MARLINS Season Review 1 of 2-6/11/02
June 11, 2002
Season in Review
Written by Zach McCann
Part 1: The Positional Players
C Charles Johnson
This season has been a huge disappointment for the 31-year-old catcher. Age may be catching up with him, as he’s only played 37 games and needs a day off almost every two days. He is batting a career-low .211 with 3 homers and 12 RBI’s. He is projected to have career-lows in batting average, home runs, RBI’s, and games played, with just 95.
1B Derrek Lee
Derrek Lee is a streaky hitter who has the sky as the limit. He has so much potential, and lived up to it in 2000, when he had his breakout year. This year he’s on pace to break his career highs in home runs and RBI’s, and has not disappointed fantasy owners this year. He’s in the midst of an eight game hit streak and has nine hits in the past four games. The recent burst has upped his average 29 points to .262, so you do the math. Of those nine hits, four have been home runs, giving him 14 on the year, along with 37 RBI’s. He’s historically a second-half hitter, so expect nothing but good things from Lee the rest of the way.
2B Luis Castillo
Known for his lightning speed, as he has a league-leading 21 steals, Castillo has also put up an amazing .331 batting average. He’s in the middle of a league-leading and franchise record 23-game hit-streak, where he has also stolen eight bases. Says hitting coach Bill Robinson, the reason for his recent tear is because he has altered his stance to have his eyes parallel to the ground. This allows him to see the ball better. It also means he won’t slow down. This guy is money.
SS Alex Gonzalez
A disappointing year for the 25-year-old shortstop got even worse when he was placed on the DL May 20. With high hopes coming into the year, he was batting just .225. He took ground balls on June 5th and could be back in two weeks, but isn’t likely to make a fantasy impact.
3B Mike Lowell
Whether you like it or not, you’ve got to face the facts: Mike Lowell is the man. After overcoming testicular cancer in 1999, he has now become one of the premier third baseman in the game. He’s on pace for 208 hits and 105 RBI’s, and I forgot to mention, he’s batting .332. He’s a streaky hitter, as well as one of the most clutch players in the game, who should finish the season with 100 RBI’s and a .300 average, along with 20 home runs.
OF Cliff Floyd
After struggling to stay healthy since 1993, Floyd finally showed what he could do last year if he stayed healthy the whole year. While batting .317, he proved himself as one of the best five-tool players by hitting 31 homers, knocking in 103 RBI’s, scoring 123 runs, and swiping 18 bases. This year he hasn’t been the same as last year, but has not disappointed with a .285 average to go along with 14 home runs, 39 RBI’s, 40 runs, and seven stolen bases.
OF Preston Wilson
If he wouldn’t strike out so much, he’d probably considered one of the best players in the game. Leading the league in strikeouts is nothing new for Wilson, as he struck out 187 times in 2000 and 107 times in just 123 games last year. So this makes his 73 strikeouts no surprise this year, and the Marlins have looked past that, along with his horrendous .235 average, at his 39 runs and 16 stolen bases.
OF Kevin Millar
Probably the best fantasy outfielder nobody knows about, Kevin Millar is once again putting up a solid, yet quiet, season. He’s batting .293 with 4 homers and 13 RBI’s, despite being out almost the whole month of May due to injury. What makes him even more valuable as a fantasy player is the fact that he can play three positions: 1B, 3B, and OF. And by the way, if you didn’t know, he’s an outfielder for the Marlins and last year hit .314 with 20 HR and 85 RBI’s.
1 of a 2-part series
