Just Like Old Times

Rodriguez felt it was in the best interest of
 the team to step down.

It was just three weeks ago that the young upstart Florida Marlins were 10 games over .500 and only 1 game back for first place in the National League East, my how things have changed. The Marlins have now lost ten straight and their manager, sinking to the bottom of the division standings. Edwin Rodriguez, who replaced current Atlanta Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez as skipper almost a year ago to the day, resigned Sunday, claiming it was best for the future of the team.

In the Marlins final 92 games of the 2010 season, Rodriguez led them to a 46-46 record, finishing third in the division behind two postseason bound clubs. The Philadelphia Phillies captured their fourth straight division crown while the Braves earned a wild card berth.

The native of Puerto Rico finishes his tenure in Florida with a record of 78-85 in just over a full seasons load at 163 games.

Injuries to All-Stars Hanley Ramirez and Josh Johnson played a major role in the teams recent skid, losing 18 of their last 19 games. Ramirez, who despite his injury is only batting .201 on the year, had been sidelined since the 29th of May with back soreness that included a trip to the disabled list.

As for Johnson the news had not been good. The 6-foot-7 hard throwing right-hander was placed on the 15-day disabled list back on the 22nd of May with inflammation in his throwing shoulder. Initially  Johnson was thought to miss a couple of weeks, but that will not be the case.

The two-time All-Star was recently transferred to the 60-day DL and will now be out until mid-July.

That being said it has not been all bad in Florida. Outfielder Mike Stanton has hit 16 home runs in 67 games for the Marlins after a solid rookie campaign. Although Stanton has struggled during the teams current losing streak, batting only .192 in his last 22 games.

That could be a product of the recent struggles of Ramirez and the absence of Dan Uggla. Uggla, who was the teams primary power source in recent years, was traded to Atlanta in the offseason, leaving a lot of responsibility of their young twenty-two-year-old right fielder.

With the recent resignation of Rodriguez a familiar face has decided to put the uniform one last time. Eight-year-old and Major League Baseball lifer Jack McKeon will manage the team the rest of the season and believes that the season is not lost.

He becomes the second-oldest manager in major league history behind only Connie Mack, who was eight-seven when he managing the Philadelphia Athletics in 1950.

Cigar and all McKeon is back at the
helm in Florida.

This will be McKeon's second stint as Marlins manager and it was a very similar situation his first go around. In May of 2003, a not so much younger McKeon took over a underachieving Florida team and help guide the team back to .500 and clinch their second wild card berth in franchise history.

That postseason the Marlins would make their mark yet again winning the National League Pennant and reaching the World Series for the first time since 1997. There they eventually beat the heavily favored New York Yankees in six games. It was the second World Series title for the Marlins, but the first for McKeon.

That was the last time the Marlins made the playoffs.

Eight years later McKeon will try and raise this team from the ashes once again and finally prove he's still got what it takes. His first order of business comes prior to tonight's game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim with the benching of his embattled superstar shortstop. Will this be the fire that sparks Ramirez and the fish? Marlin fans sure hope so.

Beckett Returning to Form

Beckett's competitive fire is what has made
him an ace over his career.

Boston Red Sox right-hander Josh Beckett is starting to look like his old self, coming off the worst year of his 11-year career in 2010.

The hard-throwing right-hander was one of many Red Sox hampered by injuries a year ago and only made 21 starts, compiling 127.1 innings during that time. To go along with those numbers, Beckett was 6-6 with a 5.78 earned run average and a horrific 1.54 WHIP.

Beckett has been one of the more consist parts of the 2011 Red Sox team after they have gotten out of gate rather slow, starting the year 12-15, last in the American League East.

Beckett started the season with a rocky start in Cleveland only going five innings, allowing four earned runs, while striking out and walking four a piece and was saddled with the loss.

Since that time, Beckett has started four other games, going 2-1 with a 2.65 ERA. He has held opponents to a .169 average and struck out 32 batters compared to just nine walks. The turn around came in his second start of the year on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball against the hated rival New York Yankees. Beckett's career numbers against New York were anything, but good heading into the start. He was 10-7 with a 6.26 ERA in 22 career starts.

The fact that the Red Sox have averaged 6.0 runs per game in those starts has help translate to a winning record.

Last season, Beckett was even worse against the Yankees, posting a 1-2 record with a 10.04 ERA. He also allowed nine of the 20 home runs he gave up in '10 to the Bronx Bombers and surrendered a .339 average.

His first start against them this season was much different.

Beckett tossed eight scoreless innings, allowing only two hits, while striking out 10 New York hitters. In his next two starts since then, Beckett went at least seven-plus innings and allowed two or fewer runs in both, striking out 14. In his most recent outing against the division rival Baltimore Orioles, he went six strong innings, but gave up four runs.

Only one conclusion can be drawn to Beckett's turn around and it belongs to team captain and longtime catcher Jason Varitek. Varitek is no longer the starting catcher in Boston and hasn't been the last two seasons, but is still one of the best game callers in Major League Baseball.

He might be the main reason why the Red Sox have seen this turn around with Beckett.

Varitek has caught Beckett four of his first five starts this season, posting a 2.17 ERA in those starts. The only start Varitek did not catch just so happens to be his only loss and worst start of the year against the Indians.

The veteran backstop is only batting .111 on the year, but his value to the Sox is so much more than offensive numbers and that is apparent with those statistics. Varitek is also the only catcher in Major League Baseball history to be behind the plate for four no-hitters and for that is highly regarded by his piers.

Beckett has put together a quite an impressive resume over his career and his ability to bounce back does not come as a surprise. The 6-foot-5 Texan was drafted first-round of the 1999 amateur draft by the Florida Marlins. Moving quickly through the system, Beckett was named America's Minor League Player of the Year back in 2001.

Shortly there after, he would go on and help the Marlins win their second World Series title in franchise history and would named the Most Valuable Player of the series, tossing a complete game shutout in the series-clinching Game 6 at Yankee Stadium back in 2003.

2007 was Beckett's best season statistically, winning a Major League-best 20 games and posting a 3.27 ERA. He would finish second in the AL Cy Young voting, losing out to Cleveland's C.C. Sabathia.

Although, Beckett would get the best of Sabathia that year in the postseason. With the Indians leading three games to one in the ALCS, the Sox would rally to win three straight to win the series, shocking Sabathia and Co.. It was that much sweeter for Beckett as the Red Sox beat Sabathia in the series' decisive seventh game.

Beckett would go on to help Boston sweep the Colorado Rockies in the World Series for their second championship in four years.

'Tek' as his teammates call him,
may be the secret behind
Beckett's resurgence.

The two-time All-Star would have a string of two consecutive Opening Day starts snapped earlier this season after manager Terry Francona decided to give left-hander Jon Lester the nod in Arlington to start the year.

Beckett has responded to the criticism with results and vengeance.

Since 2009, Beckett has struggled in the month of April, accumulating a 7.22 ERA. It was important for the Red Sox to see him to get off to a fast start and if he hadn't nobody knows where this team would be. Still only 30, Beckett is signed through the 2014 season after signing a contract extension prior to the of last season.

The Red Sox will need Beckett along with veteran John Lackey if they want to reach expectations they have set for themselves.

Once known as just a thrower, the Red Sox right-hander looks to have developed into a complete pitcher.

Beckett's next start is scheduled for Tuesday in Fenway Park against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, a team he dominated April 21.

Watch out baseball, the hard throwing Texan looks to have returned, if he was ever gone.

A-Gon for MVP

The Boston Red Sox added another potent bat to their already dangerous lineup, trading for first baseman, Adrian Gonzalez. With this move to Beantown, he might be the front-runner for the American League Most Valuable Player Award in 2011.

Gonzalez is a former first overall pick by the Florida Marlins back in 2000 and one of the few that has lived up to his potential at the Major League level. A San Diego native, Gonzalez has played the last five seasons of his career with the San Diego Padres, becoming a two-time All-Star and  two-time Gold Glove winner in the process. Gonzalez has averaged 32 home runs in his five seasons in San Diego, hitting as many as 40 in a single-season.

All smiles in Beantown this offseason.

The Red Sox traded for Gonzalez, 28, seemingly right in the prime of his career and with his best baseball still in front of him. Leaving Petco Park might be just what the doctor ordered for Gonzalez, to push him over the edge for his first MVP Award in '11.  Gonzalez will be the centerpiece to an offense that all already includes the likes of Carl Crawford, 2008 AL MVP Dustin Pedroia and David 'Big Papi' Ortiz.

Since opening in 2004, Petco has been known as being a spacious pitchers park around Major League Baseball. The Fenway faithful might as well be the complete opposite, with a short right field porch and 37-foot wall in left field known as, the Green Monster.

Gonzalez is not your prototypical left-handed hitter, being know to spread the ball around the diamond. You can be sure that Gonzalez's numbers will go up in Fenway Park this season by him peppering that wall in left field.

With added protection behind him, something he never had during in time in San Diego, that might just launch Gonzalez to his first MVP Award.