Miami Marlins: Just who Is playoff Michael Jordan for the ‘Fish’?
In honor of the 34th anniversary of his epic 63-point playoff game, just who is Michael Jordan for the Miami Marlins in the postseason?
Just like the fans of every other sports team in America, Miami Marlins fans had no new games to watch Sunday. So, just like fans of every other sports team in America, many Marlins fans were likely glued to their screen Sunday night to watch ESPN’s Michael Jordan docu-series The Last Dance.
The Last Dance, of course, chronicles the final championship of one of the greatest athletes of all-time, Jordan, and the 1997-1998 Chicago Bulls. The first two episodes of the ten-part series debuted Sunday, intermixing the first few years of Jordan’s career with the start of that last championship run in ’97.
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Two things jumped out to me while watching this. First off, that Michael Jordan was still playing basketball at an elite level the first time the Miami Marlins danced their own way through the postseason.
Secondly, just how unbelievably dominant Jordan was in Game 2 of his 1986 Eastern Conference Playoff series against the Boston Celtics. Jordan’s SIXTY-THREE POINTS in that game still stand as the NBA record for points in a postseason game.
Which he did exactly thirty-four years ago this Monday.
Naturally, that got me to thinking just who gets to claim that Michael Jordan playoff mantle for the Miami Marlins? Which Fish channeled their inner MJ when it mattered the most?
There are actually a lot of options to choose from. The Marlins, of course, have never lost a playoff series. They have two World Series titles to their name, with both rosters featuring elite talent. And in the case of the 2003 team, that elite talent should ultimately result in two first-ballot Hall of Famers.
One quick sticking point with baseball I wrestled with here was whether to just look at offense, or to consider pitchers as well. Wayne Gretzky’s multiple playoff hat tricks, or Steve Young lobbing six touchdowns in the Super Bowl seem, at first glance, like cleaner comparisons to Jordan’s sixty-three point effort than Alex Fernandez or Carl Pavano locking down the opposition on the mound.
But then I remembered that baseball pitchers are afforded an opportunity to dominate that no other sport provides, so pitchers do make the cut.
So, who is the Miami Marlins version of Michael Jordan? Which Marlin had the single most dominating playoff performance?
Let’s take a look at the contenders.