1997 Florida Marlins: Fighting Fish

1997 Florida Marlins: Fighting Fish

1997 Florida Marlins: Fighting Fish

The Florida Marlins went 92-70 in 1997, finishing in 2nd place in the National League East division, finishing 9 games behind the Atlanta Braves. The Marlins still clinched a postseason berth via the Wild Card. The Marlins spent their early years playing in the spacious Pro Player Stadium, a ballpark that was only meant to be a football stadium. Despite this fact, manager Jim Leyland pushed all the right buttons to get his team to perform well enough on the field.

During the course of the regular season, the Marlins fared well against their division rivals for the most part. The Marlins went 8-4 against the Braves, 7-5 against the Montreal Expos, 6-6 against the Philadelphia Phillies and 4-8 against the New York Mets. The Marlins went 12-3 against American League teams in Interleague Play.

Third baseman Bobby Bonilla batted .297 with 17 home runs and 96 RBI’s off 167 hits, 39 doubles, 3 triples and 6 stolen bases. Left fielder Moises Alou batted .292 with 23 home runs and 115 RBI’s off 157 hits, 29 doubles, 5 triples and 9 stolen bases. Shortstop Edgar Renteria batted .277 with 171 hits, 21 doubles, 3 triples and 32 stolen bases. Right fielder Gary Sheffield had 21 home runs and 71 RBI’s off 111 hits, 22 doubles and 11 stolen bases.

Catcher Charles Johnson had 19 home runs, 104 hits and 26 doubles. First baseman Jeff Conine had 17 home runs, 98 hits and 13 doubles. Second baseman Luis Castillo had 63 hits, 8 doubles and 16 stolen bases in 75 games. Center fielder Devon White had 65 hits, 13 doubles and 13 stolen bases in 74 games. Second baseman Kurt Abbott had 69 hits, 6 home runs, 18 doubles and 6 triples. Left fielder Cliff Floyd had 6 home runs, 9 doubles and 6 stolen bases in 61 games.

On July 27 the Marlins traded pitcher Mark Hutton to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for second baseman Craig Counsell, who proved to be a reliable bat down the stretch.

Kevin Brown was the ace of the starting pitching rotation and he went 16-8 with 205 strikeouts and a 2.69 ERA, recording 6 complete games and 2 shutouts. Alex Fernandez went 17-12 with 183 strikeouts and a 3.59 ERA, and recorded 5 complete games and 1 shutout. Al Leiter went 11-9 with 132 strikeouts. A 22-year-old pitching phenom from Villa Clara, Cuba named Livan Hernandez went 9-3 with 72 strikeouts and a 3.18 ERA.

The main anchor in the bullpen for the Marlins was closer Robb Nen, who went 9-3 with 35 saves, 81 strikeouts and a 3.89 ERA. Jay Powell also provided sufficient relief by going 7-2 and recording a 3.28 ERA.

The Florida Marlins faced the San Francisco Giants in the National League Division Series, and the Marlins would sweep the Giants 3 games to none. In Game 1 on September 30 at Pro Player Stadium, the Marlins won 2-1. Scoring came late as Giants third baseman Bill Mueller hit a solo home run in the top of the 7th inning. Charles Johnson responded for the Marlins in the bottom of the 7th with his own solo home run. In the bottom of the 9th, Jeff Conine had a single, Johnson would get hit by a pitch, Craig Counsell would drop a successful sacrifice bunt to move the runners over, outfielder Jim Eisenrich was intentionally walked, and then Devon White grounded into a force-out at home plate. However, Edgar Renteria won it for Florida with an RBI single.

In Game 2 on October 1 the Marlins beat the Giants 7-6. In the top of the 1st inning Giants second baseman Mark Lewis had an RBI single, and in the bottom of the 1st, Bonilla crushed a 2-run home run. In the top of the 2nd inning, Giants catcher Brian Johnson hit a solo home run. In the top of the 3rd, Giants left fielder Barry Bonds drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the 3rd, Bonilla had an RBI single. Giants outfielder Stan Javier had an RBI single in the top of the 4th, and in the bottom of the 4th pinch-hitting infielder Alex Arias had an RBI single, followed by Kurt Abbott grounding into a double play to score Johnson. In the bottom of the 6th Gary Sheffield hit a solo home run, and after an RBI double in the top of the 7th and a ground-out at second base by Bonds to score outfielder Daryl Hamilton in the top of the 9th, Moises Alou had an RBI single in the bottom of the 9th to win it for Florida.

In Game 3 on October 3 at 3Com Park in San Francisco, the Marlins completed the sweep by beating the Giants 6-2. Giants second baseman Jeff Kent hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 4th inning, but with Devon White’s pulverizing grand slam home run in the top of the 6th, the deficit was just too much for the Giants to overcome as Kent went deep again for a solo home run in the bottom of the 6th. Johnson and Counsell both had RBI doubles in the top of the 8th.

The National League Championship Series pitted the Florida Marlins against the Atlanta Braves, and the Marlins would win the series 4 games to 2. Atlanta’s Turner Field hosted Game 1 on October 7, and the Marlins won 5-3. Alou had a 3-run double in the top of the 1st inning, and then Atlanta first baseman Fred McGriff had an RBI single in the bottom of the 1st. Alou grounded out in the top of the 3rd to score Sheffield, followed by an RBI double by Johnson. Braves third baseman Chipper Jones hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 3rd inning, and the left fielder Ryan Klesko hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 6th, but it wouldn’t be enough.

The Braves came back to win Game 2 on October 8 by the score of 7-1. Second baseman Keith Lockhart had an RBI triple in the bottom of the 1st inning, followed by a solo home run hit by Klesko, and then Chipper Jones hit a 3-run home run in the bottom of the 3rd. Jones then had an RBI single in the bottom of the 7th, and catcher Javy Lopez drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Devon White’s RBI double in the top of the 8th didn’t do enough to get the Marlins back in the game.

The Marlins won Game 3 at Pro Player Stadium on October 10 5-2. McGriff scored a run with a sacrifice fly in the top of the 4th inning, and then Sheffield hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 4th. After a sacrifice fly by Lopez in the top of the 6th, Marlins first baseman Darren Daulton had an RBI double in the bottom of the 6th, and then Johnson followed with a bases-clearing 3-run double.

Game 4 on October 11 belonged to the Braves as they shut out the Marlins 4-0. Braves starting pitcher Denny Neagle pitched a complete game and gave up up only 4 hits and 1 walk while having 7 strikeouts. McGriff had an RBI single in the top of the 1st inning, then right fielder Abdruw Jones had an RBI single in the top of the 3rd, and the Braves topped it off in the top of the 5th with a solo home run by shortstop Jeff Blauser and an RBI double by McGriff.

The Marlins won 2-1 in Game 5 on October 12 behind the great pitching performance of Livan Hernandez, who pitched a complete game, giving up 3 hits, 2 walks and 1 run, but recording 15 strikeouts. Bonilla had an RBI single in the bottom of the 1st inning, and after Braves right fielder Michael Tucker hit a solo home run in the top of the 2nd, Conine had an RBI single in the bottom of the 7th.

Returning to Turner Field for Game 6 on October 14, the Marlins put the Braves away by the score of 7-4. In the top of the 1st inning, Bonilla had a 2-run double, and after Johnson got hit by a pitch to score Sheffield, Counsell grounded into a forceout at second base to score Bonilla. In the bottom of the 1st Ryan Klesko had an RBI single, and a pair of RBI singles from center fielder Kenny Lofton and Keith Lockhart in the bottom of the 2nd soon followed. Lockhart would have an RBI single in the bottom of the 9th, but it came after a strong top of the 6th inning by Florida as Bonilla had an RBI single, Alou grounded into a force-out at second base to score Renteria, and an RBI single by Counsell.

The 1997 World Series between the Florida Marlins and the American League Champion Cleveland Indians proved to be a classic back and forth struggle as it took all 7 games to determine a World Champion. Pro Player Stadium hosted Game 1 on October 18, and the Marlins opened the World Series with a 7-4 win. Indians left fielder David Justice had an RBI single in the top of the 1st inning, but Edgar Renteria responded for Florida by grounding out to score Counsell.

Moises Alou then blasted a 3-run home run in the bottom of the 4th, and Charles Johnson followed with his own solo home run. In the top of the 5th right fielder Manny Ramirez hit a solo home run, but in the bottom of the 5th Jeff Conine had an RBI single, and Johnson would be walked, which led to a wild pitch to score Bonilla. Indians first baseman Jim Thome hit a solo home run in the top of the 6th, and pinch-hitting outfielder Brian Giles had an RBI double in the top of the 8th.

The Indians came back to win Game 2 on October 19 6-1. In the 1st inning Justice had an RBI single. In the bottom of the 1st Conine had his own RBI single. In the top of the 5th Indians center fielder Marquis Grissom and second baseman Bip Roberts both had RBI singles. Catcher Sandy Alomar then hit a solo home run in the top of the 6th.

Jacobs Field would host Game 3 on October 21, and the Marlins would win in a wild 14-11 shootout. Gary Sheffield hit a solo home run in the top of the 1st, followed by a pair of RBI singles by Indians third baseman Matt Williams and Alomar in the bottom of the 1st. Sheffield then drew a bases loaded walk in the top of the 3rd to score Johnson, and then Darren Daulton hit a solo home run in the top of the 4th. In the bottom of the 4th Indians shortstop Omar Vizquel drew a bases loaded walk to score Alomar, and then Ramirez followed with a 2-run single. Thome then went deep for a 2-run home run in the bottom of the 5th.

In the top of the 6th Jim Eisenrich hit a 2-run home run, and then Renteria had an RBI single in the top of the 7th, followed by an RBI double by Sheffield. In the top of the 9th, Daulton had an RBI single, Cliff Floyd reached on a ground ball error to score Daulton, and then Craig Counsell reached on an error to score Floyd. Bonilla and Sheffield then had a pair of RBI singles. In the bottom of the 9th Indians second baseman Tony Fernandez had a sacrifice fly, Grissom had an RBI single, and Roberts had an RBI double.

The Indians came back to pound the Marlins 10-3 in Game 4 on October 22. Manny Ramirez blasted a 2-run home run in the bottom of the 1st inning, followed by an RBI double by Sandy Alomar, and then in the bottom of the 3rd inning Justice, Alomar and Fernandez all had RBI singles. In the top of the 4th Eisenrich had an RBI single for the Marlins, and Alou hit a 2-run home run in the top of the 6th, but Cleveland would shut the door quickly after that. Alomar grounded out to score Vizquel in the bottom of the 6th, Giles had an RBI single in the bottom of the 7th, and Matt Williams hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 8th.

In another high-scoring affair, the Marlins claimed an 8-7 victory in Game 5 on October 23. Charles Johnson had an RBI single in the top of the 2nd inning, followed by a Devon White RBI double. After an RBI single in the bottom of the 2nd, Alomar came back in the bottom of the 3rd to crush a 3-run home run. However, Alou would crush his own 3-run home run in the top of the 6th, followed by a bases loaded walk to White which scored Conine. After an RBI single by Johnson in the top of the 8th, Alou had his own RBI single in the top of the 9th. A pair of RBI singles by Justice and Thome in the bottom of the 9th wasn’t enough for the Indians.

To their credit, the Indians evened the series as 3 games apiece by winning Game 6 on October 25 4-1 at Pro Player Stadium. Indians pitcher Chad Ogea had a 2-run single in the top of the 2nd, and then Manny Ramirez hit sacrifice flies in the top of the 3rd and 5th innings. Darren Daulton’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 5th proved to be meaningless for Florida.

The stage was then set for Game 7 on October 26 in a “Winner Take All” situation. In the top of the 3rd inning Tony Fernandez had a 2-run single. In the bottom of the 7th inning Bobby Bonilla hit a solo home run. In the bottom of the 9th Craig Counsell hit a sacrifice fly to score the tying run, and in the bottom of the 11th inning with 2 outs, Edgar Renteria hit an RBI single up the middle to win it for the Marlins. Florida won 3-2 to win their first World Series title in franchise history. Livan Hernandez would be named World Series Most Valuable Player.