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Posted on Tue, Apr. 03, 2012
Miami Marlins fall to Yankees, still working on kinks
By MANNY NAVARRO
mnavarro@MiamiHerald.com
Joe Rimkus Jr. / Staff Photo
Jose Reyes throws over Nick Swisher (33) during an exhibition game between the Miami Marlins and the New York Yankees at Marlins Park in Miami on April 2,2012.
Marlins Park went through its fifth and final dress rehearsal Monday night.
Starting Wednesday, the games finally count.
And nobody might be happier about that than manager Ozzie Guillen, who is eager to see the talk turn from the new $634 million baseball palace to the team the Marlins spent $191 million tinkering with this offseason.
“To be honest with you, I cannot wait for the day off [on Friday] in Cincinnati — I’m going to sleep,” said Guillen, a couple hours before the Marlins dropped their last exhibition of the spring 5-2 to the New York Yankees in front of a bipartisan crowd of 32,005.
“We’ve got a beautiful house, but if the people who live in the house aren’t good, you’re not going to have fun in the house. To me, it’s all about winning. There may be five teams in the big leagues who can lose and still bring people to the ballpark. We cannot.”
A sellout crowd of more than 37,000 and a national TV audience on ESPN await the Marlins on Wednesday night. So, too, do the defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, who will practice at Marlins Park at 4 p.m. Tuesday, two hours before the home team takes the field at 6. The public is invited to come and watch for free.
Although Guillen said his team is healthy and ready to start chasing its first division title — outfielders Logan Morrison and Mike Stanton included, team president David Samson said there are still a few kinks left to iron out at the new $634 million baseball palace.
He went through a laundry list Monday as the Marlins took batting practice:
•Traffic congestion “on the main artery” of Northwest 7th Street has to improve, Samson said.
“Getting off the highway on the 836 Expressway West and 12th Avenue was backed up way too far,” Samson said. “We’re trying to figure out how to deal with that [traffic] light, maybe by encouraging people to take the 14th Street exit off the 836. But a lot of people found a lot of ancillary lots, which is great. All those extra spots that are available, that’s starting to work itself out.”
•A small leak in the roof track in Section 320, which caused 15 season-ticket holders to be relocated Sunday, has been patched up.
Air conditioning vents in sections 8, 9, 10, 11 and 18 through 24 that were pointed too far down and caused some fans to feel like they were inside a freezer have been adjusted.
“We went through each section, and now the vents are more pointed out toward the field, which is how they should have been,” Samson said. “We’ll keep adjusting as we go.”
•The Marlins are also encouraging fans without bags to use “express lanes” to get into the stadium, keeping lines shorter. “It’s like Disney World. The no-bag lane is always a good one,” Samson said.
•The public address system, which sounds muffled in the upper levels of the stadium, is being tinkered with. “That’s something that’s adjusted in ballparks for years,” Samson said. “You adjust which way speakers are pointed. Different volumes.”
•The team is bringing in a new cellphone antenna to help with service for AT&T and Sprint phones, which were struggling to receive text messages.
•One thing the Marlins ironed out Monday was how and when they’ll make the decision to keep the retractable roof open or closed on days and nights when it doesn’t rain.
“Basically if it’s going to be under 80 degrees with less than 60 percent humidity at first pitch, we’ll keep it open,” Samson said. “Anything over that, there’s no chance.”
The Marlins closed the roof Monday to ward off the afternoon heat, then reopened it about 15 minutes before first pitch.
•The Marlins, who struggled at the plate for most of this spring, outhit the Yankees 10-5, but couldn’t drive in runs. If there was a positive from Monday’s game it was seeing Morrison rob Raul Ibanez of an extra-base hit in the second inning.
Morrison, who missed most of the spring with swelling in his left knee, ran back to the outfield wall and made a stellar over-the-shoulder catch.
“I want to thank my knee for not hurting me too bad [Monday]. It felt way better [Monday] than it did [Sunday],” Morrison said. “It’s just one of those things you have to manage.”
Miami Marlins fall to Yankees, still working on kinks
By MANNY NAVARRO
mnavarro@MiamiHerald.com
Joe Rimkus Jr. / Staff Photo
Jose Reyes throws over Nick Swisher (33) during an exhibition game between the Miami Marlins and the New York Yankees at Marlins Park in Miami on April 2,2012.
Marlins Park went through its fifth and final dress rehearsal Monday night.
Starting Wednesday, the games finally count.
And nobody might be happier about that than manager Ozzie Guillen, who is eager to see the talk turn from the new $634 million baseball palace to the team the Marlins spent $191 million tinkering with this offseason.
“To be honest with you, I cannot wait for the day off [on Friday] in Cincinnati — I’m going to sleep,” said Guillen, a couple hours before the Marlins dropped their last exhibition of the spring 5-2 to the New York Yankees in front of a bipartisan crowd of 32,005.
“We’ve got a beautiful house, but if the people who live in the house aren’t good, you’re not going to have fun in the house. To me, it’s all about winning. There may be five teams in the big leagues who can lose and still bring people to the ballpark. We cannot.”
A sellout crowd of more than 37,000 and a national TV audience on ESPN await the Marlins on Wednesday night. So, too, do the defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, who will practice at Marlins Park at 4 p.m. Tuesday, two hours before the home team takes the field at 6. The public is invited to come and watch for free.
Although Guillen said his team is healthy and ready to start chasing its first division title — outfielders Logan Morrison and Mike Stanton included, team president David Samson said there are still a few kinks left to iron out at the new $634 million baseball palace.
He went through a laundry list Monday as the Marlins took batting practice:
•Traffic congestion “on the main artery” of Northwest 7th Street has to improve, Samson said.
“Getting off the highway on the 836 Expressway West and 12th Avenue was backed up way too far,” Samson said. “We’re trying to figure out how to deal with that [traffic] light, maybe by encouraging people to take the 14th Street exit off the 836. But a lot of people found a lot of ancillary lots, which is great. All those extra spots that are available, that’s starting to work itself out.”
•A small leak in the roof track in Section 320, which caused 15 season-ticket holders to be relocated Sunday, has been patched up.
Air conditioning vents in sections 8, 9, 10, 11 and 18 through 24 that were pointed too far down and caused some fans to feel like they were inside a freezer have been adjusted.
“We went through each section, and now the vents are more pointed out toward the field, which is how they should have been,” Samson said. “We’ll keep adjusting as we go.”
•The Marlins are also encouraging fans without bags to use “express lanes” to get into the stadium, keeping lines shorter. “It’s like Disney World. The no-bag lane is always a good one,” Samson said.
•The public address system, which sounds muffled in the upper levels of the stadium, is being tinkered with. “That’s something that’s adjusted in ballparks for years,” Samson said. “You adjust which way speakers are pointed. Different volumes.”
•The team is bringing in a new cellphone antenna to help with service for AT&T and Sprint phones, which were struggling to receive text messages.
•One thing the Marlins ironed out Monday was how and when they’ll make the decision to keep the retractable roof open or closed on days and nights when it doesn’t rain.
“Basically if it’s going to be under 80 degrees with less than 60 percent humidity at first pitch, we’ll keep it open,” Samson said. “Anything over that, there’s no chance.”
The Marlins closed the roof Monday to ward off the afternoon heat, then reopened it about 15 minutes before first pitch.
•The Marlins, who struggled at the plate for most of this spring, outhit the Yankees 10-5, but couldn’t drive in runs. If there was a positive from Monday’s game it was seeing Morrison rob Raul Ibanez of an extra-base hit in the second inning.
Morrison, who missed most of the spring with swelling in his left knee, ran back to the outfield wall and made a stellar over-the-shoulder catch.
“I want to thank my knee for not hurting me too bad [Monday]. It felt way better [Monday] than it did [Sunday],” Morrison said. “It’s just one of those things you have to manage.”
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