It's a shame.

 

If the old baseball song 'Take me out the Ballgame' ever rung more veracious today for the Marlins, it'd have to be the part where it goes "If they don't win it's a Shame". Because I don't think there's a better word to describe the Fish right now, than shame.

Shame that the Marlins stand here today with a record of 6-23, after just making the Playoffs last Season. Shame, that they blew a 7 to Nothing Lead to the Washington Nationals yesterday afternoon. Shame that the Marlins have yet to win a single Series in 2024.

And what's probably the most shameful part into what's become the worst start of a Season in Marlins History, is what the Organization has done and probably will do in the near future to mitigate such a disaster. Nothing. Not diddly sh*t.

You see, I've seen this movie before under this same Ownership Group in Florida. The Marlins made the Playoffs for the first time in 17 years during the pandemic Season of 2020, and just as quickly as they took such a giant step forward, they reverted to taking 2 steps back again. Dismissing President of Baseball Op's Michael Hill in October of '20, and replacing him with Kim Ng, who for lack of better words did not play well with Derek Jeter's others in the forms of Gary Denbo/Geoff DeGroot & such. The end result was 95 Losses and an absolutely absurd Contract renewual for Manager at the time Don Mattingly.

Ng would go on to let go of Denbo, DeGroot and Hadi Raad at the end of '22 after another waisted Season, but ultimately helped steer the 2023 Marlins, along with new Manager Skip Schumaker, into the Postseason for the first time during a full Campaign since 2003. All and only to be told in October she would have to work under a new President of Baseball Operations, who would later become Peter Bendix. Ng declined.

Schumaker would go on to ask to have the 3rd and final year of his Contract, being 2025, voided following Ng's decision. A request Marlins Owner Bruce Sherman granted the '23 N.L Manager of the Year.

While now here at the end of April, the Marlins don't seem to have even the slightest bit of an identity that's even remotely similar to their 2023 Playoff version. While Injuries especially to the Starting Rotation have piled up, it's hard to fathom a Team with All-Stars like Luis Arraez, Jazz Chisholm Jr, Josh Bell, Tim Anderson, Relievers with arms like Tanner Scott, Andrew Nardi, Anthony Bender, and enough Starting Pitching Depth even through so many Injuries with guys like Edward Cabrera, Trevor Rogers and Ryan Weathers CAN BE THIS BAD!

But what will be done? Hate to break it to you, and I especially hate going back to talk about guys like Don Mattingly in Marlins History, but this Ownership Group renewed that Manager's Contract the first time at the end of a 105 Loss Season in 2019. Sherman & Co. couldn't care less when the Team lost those 95 Games following a Playoff berth in 2021. 

Does Sherman care that following this Postseason appearance, Christian Benthancourt & Vidal Brujan (who have been an unmitigated disaster already in Miami) were the headline acquisitions for POBO Bendix heading into Feburary? Does the Marlins Owner care that Brujan & Jesus Sanchez seemingly forgot the rules of the Game in back to back days on the Diamond?? Does he & Bendix care that after evidently asking to be let go after this Season's end, Schmaker's pushed almost every wrong button in the Managerial chair this year, all while running the exact same Lineup and Bullpen formation each and every day???

 

"If you do the same thing over and over again, it's torture if you're losing." - Skip Schumaker (Maybe it's time for him to take his own advice)

So I'll leave you with just a simple question, does Owner Bruce Sherman care enough about the Marlins? I personally wouldn't bet on it, and that ladies & gentlemen, that, that's a shame.