Bruce Aven was traded to Pittsburgh for outfielder Brant Brown. Brown will mostly pinch hit and play the outfield, but might also start at first, should Derrek Lee struggle. Brown will provide a much needed left handed hitter of the bench. The trade ends all the speculation over any chance of bringing back Jeff Conine, who will accept a lucrative deal with Baltimore.
Rafael Medina was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves. Medina was originally acquired with Derrek Lee in the Kevin Brown trade. He was a starter in the 1998 season before several injuries. Last season, he was frequently called up and sent back down to AAA.
Cliff Floyd, Derrek Lee, John Roskos, Brent Billingsley, Michael Tejera, Hector Almonte, and Reid Conelius were added to the Major League roster.
Kevin Orie was activated from his minor league rehab assignment. Cliff Floyd and Derrek Lee will join the team tomorrow. AAA affilate Calgary just finished its season.
The Marlins activated Mike Lowell who has completed his recovery from Cancer. Kevin Orie was placed on the Disabled List. With Kevin Millar’s performance at first, Derrek Lee was sent down to AAA and Tim Hyers was brought back to take his spot.
The struggling Todd Dunwoody was sent down to the AAA and Kevin Millar was called to take his spot. The Marlins feel that Dunwoody was slumping and needed to work on his game. This should serve as a wake-up call to other Marlins such as Derrek Lee.
Alex Gonzalez’s 3-run home run and a spectacular double play with the bases loaded capped a 5-4 Marlins victory over the San Diego Padres. Ryan Dempster, back in the majors, won his season debut. Derrek Lee also homered for the Marlins. Box Score.
Rejuvinated by the return of Alex Fernandez and Cliff Floyd, the Marlins shutout the Chicago Cubs 8-0. Fernandez pitched 4 strong innings before being pulled because of his pitch count. Edmondson came in and pitched 3-1/3 innings, striking out 3 and going 2-2 with two doubles and an RBI at the plate. Kotsay and Gonzalez both homered. Derrek Lee tripled. Jorge Fabergas drove in 3. Cliff Floyd debuted going 2-3 with a run scored.
Brian Meadows pitched another great game, improving his record to 3-0, in a 7-2 win over the San Fransisco Giants. This was the Marlins first win over the Giants since the 1997 Divisional Series. Meadows was backed up by Mark Kotsay who went 3-3 with 2 RBIs and Derrek Lee’s 4 RBIs, including his second home run of the season. The Marlins scored 2 in the first and 2 in the sixth before allowing a Giant run. The Giants had a mini-rally in the seventh and eighth as Meadows began to tire, but Vic Darensbourg and Brian Edmondson shut the door. Edmondson earned his first Major League save. Box Score.
17 runs. How? 5 allowed by Dennis Springer, 5 off Rafael Medina, 6 off Archie Corbin, and only 1 off Looper. The Phillies feasted of the Marlins pitching. The Marlins did get 3 runs, including a Derrek Lee home run. But, not enough.