MARLINS 8, MARINERS 3
Patience is not a virtue for the Marlins, who believe the bat is a device that should forever remain in motion. The upshot is their penchant for home runs and strikeouts to the near total disregard for the underappreciated walk.
MARLINS
Don't ask Larry Beinfest how the Marlins have continued winning despite glaring flaws. Your guess is as good as his. ''I don't want to sound negative because I'm really proud of the way the guys have been playing,'' said Beinfest, president of baseball operations and the club's chief architect. ``But when you look at the hard numbers sometimes, it doesn't all add up.''
His allegiance now rests squarely with the Mariners, but former Marlins manager John Boles continues to keep close tabs on the organization he spent 11 years working for.
MARINERS 5, MARLINS 4
Striking out is nothing new to the Marlins, whose hitters lead the majors in whiffs. But they reached a historic low on Tuesday at Safeco Field when Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez needed only nine pitches -- the minimum -- to strike out the side in the fourth inning.
Home runs have put Dan Uggla's name in headlines. His 19 homers rank him second in the majors behind Philadelphia's Chase Utley. But Uggla's defense hasn't gone unnoticed. He entered Tuesday's game with an errorless streak of 41 games, handling 194 chances successfully, but had an error in the sixth inning. Uggla ranked fifth among NL second basemen with a .985 fielding percentage.
MARLINS 6, MARINERS 1
In terms of time, it took them 36 days. In terms of distance, their journey took them 2,524 miles. The Marlins hadn't won back-to-back games on the road since May 11.
Felix Hernandez is unknown to all but a few Marlins, at least in the sense of having faced the Seattle pitcher. But those who have rave about the 22-year-old Venezuelan.
Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez joked that he hoped to find a good cup of coffee on the team's next road stop. That shouldn't be a problem.
RAYS 4, MARLINS 1
The Marlins bats took another night off Saturday, and that rarely leads to a positive result. Tampa Bay took another one from Florida on Saturday. Matt Garza and the Devil Rays' bullpen all but shut down the Marlins for a 4-1 victory at Tropicana Field.
Major League Baseball is working on having instant replay at games in a limited capacity, perhaps as early as August. Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez said he doesn't have a problem with umpires using video to help on close calls, although that hasn't always been the case.
RAYS 7, MARLINS 3
It appeared the Marlins were going to make quick work of Andy Sonnanstine on Friday night. Not so fast. Sonnanstine settled in quite nicely, rebounding from a rough opening inning to help Tampa Bay win the opener of the three-game, cross-state series 7-3 at Tropicana Field.
Robert Andino didn't pout when the Marlins demoted him to the minors, admitting Albuquerque (N.M.) is ``like a second home.'' Only, Miami is Andino's hometown, and he would prefer to stay in South Florida a little longer as a member of the Marlins.
PHILLIES 3, MARLINS 0
One day the Marlins will eventually solve the riddle that is 45-year-old Jamie Moyer. Thursday wasn't that day. For the ninth time in nine starts, the ageless Moyer defeated the Marlins.
Hit a game-winning grand slam and get the day off. Well, that is not exactly the reason Dan Uggla started on the bench in Thursday's series finale against the Phillies. Manager Fredi Gonzalez talked to Uggla last week about taking the day off against Phillies left-hander Jamie Moyer, who has dominated Uggla.
MARLINS 6, PHILLIES 2
Less than a week ago, Dan Uggla, Cody Ross and Jeremy Hermida were sitting around talking about ''how cool it would feel'' to hit a walk-off home run.
Did ''Joe,'' the home run bandit, strike again? Perhaps, said the attorney for a Miami man who has filed a lawsuit claiming ''Joe'' ripped Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th home run baseball from his client's grasp Monday at Dolphin Stadium.
Justin Kimball, 25, wants a Miami-Dade court to prevent the fan who the Marlins say caught Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th home run ball Monday night -- a season- ticket holder identified only as ''Joe'' -- from selling it until the ownership issue can be resolved.
MARLINS 5, PHILLIES 4
The Marlins sure lived up to their billing Tuesday night. Before the opener of a three-game series with the National League East-leading Philadelphia Phillies at Dolphin Stadium, the Marlins led baseball with 95 home runs but also were the worst-fielding team in baseball, with a .976 fielding percentage and a major-league-high 56 errors.
IN MY OPINION
You would have been branded a blasphemer or a plain idiot had you uttered the following words anywhere in South Florida at the time of the trade last December: ``The Marlins will not miss Miguel Cabrera or Dontrelle Willis.''
Marlins left fielder Josh Willingham worked out with manager Fredi Gonzalez and third base/outfield coach Bo Porter before Tuesday's game at Dolphin Stadium.
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