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Mike Stanton, all 20 years of him, has officially planted himself among the best power hitters in all of baseball. His .569 slugging percentage, a true indicator of power, ranks 13th in the majors for players with at least 200 at-bats. He already has five homers midway through the month of august.

The kid is 20-years-old!

His batting average has spiked over the last 10 games, jumping forty points to its current standing at .275. With runners in scoring position, only Gaby Sanchez (.327) bests Stanton’s .307 mark among Marlins who play consistently.

Most guys his age are thinking about girls and their next meal, while Stanton is achieving great success at the most difficult task in professional sports, hitting a baseball.

His age clearly shows during interviews with a bunch of “ya knows” thrown into his dialogue. When that’s the main thing the superstar-in-the-making can improve upon, his future looks even brighter.

This fascinating physical specimen has just moved up to the number five spot in the order, with the team looking to capitalize off his sizzling bat.

“It’s not that big of a deal,” Stanton said of the switch. “It doesn’t really matter. Wherever I’m at, it doesn’t really matter, as long as I’m in there.”

The fact that he speaks with such a humble attitude is astounding as well. Here’s a guy who had the athleticism to play any major sport of his choosing collegiately. He was thrown into the majors after just a couple of seasons in the minors and still, his head remains straight.

His swing is pure beauty. Watching the poor, tiny baseball explode off the barrel of his bat is comparable to picking up your first Playboy, or if that’s not your thing, watching a champion racehorse in full stride coming around the final turn.

My hat goes out to Stanton, and I’m petrified when I think about how great of a player he will be three years from now when he’s an old man at 23.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Logan Morrison has a lot of potential, but how good can he be? 

Let’s look at his underlying statistics compared to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ James Loney to see if there are any conclusions we can draw:

Double-A (Age 21): Statistics

James Loney (2005)—284 (143-of-504), 11 HR, 65 RBI, 74 R, 87 K, 59 BB
Logan Morrison (2009)—.277 (77-of-278), eight HR, 47 RBI, 48 R, 46 K, 63 BB

Metrics

Loney – 40 percent fly ball, 17 percent linedrive, .330 BABIP, .361 OBP, .425 SLG
Morrison – 28.6 percent flyball, 19.8 percent line drive, .305 BABIP, .414 OBP, .436 SLG

Triple-A (Age 22): Statistics

James Loney (2006)—.380 (139-366), eight HR, 67 RBI, 64 R, 34 K, 32 BB
Logan Morrison (2010)—.307 (73-238), six HR, 45 RBI, 36 R, 35 K, 48 BB

Metrics
Loney—35.2 percent flyball, 25.1 percent line drive, .404 BABIP, .426 OBP, .546 SLG
Morrison—35.9 percent fly ball, 13.6 percent line drive, .340 BABIP, .427 OBP, .487 SLG

Other Notes:

• Both hit left-handed
• Morrison is listed at 6′4,″ 245 lbs; Loney is listed at 6′3,″ 200 lbs.
• Loney got a chance to play in the Major Leagues in 2006, but was returned to Triple-A in 2007 (but would return to the Majors for good later in ‘07).

Thoughts:

This is not the most exact comparison for a few reasons:

• Loney actually spent two years at Double-A, the one listed above being the second of them.
• Loney showed more extra base ability in the minor leagues, having 64 doubles over the two seasons listed above. Morrison had just 35.  That can partially be explained in their line drive rates, especially in their Triple-A seasons.
• Morrison appears to have a better eye at the plate, walking more than he struck out at both levels.

I think the doubles discrepancy is the most important one to note. 

With his ability to hit doubles, many people speculated that as he grew older, Loney would gain power and elevation, leading to more home runs. 

He further deceived everyone when he reached the Major Leagues in 2007, hitting 15 home runs in 344 at-bats. 

It was a mirage, however, as the power has never come close to that in the following years.

I fear that Morrison could go down a similar path. 

The problem is that he also hasn’t shown the same type of line drive rate or extra base ability in the upper levels of the minor leagues. 

It’s easy to point to his 24 home runs at Single-A, but he hasn’t come close to that since being promoted.

You love to see his eye, which could make him the perfect No. 2 hitter in the Marlins order (which is where he currently is hitting). It should allow him to hit for a good average and, if he remains towards the top of the order, score some runs.

However, from a first baseman, fantasy owners want to see home runs. His power metrics show less hope than Loney’s at the same point in his career. 

Hopefully Morrison is able to develop a little more power, but at this point you can’t like what we’ve seen. I could argue that Loney’s metrics appeared more likely for power, and we’ve seen where that has led him (13 HR apiece in 2008 & 2009 and eight HR thus far in 2010).

What are your thoughts on Morrison? Is the comparison to Loney a good one? Who do you think will be the better player long-term?

Make sure to check out our recent Scouting Reports:

• Elvis Andrus
• Brett Cecil
• Wade Davis
• David DeJesus
• Ian Desmond
• Jason Donald
• John Ely
• Brett Gardner
• Gio Gonzalez
• Tom Gorzelanny
• John Jaso
• Kila Ka’aihue
• Mat Latos
• Brad Lincoln
• Jonathan Lucroy
• James McDonald
• Kris Medlen
• Mike Minor
• Brett Myers
• Jonathan Niese
• Andrew Oliver
• Manny Parra
• Jake Peavy
• Buster Posey
• Sean Rodriguez
• Pablo Sandoval
• Mike Stanton
• Andres Torres
• Travis Wood

This article is also featured on WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Marlins are having a rather poor season but don’t count them out of the Playoff hunt yet, they are just one winning streak away from being in the reach of their first playoff appearance since 2003.

But after a sweep by the Reds, the Marlins need to make serious adjustments in order to stay alive and keep their playoff hopes alive.

Here are the 5 thing that the Marlins are going to have to do to get to the postseason.

Begin Slideshow

The Marlins, a young franchise, with two World Series titles on their resume, have to be excited for the future.  Over the years they have been the subject of ridicule for their attendance numbers and low payroll.  The fan base has witnessed not one, but two World Series teams get dismantled for financial reasons.

However, now more than ever, the enthusiasm behind this team is growing and here are the ten reasons why:

Begin Slideshow

For the past month the marlins have had a rough time with umpires and controversial calls.

The first event was the foul ball that was fair and would’ve given the marlins a walk off win against the NL east rival Phillies.

Now just recently against the Reds, in a rather important series, Marlins catcher Bret Hayes was in an at-bat where he was hit on the leg with a pitch and the home plate umpire called it a foul tip.

The pitch on instant replay clearly demonstrated that Hayes couldn’t have swung and touched the ball since it was very inside.

Now as I had expected manager Edwin Rodriguez defended his catcher and began to talk to the Home Plate Umpire Phil Cuzzi. What Rodriguez said was unclear, but I’m extremely sure that he had asked for help from the first base umpire.

Though from what I can only guess is arrogance, Cuzzi felt it unnecessary since he thought he had the call right.

He was clearly wrong.

I don’t care if he was hit or not, it doesn’t bother me at all. What does bother me is when a manager asks for a second opinion it should be given, especially when the home plate umpire doesn’t have a full and complete view of the play.

One of those calls have already cost the marlins a game and it’s a shame to lose games on bad calls.

An umpire shouldn’t feel  embarrassed about a bad call, and if he is in doubt he should consult the call with his umpiring crew (that is one of the reasons why they are there).

This is a call out to all umpires, use your umpiring crew, just because you screw up once doesn’t mean you have to continue to look like a fool by saying that you got the call right when you clearly didn’t.

After this controversy I strongly suggest the MLB make changes to the way umpires referee games. It is frustrating to players, frustrating to fans, and takes a toll on the sport.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

As the fantasy baseball trade deadline approaches, its getting closer and closer to the time when you need to lock-in your rosters. As always, benching the bad and starting the good can keep your team atop the standings for your stretch-run into the playoffs. Let’s take a look at some players you can acquire through trades or just through free agency.

Start ‘Em

David Murphy |Texas Rangers| 12.8% :  Over the last three years Murphy has hit .417 with 3 HRs 10 RBI in only 36 at-bats at Camden Yards, one of the parks he’ll see this week.  Against the other team he faces this week, Tampa Bay, Murphy has hit .345 with eight of his 19 hits for extra-bases.  His current hot streak should help propel him into a strong upcoming week.

Pedro Alvarez |Pittsburgh Pirates| 25% :  The ever increasingly hot rookie is poised for a big week. All week long he will have the benefit of home field where he’s hitting .287 with a .352 OBP. At home, nine of his ten home runs have been hit there, his average is 100 points higher and his OPS is a whopping 422 points higher!

Mike Stanton |Florida Marlins| 39.2% :  The upcoming away series at Houston should be great for Stanton owners. He has hit 140 points higher on the road (.327 avg. /.398 OBP / 1.081OPS away!!!). Those stats and his current hot streak in addition to the seemingly regular poor performances of the Pittsburgh pitching staff, should equate to a great week.

Sit ‘Em

Ike Davis |New York Mets| 28.1% :  Davis has been cold of late and this upcoming week shouldn’t warrant you taking any chances on this Met.  Both of his games this week come away from Citi Field.  On the road Davis is hitting .223 with a .288 OBP.  Further dowsing the fire is his .227 avg. since the All-Star break.  Leave him on the waiver wire where he belongs.

Brett Gardner |New York Yankees| 99.7% :  Gardner has been horrid since the All-Star break.  He’s hitting .174 with a .296 OBP in the 69 at-bats since.  Adding to his problems is his combined stats against the Tigers and Mariners, next week’s opponents.  He’s hitting a combined .219 and going two for three in steals in 32 at-bats against those teams.  Hitting 15 points higher at home might help him out, but don’t count on it.

Two-Start Pitchers To Use

Jonathon Niese |New York Mets| 15.5% :  The two teams he faces in the upcoming week have very limited at-bats against him and are batting .067 against him in this limited sample.  The main reason for Niese’s strong upcoming week is both Houston and Pittsburgh’s stats against left-handed pitching.  Houston is the fourth-worst team in the NL against lefties (.250 avg., .306 OBP) and Pittsburgh is the second-worst hitting team against lefties in all of baseball (.244 avg., .312 OBP).  Look for Niese to keep his WHIP low and hopefully score some wins for the reeling Mets.

Brett Anderson |Oakland A’s| 81% :  Next week Anderson faces a few teams that have some pop in there lineup.  Don’t be timid though, every major power threat on both the Blue Jays and Rays is a right-handed batter.  His career mark against righties is .239, and this year he has continued to lower it by keeping them to a .208 avg.  Two more facts will help keep the balls in the park against Anderson.  He has one of the best ground to fly-ball ratios in the majors this year (1.34) and both games will be at home in the Coliseum, the third-worst park for homeruns in the majors.

Two-Start Pitchers To Avoid

Jon Garland |San Diego Padres| 55.1% :  Garland’s career numbers at Wrigley exhibit a 5.50 ERA and a 1.67 WHIP.  Mix that with his numbers this year away from spacious PETCO Park (4.52 ERA and a .267 BAA) and you have a recipe for a benching.

Rich Harden |Texas Rangers| 39.4% :  Those of you hoping for a turnaround in the oft-injured Harden should keep hoping for a new week.  His career numbers against the Rays are bleak: 32 innings of 5.01 ERA and 1.42 WHIP.  Considering both of his starts are away this upcoming week it’s also advised to take note of his ERA outside of the Ballpark in Arlington this year (6.40 ERA and 11 HRs in only 45 innings), ironic for being such a hitter-friendly park.

Hind Sight

Here we take a look at last week’s decisions and whether they might have paid off or not.  All hind sight stats are through the end of games on Friday, August 13^th.

Start ‘Em:

Bill Hall |Boston Red Sox| : .235 avg. .250 OBP 2 Runs 2 HRs 4 RBI.  The batting average isn’t stellar but if you picked him up for the power and RBI production then you have reaped the benefits so far.

Chris Johnson |Houston Astros| : .429 avg. .467 OBP 2 Runs 4 RBI.  Chris Johnson continues to stay hot.  With trade deadlines approaching, now is a great time to get him if he’s still available in your league.

Jon Jay |St. Louis Cardinals| : .333 avg. .368 OBP 3 Runs 1 RBI.  So far it has been a great decision if you did pickup/start Jay.  The guy can rake and even though he can’t help in every category, he’s an asset to the one’s he can help.

Sit ‘Em:

Jack Cust |Oakland A’s| : .333 avg. 5Ks in 12 ABs.  This is a small sample size through the week so far, yet the four strikeouts is a lot in only seven at-bats.  Overall, this was a so-so sit, better if your league has a strikeout category for hitters.

Jay Bruce |Cincinnati Reds| :  .333 avg. in 9 ABs with 1 HR 3 RBI .  Of course he hits one out right before I submit this article.  Thanks for making me look bad.

Pitchers To Use:

Max Scherzer |Detroit Tigers|:  7IP 4H 1ER 4BB 2K

Ervin Santana |Los Angeles Angels|:  6.1P 6H 3ER 1BB 3K

Pitchers To Avoid:

Jair Jurrjens |Atlanta Braves|:  7.1IP 6H 1ER 1BB 3K

Edwin Jackson |Chicago White Sox|:  6IP 6H 1ER 1BB 7K

All Statistical Information was obtained through ESPN.com

Written exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com by James Bryce.  James is a Grad student at UCSD and is currently in his 13th year of fantasy sports.

Got a two-start pitching candidate for week 20?  
Leave a comment and let us know, or reply to us on twitter @TheFantasyFix

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Shortly after securing their future long-term home, Marlins Ballpark, in Little Havana near Downtown Miami, the Marlins began their long-term deals with their marquee players. 

In 2008, the Marlins signed their all-star shortstop Hanley Ramirez to a six year, $70 million extension that goes through the 2014 season. It was their first such long-term deal since they signed first baseman Carlos Delgado to a five year deal in 2005. 

The Marlins continued that trend by locking up their ace, Josh Johnson to a four year extension worth $39 million in 2010. 

In order to keep their nucleus intact and the future bright, the Marlins must continue to fortify their long-term investments by signing a few others to long-term deals as well. 

Begin Slideshow

Shortstop is a top heavy position in fantasy baseball. After five or six elite guys and three to four more decent options, the bottom falls out fast. Those playing in the popular ten-team mixed leagues might not have too much trouble filling their SS spot, but those in deeper leagues will most likely be scrambling for production. At this point in the roto season, the best thing you can do is to see which categories you can still pick up points, and use your SS spot to go after those category-specific needs.

TIER 1
Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins, 100 percent owned
There is a lot of talk going around about Hanley’s “down” year.  Sure, he had all of one extra base hit in July, and his WAR (Wins Above Replacement) is significantly lower than it has been in previous years, but ESPN’s player rater shows he has been the best shortstop to this point. His current BABIP (Batting Average on Balls In Play) is 44 points lower than his career average, and he is striking out less while walking more. He is going to be fine.

Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies, 100 percent owned
The only thing to worry about with Tulo is him missing more time due to injury, because he has been fantastic when in the lineup.  The numbers he has put up in 2010 would look like this scaled out to a full 162 game season: .315, 23 HR, 16 SB, 114 RBI, 98 R.

Jose Reyes, New York Mets, 100 percent owned
The majority of Reyes’s fantasy value is in his ability to steal bases. As we all know, you have to get on base to steal bases.  Unfortunately, Reyes currently has his lowest OBP since his rookie year primarily because he is swinging at more balls outside of the strike zone and walking less. As a result, his SB/AB percent is .052, which is significantly lower than his previous career low of .081 in 2008.

Alexei Ramirez, Chicago White Sox, 100 percent owned
Take away Alexei’s awful month of April (.221, 1 HR, 1 SB, 13 K, 1 BB), and the South Side shortstop has a line of .293, 10 HR, 7 SB, 48 R, and 35 RBI. 

Elvis Andrus, Texas Rangers, 100 percent owned
Andrus has plenty of value because he leads all shortstops in steals with 27 and is second in runs with 67. However, his groundball rate is up and his fly ball rate is down, which has led to 100 singles (out of 115 hits), zero homers, and an embarrassingly low slugging percentage of .316. 

TIER 2
Derek Jeter, New York Yankees, 100 percent owned
Some might argue that Jeter’s lower-than-usual batting average is a result of his BABIP being 45 points lower than his career average. However, if you read the Fix’s latest sabermetrics article BABIP For Dummies, you know that a hitter can influence his BABIP by legging out infield singles and shooting the gaps between defenders. Unfortunately for Jeter, he may be slowing down with age, and he is not driving the ball like he used to because, according to Fangraphs, his line drive rate is down almost three percent from his career average.

Jimmy Rollins, Philadelphia Phillies, 100 percent owned
Since winning the NL MVP in 2007, Rollins has hit just .260 in 1,434 AB with 36 homers and 87 steals (only nine this year in 239 AB). Going forward, he is still a 15/30 candidate, but not the elite player he used to be.

Rafael Furcal, Los Angeles Dodgers, 100 percent owned
In 76 games, Furcal has hit .316 with eight HR, 18 SB, 57 R, and 39 RBI. All of those numbers look great except one. The 76 games. Furcal has missed 32 games this year and six in a row. If he was not such an injury risk, then he would be much higher on this list.

Starlin Castro, Chicago Cubs, 82.5 percent owned
Over the last 30 days, the rookie has hit .390 with 13 R, one HR, 11 RBI and four SB. Sure, the average is likely to come down, but Castro gives you a little bit of something in all five categories.

TIER 3
Erick Aybar, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 89.6 percent owned
There are quite a few speed options still to come on this list, but Aybar (16 SB) is the best of the bunch because of his run production (62 so far this year) and an average that will not kill you (.276).

Juan Uribe, San Francisco Giants, 91.9 percent owned
Odds are Uribe is not available in your league, but if he is and you need power, then Uribe and his 15 home runs are just what the doctor ordered.

Jeff Keppinger, Houston Astros, 40.8 percent owned
As unexciting as Keppinger is, he is a guy who provides decent counting number production (45 R, 40 RBI), and his .290 average is here to stay because he walks more than he strikes out and has a very normal BABIP of .303.

Marco Scutaro, Boston Red Sox, 89.8 percent owned
As unexciting as Keppinger is, Scutaro is even less exciting. However, he has seven homers, a decent .275 average, and is third among SS’s with 65 runs.

Stephen Drew, Arizona Diamondbacks, 79.2 percent owned
Maybe Drew will eventually turn into the elite player many thought he would be, but for now, he is basically Jeff Keppinger with a little more power/speed and a poorer average due to a 19.9 strikeout percentage.

Jerry Hairston, Jr., San Diego Padres, 15.2 percent owned
Three homers, three steals, 17 runs, 14 RBI, and a .278 average over the last thirty days make Hairston a pretty decent option the rest of the way.

Yunel Escobar, Toronto Blue Jays, 49.8 percent owned
Alex Gonzalez, Atlanta Braves, 98 percent owned

Here is what the two have done since they were traded for each other on July 14:

                                    Yunel Escobar        Alex Gonzalez
Batting Average                  .253                      .259
HR/SB                                3/0                        3/0
R/RBI                                 10/13                    7/9

TIER 4
Ian Desmond, Washington Nationals, 8.4 percent owned
Desmond is a decent power/speed option with seven homers and twelve steals if you can handle the .260ish batting average.

Jason Bartlett, Tampa Bay Rays, 64.9 percent owned
Bartlett has been a disappointment this year, but he does have five steals
and a .282 average over the last thirty days, so maybe the guy who hit .320 and stole thirty last year is still in there somewhere.

Cliff Pennington, Oakland Athletics, 10.5 percent owned
Pennington is extremely streaky, but if you need speed, he has 17 steals on the year and is likely available in your league.

Omar Infante, Atlanta Braves, 40 percent owned
The injury to Martin Prado has opened up some playing time for Infante. So far, he has taken advantage of the extra AB’s by hitting .388 over the last fifteen days. He does not provide much else, but ride the hot streak while it lasts if you are desperate for average.

Just missed the cut: Asdrubal Cabrera (35.6 percent owned), Ryan Theriot (78.9 percent owned), Ronny Cedeno (1.4 percent owned), J.J. Hardy (32.3 percent owned)

(Percentages taken from ESPN. Stats current through 08/08)

Written by Brett Talley exclusively for thefantasyfix.com. Brett is a law student who cannot list the amendments of the Bill of Rights. You can follow him on Twitter @therealTAL.

Agree with the rankings?
Leave a comment and let us know, or reply to us on twitter@TheFantasyFix

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Roy Oswalt pitched a lot better in his second time around as a Phillie, going six innings and giving up two earned runs on his way to a no-decision.

But, that’s not the story of the game that cinched a series sweep for the Phillies over the Marlins.

After the Phillies gave up a four-run seventh inning, all looked lost heading into the ninth down by two runs. But, after a few clutch knocks by the red-hot Raul Ibanez and Jayson Werth, the game was tied heading into extras.

And once in extras, it didn’t take long for the Phils to break the tie.

Carlos Ruiz led off the inning by belting a home run over the left field wall on a 3-2 count to put the Phils up by one. They put runners in scoring position with no one out, but the Marlins did a good job of limiting the damage and the Phils’ defense took the field with a one-run lead in the bottom of the tenth.

Brad Lidge came out, took care of business, earned the save, and the Phils completed their sweep of the Marlins.

However, to the delight of Phillies fans and horror of Marlins fans, the outcome should have been much different.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Marlins had Hanley Ramirez on second, one out, and Gaby Sanchez at the plate. Sanchez ripped a Ryan Madson pitch down the third-base line, but the ball was ruled foul and Sanchez would later strike out.

But upon further review, it’s clear the wrong call was made.

On the replay, you can very clearly see the ball ride the line, hop over the bag, and actually land in fair territory before bouncing in the corner in left field. The ball even kicks up a little cloud of dirt where it lands, so there’s no doubt it should have been a fair ball.

The third-base ump saw things differently, the Marlins were robbed of a walk-off hit, and the Phillies would go on to extend their record to 60-48 and stay two games behind the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves.

It’s definitely good to see things starting to bounce the Phillies’ way at this point in the season, but it’s got to be a bit alarming that another obvious call is blown.

The Jim Joyce call got extra attention because it robbed Armando Galarraga of a perfect game, but this call was just as bad or, if you’re a Marlins fan, coach, or player, possibly worse.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

In Miami the talk of the town continues to be its Heat’s “Big Three.”

If anyone had been in another planet of late, we are talking about the trio of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh.

Of course, this is if you are a sports fan, as many people think of Miami as the place taken by the Kardashian trio sisters. It is summer time, and that means it is time to see such beauties as Kim in South Beach.

So lost in the thoughts of sunshine and basketball are the Florida Marlins.

As of now, not many people in town care about its team. The reason is a simple one: At the moment, it looks as if the franchise is looking toward the 2011 season and giving up its pursuit of the National League East crown or a wild card berth.

Most of South Florida chatter right now concerning October is all about the aforementioned Heat and its opening night in Miami against the Orlando Magic (October 29), or where the Miami Dolphins and the University of Miami Hurricanes will be in the standings around that time.

That is sad, because if Miami was a real baseball town the talk would have Dan Uggla as the man of the moment.

The should have been All-Star continued his recent home run binge, hitting his eighth in the past 10 games off Philadelphia’ Roy Halladay. It was Uggla’s 24th homer of the season.

As part of his homer spree, he became the Marlins franchise home run king, passing former Marlin Mike Lowell (143) July 31 against the San Diego Padres.

That is kind of unbelievable considering sluggers such as Gary Sheffield, Derrek Lee and Miguel Cabrera were once Marlins.

In the process, Uggla has established himself as a threat to Jeff Kent’s mark of nine consecutive 20-homer seasons from 1997-2005, the present major league record for a second baseman. But besides Uggla there are other second baseman making its own run.

Uggla already extended his streak to five years, while Philadelphia’ Chase Utley, currently on the disabled list, can run his streak to six with nine more dingers this year. Cincinnati’s Brandon Phillips needs six home runs to extend his 20-homer streak to four.

Last season Uggla became the only second basemen in history to hit 20-or-more home runs in its first four career campaigns. The other one was Hall of Famer Joe Gordon, who did it in four straight seasons from 1938-41.

Uggla, 30, also became the fastest second baseman ever to reach 100 homers.

At the moment, Uggla leads all second baseman with 145 homers since 2006. He also ranks 13th all-time in home runs by a second baseman.

And despite all that production, Uggla is going under the radar. And that is regrettable. Even if the Marlins’ playoff hopes are gone, this is a player right now to watch.

The Marlins brass has been on the record stating that they are listening to offers from other clubs, and they have not been clear if Uggla could be on the market. Everyone knows the Marlins are sellers at the moment.

However, lately it has been said that they are internally discussing the possibility of signing their Uggla to a long-term contract.

It is true that the Marlins are Hanley Ramirez’s team, just like the Heat is Dwayne Wade’s team. But Uggla could be the LeBron James to Ramirez’s Wade.

Most people forget that when Ramirez was selected in 2006 the National League Rookie of the Year, it was Uggla who won the same accolade  from The Sporting News and the players association.

It is understandable it is not the most easiest last name to remember. But no matter how everyone pronounces it Uggla is the man right now.

And right now that means that the Marlins need to retain him in their lineup when they do open their new stadium in 2012.

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