Feeding "The Beast"

        Back when he was still with the Marlins, Cameron Maybin always marveled at the amount of food Mike Stanton could put away. Maybin nicknamed Stanton "The Beast" solely on his incredible ability to put away super-sized steaks and entire baking pans of lasagne in one sitting.

        Now it's Gaby Sanchez's turn to admire the most prolific eater on the Marlins. Sanchez and Stanton are rooming together this spring, and their first trip to the grocery store a few days ago was one for the record books.

        "That was an expensive grocery bill -- $300!" Sanchez said. "When we finished, I said, 'You got to be kidding me that we spent that much money. It (the shopping cart) was completely full. We had to take three trips to get (the groceries) from the car into the house, and it was me and him carrying stuff too."

       Sanchez said they stocked up on healthy foods and drinks. No soda pop.

       "We got vegetables, low-fat chips, a whole bunch of drinks, like water and vitamin drinks," he said. 

       And who will do the cooking?

       "Probably me," Sanchez said. "I guess I'll be the one cooking. Supposedly, he knows what he's doing. I'll give him one chance and see how the food comes out. If it comes out good, I'll let him be the chef. But, if not, I'll grab the reins and take over."

        Sanchez knows one thing: the Stanton belly is a big one to fill.

        "It's unbelievable," Sanchez said. "He can put it away. He's a big boy. When you're talking about a 6-5, close to 6-6 guy, he needs a lot of intake to get the energy back into his body. He can put it away when he wants to."