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Miami Marlins Opening Day 2018: 20 Years later, same story?

By Sean Millerick

MIAMI, : Florida Marlins 1997 World Series players, from left, Darren Daulton, Gary Sheffield, Charles Johnson and Bobby Bonilla congratulate each other after receiving their World Series championship rings during a ceromony held 05 April at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Florida. The Marlins beat the Cleveland Indians in the best-of-seven series to win the 1997 World Series. AFP PHOTO/Rhona WISE (Photo credit should read RHONA WISE/AFP/Getty Images)
MIAMI, : Florida Marlins 1997 World Series players, from left, Darren Daulton, Gary Sheffield, Charles Johnson and Bobby Bonilla congratulate each other after receiving their World Series championship rings during a ceromony held 05 April at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Florida. The Marlins beat the Cleveland Indians in the best-of-seven series to win the 1997 World Series. AFP PHOTO/Rhona WISE (Photo credit should read RHONA WISE/AFP/Getty Images) /
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Almost twenty years ago to the day, the Miami Marlins opened up a new season against the Chicago Cubs. Will this season play out the same way?

The Opening Day of the 1998 MLB season saw the defending World Champions get off to a hot start. In front of a sell out crowd, the Miami Marlins collected their championship rings, before proceeding to clobber the Chicago Cubs 11-6.

Of course, that’s not the whole story.

While fans did pack the stadium that day, it was more about saying goodbye than it was warmly welcoming a new season. While Opening Day starter Livan Hernandez did win the World Series MVP Award, he was also the fourth best starting pitcher on the 1997 Marlins.

Six months later, he was unquestionably the ace. The offseason had already seen top starters Kevin Brown and Al Leiter, closer Robb Nen, All-Star Moises Alou, and fan favorite Jeff Conine dealt away. And there were no illusions, unless you were an optimistic 13-year old anyway, that more moves weren’t coming. Charles Johnson and Gary Sheffield both homered against the Cubs that day. No one in that stadium believed they’d finish the season in the same uniforms they took the field in.

The rest is infamous history. The 1998 Miami Marlins did go on to trade away many more players, en route to a 54-108 season good enough to place last in the majors. Opening Day 1998 was bittersweet to the extreme, but would also arguably serve as the best Marlins moment for the next three seasons.

So it struck me as all kinds of fascinating that almost twenty years to the day, this same Miami Marlins franchise found themselves in an eerily similar situation. True, having a player win the National League MVP after pacing the majors in homers is not the same thing as a championship. But the sudden talent swing feels similar to be sure, and fans were once again left reeling.

Apparently, the 2018 season did not get off to anything resembling a fast start. Two outs into the top of the first inning, Miami Marlins starting pitcher Jose Urena had more hits than the Chicago Cubs, plunking two batters in a three-run inning that began with a first-pitch home run from Ian Happ.

The Marlins went on to lose 8-4.

The debate for me, is what felt worse? The contrast between rings and reality in 1998, or this recent revamping in 2018? And what can fans expect the rest of the way here? Something akin to that 1998 fiasco, or something more bearable to watch?

Personally, yesterday’s contest was easily the more painful. The 1997 club raised baseball’s profile in my young eyes, but it was a natural pivot back to Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins. Every team in South Florida had made the playoffs within the last year. Plus, while 1998 was a horror show for the Miami Marlins, it was the year that saved baseball for the rest of the country. Baseball still felt fun, and turning out to the ballpark to watch the likes of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa was all kinds of exciting.

If nothing else, the Miami Marlins were world champions for a whole year. Cool feeling to be sure.

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Fast forward twenty years and the circumstances are very different. Again, this wasn’t a 100-win club that just got dismantled. The Miami Marlins haven’t won a title since 2003. They haven’t even had a winning season since 2009. But the love affair with baseball, that’s been fully embraced at this point. The 1998 fire sale felt…weird. 

This time around, things felt personal. Despite the losing records, it would have been easy to make the case the Marlins were the most talented team in South Florida. Certainly more talented than the Dolphins. Blowing that up stings, especially in the sport where finding and developing talent is hardest.

Not even a home run chase will take the sting out of things this time around as, more likely than not, just traded superstar Giancarlo Stanton will be the one leading the charge.

However, when it comes to the bottom-line record, Miami Marlins fans were given plenty of reason to believe this season will not be a record setter. The Cubs only outhit Miami by one. The team battled back really quickly from that nightmare top of the first, even answering in the bottom of the same inning. These Marlins will score, far more than the average fan would think I’d wager. This is not a club that is going to challenge for a place in the history books.

Next: The good, the bad, and the ugly - Opening Day

Despite that though, when it comes to actually experiencing this season, Miami Marlins fans would still do well to brace for the hardest season to watch in twenty years.

And possibly the hardest ever.

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