Mattingly v Dodgers
Finally, what better team for the Miami Marlins to play spoiler against than the Los Angeles Dodgers?
The entire NLCS is pretty much being regarded as a warmup act for whoever Los Angeles will get to play in the World Series. The Dodgers are built for a deep run, and should have talent to overcome even Clayton Kershaw‘s legendary October miscues. The Dodgers have been to the playoffs for eight straight years, after all, thanks to eight straight NL West titles.
Of course, Dave Roberts himself has not. The skipper for the first three of those division titles? That would be current Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly, who came to viewed as a much better reason for not advancing deep into the playoffs than Kershaw flaming out in elimination games.
Maybe the time was right for a change. Maybe it really was the mutual parting it was presented as to the media at the time. That doesn’t mean it still wouldn’t be sweet for Mattingly to finally get a chance to put one over on his former club though. You could easily argue that, other than the Houston Astros or the Boston Red Sox, no team in the playoff field offers a better storyline for taking on the Dodgers than that one.
The Miami Marlins Fingerprints Are All Over These Playoffs
Finally, the Dodgers are just one example of a plethora of Miami Marlins connections with the rest of the playoff field.
It’s no secret that the Marlins have done a lot of wheeling and dealing in their history. That when players got too expensive, they either weren’t re-signed, or were sent packing. That a few too many promising prospects were dealt away with no consideration for the long-term ramifications. That a few too many firesales have transpired, including the most recent following the 2017 season.
Consequently, the Miami Marlins fingerprints are all over these playoffs.
The Dodgers tie in has been established. The Braves? A showdown with two ex-Marlins in Marcell Ozuna and Adeiny Hechavarria awaits, not to mention the whole division winner/wild card dynamic discussed earlier. The Milwaukee Brewers? An opportunity to relitigate the virtues of the widely lampooned Christian Yelich trade. Both the Cincinnati Reds and San Diego Padres feature pitching staffs led by a former Marlins prospect- prospects traded for mediocre veterans acquired for failed playoff bids. Of course, the Marlins aren’t the only club that has burned through prospects to make a playoff push. Staff ace Sandy Alcantara was once the pride of the St. Louis Cardinals organization- a trade the Cardinals would surely take back right about now.
Understandably, thanks to free agency, every team can play this six degrees of Kevin Bacon game to some extent. But MLB would be hardpressed to find a team that can pull it off more successfully than Miami.
Bottom-line, this wacky expanded postseason needs some new blood to make a deep run. And there’s no better candidate for 2020 MLB playoff poster child than the Miami Marlins.