M a r l i n s 5 CONTENTS CHAPTERS Fresh Fish 6 Catching the Big One 15 Rebuilding Already 22 Flying Fish 29 Feeling the Heat 36 AROUND THE HORN A Teal Monster and More 12 First Splash 16 The Coldest Game 24 Instant Replay 31 Hurricane Conditions 38 Wild-Card Luck 43 ALL-TIME MARLINS P Dontrelle Willis 8 C Charles Johnson 13 1B Derrek Lee 14 2B Luis Castillo 20 3B Mike Lowell 23 SS Hanley Ramirez 28 LF Cliff Floyd 30 CF Preston Wilson 35 RF Gary Sheffield 39 M Jack McKeon 40 Index 48
6 M a r l i n s FRESH FISH n almost any given day the sun is likely to shine in Miami Florida The National Weather Service reports that on average 70 percent of the daylight hours in Miami are sunny Combine that with the fact that average temperatures are in the 70s and 80s all year long and it’s understandable why Miami situated near the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula is one of the most popular vacation spots in the United States The beaches are a beautiful place to play and the Atlantic Ocean is a great place for deep-sea fishing There are endless sporting events as well the city hosts both Indy and NASCAR races and is home to several professional sports teams even a National Hockey League franchise the Florida Panthers Miami’s climate however is better suited to baseball than hockey For decades the city has hosted spring training facilities for several Major League Baseball teams which appreciate the region’s beautiful winter weather But since 1993 it has also been home to a team of its own the Florida Marlins which joined the National League NL as an O
Summer never seems to end in Miami where palm trees wave year-round amid daytime temperatures that rarely dip much below 70 degrees
