-priced
champion and Florida tumbled from first to worst. Henry, a
multimillionaire commodities trader, bought the team in January
1999.
April 2, 2000
Marlins place three on 15-day disabled list
(AP) - Infielder David Berg, right-hander Brian Edmondson and
left-hander Michael Tejera were put on the 15-day disabled list
by the Florida Marlins in Sunday. Florida also purchased the
contracts of infielder Chris Clapinski and catcher Sandy Martinez
from the minor leagues. Berg sustained a partial tear of the
rotator cuff in his right shoulder, Edmondson has a torn labrum
in his right shoulder and Tejera has a ligament in his left
elbow. Edmondson and Tejera are expected to miss most or all of
the season.