Fish Bytes

Logan Morrison talks about his return to the Marlins' lineup; Coghlan on his calf; roster updates

NEW YORK -- Logan Morrison was all smiles Sunday morning sitting in the Marlins dugout. 

The 25-year old first baseman, who is trying to battle back from two surgeries on his right knee over the past year and a half, was happy to be back with his teammates and in a major league lineup for the first time since last July 28. Is his knee finally 100 percent?

"I don't think it's 100 percent, but it's pretty close," said Morrison, who spent all of spring training walking in an anti-gravity suit on a treadmill before finally beginning a 16-game rehab assignment last month. "I'm happy with it. Hopefully I can stay away from walls and the adrenaline doesn't get the best of me.

"When I first started sliding on it, it bothered. But the last couple days sliding on it hasn't bothered it."

After learning mid-game Saturday in Birmingham he was flying up to New York to join the Marlins Sunday, the always easy going Morrison said he sent a text message to manager Mike Redmond during the 20-inning game saying 'I guess I'm flying to New York to pitch.'

Morrison hit just .179 with two homers, 10 RBI, six walks and four strikeouts over 56 at-bats during his time in Single A Jupiter and Double A Jacksonville. But he's confident his hitting stroke will eventually come back. "It's what I do," he said. "It will come back."

What does he hope to bring a team that has a 17-44 record, worst in the majors?

"I don't have any secrets for them. I don't have any cure-alls," he said. "It's just going to be about going out and competing. Turn it around a little bit. Just because we're young doesn't mean we're not good. We have all the talent in the world. Play like you know you're going to succeed. Call it cocky, call it arrogant, fine. When you go into second base and a guy hits into a ground ball double play let him feel you. If he turns that one, he's not going to turn the second one. That's how you've got to play. That's how I play."

DISAPPOINTED COGHLAN HEADS TO DISABLED LIST

The last thing Chris Coghlan wanted just as he was beginning to turn his career around was another trip to the disabled list. But that's where the 2009 National League Rookie of the Year is headed after losing his three-week battle with numbness in his right calf.

"My muscle is not firing. It hurts. It feels like a real tight feeling that I can't push," said Coghlan, who is supposed to undergo an MRI on Monday. "The DL sucks. I've been waiting a year and a half for this opportunity I got, so that sucks even more. It's disappointing. I'm frustrated, but at the end of the day I did what I could do. I grinded through it, and this is what's just in the cards for me. I've got to turn the page, be positive and do whatever I can do to get back here as soon as possible."

A pinch-hitter and reserve for the first month and a half of the season, Coghlan found his way into the starting lineup on May 18th and hit .343 with a homer and 9 RBI over his last 18 games. With a crowded outfield full of young prospects, the Marlins have talked about moving him to third base. It's a possibility that's where he'll be when he returns.

STANTON COULD BE BACK MONDAY

> All-Star right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, rehabbing in Single A Jupiter and trying to come back from a Grade 2 hamstring strain, text messaged Redmond and trainer Sean Cunningham Saturday to tell him he's ready to go.

Although he's gone hitless in the four rehab games he's played in -- including a double header Saturday -- Redmond said just having Stanton back in the lineup will be huge. It's likely the Marlins will send first baseman Casey Kotchman, 0-for-20 this season at the plate, to the disabled list on Monday with a strained oblique to make room for Stanton on the roster.

"It's a great presence to have in our lineup," Redmond said. "Even if he takes, he's going to walk. If he's ready to go, he's ready to go."

> Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi was scheduled to make his fourth and final rehab start in Double A Jacksonville Sunday.

> Redmond said right-hander Henderson Alvarez, who threw a 55 pitch simulated game Saturday, will likely begin his rehab stint next week.

> Second baseman Donovan Solano, whose gone 6-for-10 with an RBI in three rehab game starts down in Jupiter, is available to return this week. But the Marlins haven't decided yet what they're going to do.

"Solano's available," Redmond said. "But we still have to evaluate where he's at. We got a lot of guys that are close and we've talked about having some decisions to make. We have to sit down and figure out where these guys are at. We knew we would be getting guys back. Of course it all works out you get them all back the same week. It's a good situation. We're getting the lineup we thought we'd have when we left in spring training back. That's good."

> Saturday hero Kevin Slowey, who pitched seven scoreless innings of relief, will now pitch on Wednesday. He was scheduled to make his next start on Tuesday, but Redmond has moved right-hander Jacob Turner up a day and flip-flopped their spots to allow Slowey to gain an extra day of rest. 

Choate, Buehrle happy with efforts as Marlins tie Tigers 3-3

LAKELAND -- Two Marlins left-handers got back to work Monday after long lay-offs -- and both were pleased with their efforts in a 3-3, 10-inning tie against the Tigers.

Mark Buehrle, who skipped his last start, made his third start in Grapefruit League action and gave up all three runs to Detroit on home runs. The first two runs came on his first three pitches -- a single by Austin Jackson followed by a two-run home run by Brennan Boesch to right. Jhonny Peralta then hit a solo home run on the first pitch in the fourth to left.

But Buehrle, who turned 33 on Friday, was still pleased with his six-inning, six-hit effort, which featured five strikeouts and no walks. He threw just 71 pitches in all.

"Very surprised he's had the spring he's having -- he's always had an ugly spring," Guillen said of Buehrle who has given up 10 earned runs over 12 1/3 innings (7.30 ERA). "But he's throwing the ball very well. I'm very happy where he is. I'm very pleased with the pitching staff."

Left-handed specialist Randy Choate pitched a scoreless inning of relief, his first appearance in Grapefruit League action this spring since straining his right lat in camp. Choate's only mistake was leaving a fastball up to Boesch, who doubled to centerfield in the eighth. Choate retired the other three hitters he faced on ground balls.

"Didn't really get the fastball where I wanted in on Boesch, but other than my side felt great, elbow feels good," said Choate, whose 2011 season ended prematurely with a small tear in his throwing elbow. "I was a little too amped up, almost throwing with too much sink. But I did get [three] ground balls.

"It's good to be back."

Mujica looks like he's earned setup role with Marlins as Oviedo sits in Dominican

LAKELAND -- Ozzie Guillen said Sunday he was going to lean on pitching coach Randy St. Claire to decide who serves as the setup man for closer Heath Bell. Well, if that's the case, consider Edward Mujica the heavy favorite to be that guy come Opening Day.

"For me right now, probably Edward is the guy who had the most chances in that role [last season] and did a pretty decent job," St. Claire said Monday. "For me, it's his job to lose."

Mujica, 27, hasn't done anything to lose that job this spring, even though the rest of the Marlins bullpen has pitched really well, too. In five appearances, Mujica has posted a 1.80 ERA, striking out six with no walks. Ryan Webb has done even better -- tossing six scoreless innings of relief in five appearances with three strikeouts and no walks. Steve Cishek has a 1.93 ERA in 4 2/3 innings, with three strikeouts and two walks.

Of course, the Marlins were hoping to have someone else serve as their setup man before spring training began -- former closer Juan Carlos Oviedo. But with the man formerly known as Leo Nunez still on the restricted and sitting in the Dominican Republic, the Marlins have had to move on with their plans and it appears Mujica, Oviedo's close friend, will fill his spot at the start of the season.

St. Claire said aside from Mujica the Marlins could also use left-handed specialist Randy Choate to get tough lefties out in the 8th before inserting Mujica after him.

St. Claire said what separates Mujica from other Marlins relievers in that eight inning role is his ability to get lefties out with his split-fingered fastball. Last season, lefties hit .220 against Mujica in 132 at-bats compared to .245 versus righties in 143 at-bats.

"He's going to throw the ball over the plate, we saw that last year," St. Claire said of Mujica, who walked just 14 of the 297 batters he faced in 2011.

"And that's something you got to have out of your guys in the back end of the pen. When you're in a one-run game, two-run game, you can't be putting guys on base. He doesn't. He makes them hit the ball."

Of his 67 appearances last season, Mujica made 40 in the 8th inning, posting a 2.97 ERA in 33 1/3 innings of work in the frame. He struckout 31 and walked two. He was even better in the 7th, posting a 0.96 ERA in 18 2/3 innings with 15 strikeouts and two walks.

If Mujica were out, St. Claire said: "It would be a mix and match type deal, who you got coming up whether they're righties, lefties, that type of deal. You try to mix and match to get through that inning. But when you have that true eighth inning guy, it's usually 'here's the ball.' Just like the closer. You're not usually worrying about matching up because he gets both out the same."

St. Claire said he's asked the Marlins several times this spring for an update on Oviedo, but has been told repeatedly "there's no news."

> Choate will pitch in Grapefruit League play for the first time today against the Tigers. St. Claire said he wants to get him about 20 pitchers -- or an inning of work.

> St. Claire said the only Marlins starter who won't be allowed to go over the 95-pitch mark at the start of the season is Anibal Sanchez, who was held back a start at the beginning of Grapefruit League play because of shoulder stiffness.

St. Claire said the way the Marlins starting rotation is lined up at the moment, Ricky Nolasco will face the Yankees at Marlins Park Sunday and Carlos Zambrano will start versus New York a day later.

The rotation will then reset with Josh Johnson pitching on Opening Day April 4th against the Cardinals and Mark Buehrle (April 5th), Nolasco (April 7th) and Zambrano (April 8th) lined up to pitch versus the Reds in Cincinnati. That means Sanchez, slated to be the Marlins fifth starter, will make his debut April 9th in Philadelphia.

MURPHY WANTS TO FINISH STRONG

> Last year at this time, Donnie Murphy was preparing to serve as the Marlins starting third baseman on Opening Day. Now, he's not sure if he'll have a roster spot on the 2012 Marlins.

The 29-year old veteran utility man has struggled this spring at the plate, hitting just .194 (6 for 31) in 13 games and is receiving stiff competition from 24-year old non-roster invitee Donovan Solano (hitting .375 in 17 games) for the job.

Murphy isn't in the starting lineup today against the Tigers, but he will make an appearance off the bench. He hopes to make the best of it and every other opportunity going forward.

"Obviously this is not where I wanted to be at this point," Murphy said Monday. "But I'm not going to worry about it. Whatever happens, happens. Every year there is always competition. Sometimes you're in a position where you're comfortable and sometimes you don't. I can't control that. Hopefully, I'll use this last week to finish up strong and go from there and see what happens."

MONDAY LINEUPS

> Marlins: 1. Jose Reyes SS, 2. Emilio Bonifacio CF, 3. Hanley Ramirez 3B, 4. Gaby Sanchez, 5. Omar Infante 2B, 6. Chris Coghlan LF, 7. Austin Kearns RF, 8. John Buck C, 9. Mark Buehrle P.

> Tigers: 1. Austin Jackson CF, 2. Brennan Boesch RF, 3. Jhonny Peralta SS, 4. Prince Fielder 1B, 5. Delmon Young LF, 6. Alex Avila C, 7. Ryan Raburn 2B, 8. Brandon Inge DH, 9. Audy Ciriaco 3B. Rick Porcello is pitching.

Who will set off the Marlins home run sculpture first? See the video of it in action

LAKELAND -- If you haven't already seen it on YouTube, MrSand0080 posted this video of the Marlins' home run sculpture in all its water-spouting, fish-spinning glory.

The funky contraption is supposed to debut and be operational for the public when the Marlins host the Yankees on Sunday in the first of two exhibition games at Marlins Park.

Hanley Ramirez was the first Marlin to hit a home run at Marlins Park. But who will be the first to set off this thing?