The Intriguing History Of The Florida Marlins

In Major League Baseball, teams can get into the playoffs even if they have not won their division. Teams who do this are referred to as wildcard teams. They have the disadvantage of never having home field advantage in a series. The Florida Marlins have entered the playoffs twice as a wild card team and both times won the World Series. That is no small feat. So let us now look at the Marlin history.

In 1993 Florida was awarded an expansion team. They play in Miami. Since the beginning, they have played their home games at Sun Life Stadium (a stadium that has had several name changes, including Dolphin Stadium.) Beginning in 2012, the club will have a new home: a new park where the Orange Bowl used to be.

The first three seasons were dreadful for the club. In their debut year, they lost 98 games and came in dead last. But for the next three years, they would get progressively improved. Each year, they finished higher and higher in the standings. They inched to fifth, then fourth, then third. In 1996 they were just two games under . 500. This was cause for their fans to be hopeful about the future of their team.

The wait for fans was not very long. 1997 was a season only usually dreamt about. They came in second that year, only two games behind division winner, the Atlanta Braves. They entered the playoffs as the wildcard. First they swept the San Francisco Giants in round one. In round two they defeated the Braves in six games. Next up would be the Cleveland Indians for the championship.

The Marlin team entered the series as a big underdog. The Indians had just beaten the New York Yankees in impressive fashion. The series was a good one, going all seven games. In an eleven inning final game, the “Fish” took the prize. They tied the score in the 9th and won in the 11th.

Fast forwarding to 2003, again they finished second to the Braves, and again made the playoffs. And once again they knocked of the Giants in the first round. This NLCS saw them play the Chicago Cubs. It was to be one of baseball’s most memorable series. When it appeared the Marlins were going to lose the sixth game and the series, a Cub fan prevented a Cub fielder from catching the third out of the eighth inning. With new life the Marlins went on to win games six and seven to win the pennant.

If the Marlin team was the underdogs in 1997, they were given no chance to win the series in 2003. The New York Yankees were prohibitive favorites. After an emotionally charged comeback victory over their arch rivals the Red Sox to win the AL pennant, the Yankees came out flat. The young pitching talent of Florida took control, and the Series went to Florida 4-2.

Lately the Florida Marlins have been finishing near the middle of the standings. The team’s payroll has been consistently one of the lowest of the league, which has contributed in no small measure to their present results.
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