Marlins caught in a Miami vise - Baseball

IDIOTIC.

That's the word one general manager uses to describe the Marlins' trade of two top position prospects and a promising lefthanded pitcher to Texas for reliever Ugueth Urbina, a potential free agent. The G.M. says no reliever is worth such a price, and compares the deal to the Red Sox's infamous trade of Jeff Bagwell for Larry Andersen.

As always with the Marlins, the question is, "What the heck is going on?" And as always, the answer is far from clear.

Another G.M. who discussed trades with the Marlins last week says he sensed urgency in Florida, even "a little bit of desperation." Each time the Marlins make a move--from signing Ivan Rodriguez to hiring manager Jack McKeon to acquiring Urbina--they reiterate their desire to be a contender. They're fulfilling that pledge.

But they can't make it last.

Not this season, when it's difficult to imagine them surpassing the Phillies, Diamondbacks and other clubs for the wild card. And not the winter, when six of their players will be free agents mid 15 others will be eligible for salary arbitration.

"They're in the most difficult predicament of any team in baseball," one executive says. "South Florida can't stand another dismantling. But the Marlins can't afford to keep their team together. They're a scary team when they're right. But they have no fans, no money. They're trying to do the right thing. But at some point the finances are not going to let them."

The Urbina trade developed in less than a day, and at first glance it indeed looks terribly shortsighted. The Marlins parted with Class AA first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2000 draft, plus Class AA outfielder will Smith and Class AA pitcher Ryan Snare. They also agreed to pay $550,000 of the remaining $2.3 million on Urbina's contract. All that for a pitcher they will use as a setup man for 2 1/2 months.

The trade, however, can't be judged adequately until the prospects develop--or until the Marlins decide Urbina's ultimate fate. If file Marlins fall out of contention, they easily could flip Urbina to a contender.

They probably wouldn't recoup the full value of the prospects, but perhaps they could acquire cash.

Of course, the Marlins wouldn't stop with Urbina. They also could trade All-Star second baseman Luis Castillo, a potential free agent, and first baseman Derrek Lee, who has been offered to the Orioles fur Jeff Conine.

And once they began their deconstruction, they would be foolish to keep their promise to retain third baseman Mike Lowell for the rest of the season. If they gutted the team, their chances of signing Lowell long-term would be zero.

In fact, their chances probably are zero anyway, but club president David Samson speaks as if it's morning in Miami. "Our attendance is up over 30 percent (actually 22 percent)," says Samson, the stepson of owner Jeffrey Loria. "We've more than tripled our corporate sponsors from last year, from 25 to 77. Season tickets are up. The team is playing well. There's a definite buzz around our offices."

The arrival of rookie phenom Dontrelle Willis has changed the franchise's identity, and a crowd of 30,634 attended the lefthander's most recent home start on July 2, a 2-1 loss to the Braves in 13 innings. The Marlins had another memorable day last Friday, when they learned Willis would be an All-Star and made the Urbina trade--plus, Todd Hollandsworth hit a pinch-hit home run in the ninth inning and triggered a 5-4 comeback victory over the Expos.

If only it were the start of something big.

More likely, it was the beginning of the end.

The Marlins' payroll will rise from approximately $50 million to a projected $80 million next season if the team keeps its roster intact. Samson says the club's revenues can't support such an increase, adding that Loria has lost $20 million in each of the past two years.

A new stadium is a must, but it's doubtful the Marlins could obtain public financing in an uncertain economy. Miami city manager Joe Arriola told the Miami Herald last week that the team is willing to contribute $100 million to a proposed downtown domed stadium, and that the city would be willing to assist in the project under those conditions. Samson neither confirmed nor denied the $100 million offer.

So, much like the MLB-owned Expos, the Marlins live a day-to-day existence, unsure of what the future will bring.

The team entered the All-Star break 33-24 under McKeon after going 16-22 under Jeff Torborg. It plays 14 of its first 16 games after the break at Pro Player Stadium. Yet, as one agent asks, "What's the end game?"

The Marlins keep acquiring and developing talent, only to purge and begin anew. Lowell, Lee and four other significant players will attain five-plus years of service time this season, enabling them to compare their careers not just to their peers in arbitration, but also to free agents. A series of offseason trades and releases is inevitable. And without a new ballpark, the elimination of the franchise is possible after 2006, when the labor agreement permits MLB to revisit folding franchises.

The "idiotic" Urbina trade, if that's what it was, is the least of the Marlins' problems.

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M@IL BONDING

KEN ROSENTHAL ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS

What would you do to fix the All-Star selection process?

George Snyder, Washington, D.C.

George: First, I'd abolish the rule that every team must be represented. The rule made sense when the game was an exhibition. But with the outcome of the game determining home-field advantage of the World Series, the All-Star teams should consist of the best possible 32 players, period.

The second thing I would do is reduce the number of All-Stars elected by the players, coaches and managers, and conduct that voting after the fan balloting is complete. The uniformed personnel chose 17 players in the A.L., 16 in the N.L., including eight pitchers in each league. If those numbers were cut by approximately half, the All-Star managers and MLB officials would be given far greater latitude. They then could pick the right players to fit this format with less difficulty.

The Pirates' Brian Giles, for example, should have made the N.L. team on merit. He was excluded because the new selection system all but forced N.L. manager Dusty Baker to take a Pirates pitcher--in this case, Mike Williams.

SPEED READS

* The Pirates deemed manager Lloyd McClendon worthy of a one-year contract extension, and Mike Hargrove deserves at least that much from the Orioles. The club's new management team apparently wants to make sure the Orioles don't repeat last years 4-32 finish, but it's doubtful they could find a clearly superior manager.

* Kudos to the Mariners for their classy tribute to former manager Lou Piniella upon his return to Seattle last week. Piniella's departure was not without tension, but club officials did the right thing by acknowledging his contributions, and the fans' outpouring of affection for Piniella made for a memorable night.

* Randall Simon deserved his three-game suspension for Sausage-gate, but Brewers executive V.P. Rick Schlesinger overreacted by calling the incident "one of the most outrageous things I've ever seen inside a ballpark." Foolish as Simon's actions were, no one suffered serious harm. The fan assault on Royals coach Tom Gamboa last season was much worse.

INSIDE DISH

BY KEN ROSENTHAL

The Padres have had multiple conversations with the Pirates about acquiring LF Brian Giles. One stumbling block is the Pirates' desire to include their other marquee player, C Jason Kendall, in the deal. Kendall, 29, is signed through 2006, and his contract is considered one of the worst in baseball from a team standpoint. Whether the Pirates keep Giles or not, they likely will make numerous trades. The Orioles, who are fielding inquiries about their starting pitchers, also will be active.... The Rangers' acquisition of Class AA 1B Adrian Gonzalez from the Marlins ultimately could give them the depth to trade a corner infielder for pitching. The team still needs a center fielder but could land Class A prospect Anthony Webster from the White Sox in the Carl Everett trade, then sign Mike Cameron as a free agent.... An executive who attended the Astros' four-game sweep of the Reds in Houston noted a "stark" difference in the pregame preparation of the two clubs; the Astros were crisp and purposeful in batting practice, and the Reds seemed to be going though the motions. Another example of the Reds' lack of direction: They allowed six and nine runs in the first inning of back-to-back defeats without a single mound visit from manager Bob Boone or pitching coach Don Gullett to interrupt the barrage.... The Rockies believe Class AA RHP Chin-Hui Tsao could be their Dontrelle Willis. Tsao likely will make his major league debut in the second half; he has struck out 118 and walked 25 in 105 1/3 innings.... Giants rookie RHP Jerome Williams isn't as flashy as Willis, but scouts and executives rave about his poise and intelligence. Williams throws 89-93 mph, changes speeds and mixes locations like a veteran. "He's like Catfish Hunter--he can thread the edges," one scout says.... Indians G.M. Mark Shapiro likens rookie LHP Billy Traber to the Giants' Kirk Rueter. Traber exhibited stunning control in his one-hit, no-walk shutout of the Yankees, and his pitch counts the final four innings were seven, nine, seven and 10.... A's G.M. Billy Beane says he isn't as willing to move upper-level prospects as he was in the past with players such as Eric Hinske and Jeremy Bonderman. "The trick for us is that as this team gets older, we probably will have to be a little stingier on some of our upper-tier guys," Beane says, specifically mentioning RHP Rich Harden, SS Bobby Crosby and OF Nick Swisher.... The Tigers are receiving inquiries about Bonderman and LHP Mike Maroth, but Bonderman could be their future ace, and one executive says it would be foolish to trade Maroth. The emergence of LHP Wil Ledezma and Class AA LHP Rob Henkel, however, could lead the Tigers to consider trading Maroth for a young hitter.... The trade speculation about Dodgers LHP Odalis Perez comes from teams that believe G.M. Dan Evans might be desperate enough to trade his youngest starting pitcher for offensive help. Forget it; Perez, 26, is under the Dodgers' control through next season, and Evans can't move him when the health of RHP Kevin Brown, 38, is a constant concern.... The Twins' defense would not suffer if they replaced either SS Cristian Guzman or 2B Luis Rivas; each ranks next-to-last in zone rating among qualifying A.L. infielders at his position. Zone rating is the percentage of balls fielded by players in his typical defensive zone, as measured by STATS Inc.

KEN ROSENTHAL

kenrosenthal@sportingnews.com

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