A healthy Giancarlo Stanton equals a happy Giancarlo Stanton

Never mind the 16 home runs. Or the 51 RBI. Or even the .317 batting average. If you ask Giancarlo Stanton which number he's proudest of, he'll tell you it's 54. That's the number of games that Stanton has appeared in this season, and it exactly matches the number of games the Marlins have played so far. In other words, a healthy Stanton has resulted in a highly productive one.

"I'll take the games (played)," Stanton answered when given a choice to pick out the one number on his 2014 resume that matters most to him.

His 2013 season was a major disappointment for Stanton because he spent six weeks on the disabled list with a hamstring injury, and because the Marlins were so abysmal they lost 100 games and finished in last for a third straight year.

But Stanton is firing all cylinders this season and the Marlins are winning. If the season ended today, Stanton would have to be considered a contender for N.L. MVP, and it wouldn't be a great stretch to include him in the Triple Crown conversation. He leads the league in home runs (by two over Troy Tulowitzki), RBI (by 11 over Yasiel Puig) and ranks eighth in batting average. Tulowitzki's .360 average leads the pack.

With his two-run homer on Friday off Braves ace Julio Teheran, Stanton became the fastest player in Marlins history to reach 50 RBI, breaking Lowell's 2001 mark. It took Lowell 57 games to get to 50.

"Whatever," Stanton said, shrugging off his impressive personal statistics. "It's two months. Have a milestone at the end of the year, not a (third) into it."

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Henderson Alvarez is all systems go for Tuesday's start after throwing a bullpen session Saturday with no arm issues. Alvarez left his most recent start with a stiff right elbow, but has maintained all along it was a precautionary move and nothing more serious than that.

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Reliever Carter Capps will see Dr. James Andrews on Wednesday to receive a second opinion on his arm injury. Capps has a right elbow sprain, and the Marlins are keeping their fingers crossed he'll require only rest, perhaps as little as a month, before he can return to the mound. But that all hinges on what Andrews sees when he examines the pitcher.

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Just because top draft prospect Carlos Rodon is Cuban-American doesn't mean the Marlins are any higher on the North Carolina State southpaw than they would be otherwise Nor has Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria given the order to draft Rodon (if the Houston Astros don't draft him first) just for that reason, according to a source in squashing a published report to the contrary.

The Marlins have the second overall pick in Thursday's draft, and they have narrowed their focus to a handful of players, including Rodon, California high school pitcher Brady Aiken and California high school catcher/outfielder Alex Jackson. Texas high school pitching phenom Tyler Kolek could also be on their radar.

The Marlins have four of the top 43 picks in the draft.

Arm updates for Henderson Alvarez, Carter Capps

Henderson Alvarez remains confident he'll make his next scheduled start on Tuesday. Marlins manager Mike Redmond and pitching coach Chuck Hernandez said they, too, see no reason for concern regarding the pitcher, who left Wednesday's start in Washington after five innings with a stiff right elbow.

Alvarez said through an interpreter (teammate Arquimedes Caminero) that he'll have a much better idea of how the arm feels after he throws his normal between-starts bullpen session on Saturday. But, so far, all indications are the discomfort he experienced in D.C. was nothing more than stiffness.

Alvarez threw off flat ground Friday and said the arm felt fine.

"It feels pretty good," he said. "I didn't feel anything bad."

With Jose Fernandez already finished for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, the Marlins can hardly afford to lose another of their frontline starters. Obviously, Andrew Heaney is at Triple A New Orleans and waiting in the wings.

But to call up Heaney now -- as opposed to a few weeks from now once they're certain the Super Two cutoff date has passed (around the third week of June is the projected date) -- would be utterly foolish. If Heaney were to be called up now, it would put them at risk of triggering his salary arbitration years by a full season, all for a handful of starts they would gain from making such a move.

Meanwhile....

Reliever Carter Capps will be receiving a second opinion on his right forearm sprain. The Marlins are hoping rest will take care of Capps' injury. But that could always change.

And yes, the Marlins and Braves are tied for first place in the N.L. East as they open a three-game weekend series tonight...... 

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Check out this cap, which is just like the ones worn by the minor-league Miami Sun Sox from 1949-54. The Marlins will be wearing the Sun Sox throwback uniforms when they face the Cubs at Wrigley Field on June 8. The Sun Sox (also known as the Miami Tourists) were a minor-league affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

 The Marlins wore throwback uniforms belonging to the minor-league Miami Marlins when they played in Milwaukee last season. 

 

 

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Former Marlins reliever Antonio Alfonseca paid a visit to Marlins Park during batting practice on Friday. Alfonseca, who played for the Marlins from 1997-01 and again in 2005, is 42 and hasn't pitched in the bigs since 2007.

But he claims he can still pitch.

"I still have it," said Alfonseca, who led the Marlins with 45 saves in 2000.

The Marlins might be in need of bullpen help, but aren't that desperate.

Alvarez, Marlins don't believe his arm stiffness is serious

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Henderson Alvarez and the Marlins seem to think his stiff throwing arm, which caused him to exit Wednesday's 8-5 10-inning win over the Nationals after just five innings, isn't a serious injury.

“My arm was tight, a little tight,” Alvarez explained after the game as he and teammates were huddled by TVs watching the end of the Heat-Pacers playoff game. “From the time I went out to the mound, from the beginning I felt it… [but] I’ll be fine for the next start.”

Alvarez didn’t refer to his discomfort as an elbow injury. He said he felt tightness all over his arm, something he’s felt in previous starts including before this when the team was on its 11-game West Coast trip. He said he felt it when he pitched in San Diego.

Elbow injuries have hurt the Marlins plenty already.

Jose Fernandez, the staff ace, was lost to season-ending Tommy John surgery two weeks ago after going on the disabled list with a right elbow sprain.

Reliever Carter Capps followed Fernandez to the disabled list on Tuesday with the same right elbow sprain injury. The Marlins said they're going to give Capps at least a month off hoping his elbow injury heals with rest.

Alvarez's prognosis remains to be seen. But if there’s a positive sign for Miami aside from what Alvarez said after the game it’s that his velocity didn't seem to take a hit Wednesday. He was still registering fastballs between 93 and 94 miles per hour in the fifth inning and throwing curveballs for strikes.

“I think he’s fine,” manager Mike Redmond said. “But we’ll see over the next couple days.  He wanted to keep pitching. But we wanted to make sure it didn’t become anything serious. He just had mentioned that it had tightened up on him. We just took him out to make sure it didn’t turn into anything.”

DIETRICH CATCH PLAY OF THE GAME IN REDMOND'S EYES

There were a lot of big plays and moment's in Wednesday's win, but Derek Dietrich's catch, backing up an errant throw by pitcher Mike Dunn in the eighth inning to keep the bases loaded is a play both Redmond and a few other Marlins mentioned.

"There was a lot of stuff. I don’t even inow where to start in that game," Redmond said. "Really the play of the game for me was Dietrich backing up the play with the bases loaded. That ended up being a huge play. If that ball gets down that right field line its game over for us.

Said Dunn: "Right as I let it go, I went, 'Oh, no,' Then I was like, 'It's going right to him.' Yes!"

Dunn of course worked out of a bases-loaded, nobody out jam in the eighth to keep the score tied at 4.

"Bear down, that's pretty much the extent of it," Dunn said. "I had nowhere to put anybody. You've got to get them out. [Anthony] Rendon was a big out, to be able to punch him out. It took 10 pitches to get there, and he made some good swings on some pitches, just foul. I was able to finally get a good slider to him to get him out.

"[Jayson] Werth is the one guy who has had really good success against me. Nowhere to put him, you've got to go right at him, and locate your pitches. I got him to pop up to the infield. I was like, 'Ok, breath.' But at the same time, there were two outs. You've got to make the third out.

"The pitch I threw I threw to get [Adam LaRoche] to ground out wasn't a very good pitch, it was a pitch right down the middle, but I was able to get the job done."

Henderson Alvarez leaves Wednesday's game with elbow stiffness

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Marlins could be down another starting pitcher.

Henderson Alvarez, who tossed a no-hitter to end the 2013 season and was slotted as the team's No. 3 starter behind Jose Fernandez and Nathan Eovaldi, was taken out after five shutout innings Wednesday because of stiffness in his right elbow. The Marlins say Alvarez was removed for precautionary reasons.

Alvarez had been pitching well, allowing only five hits and striking out two. He made three good defensive plays on hard come backers to the mound and didn't show any symptoms of discomfort while he was pitching. He threw 62 pitches and 43 went for strikes.

Considering Fernandez is already lost for the season this could potentially be another crushing blow for the Marlins if Alvarez's injury is serious. 

Marlins not happy Nationals were quick to pull the plug on Tuesday's rainout

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Tuesday's rainout at Nationals Park – called off by the home team about 10 minutes after the scheduled first pitch – isn’t sitting well with the Marlins, especially since the storm rolled out of town and skies were clear less than an hour later.

By 8:15 p.m., the grounds crew was taking the tarp off the field. Late last season, the Nationals made the Marlins wait more than three hours before the game was finally called.

"I think it seemed early to call it," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said Wednesday. "But that’s their call and there's not a whole lot we can do about it, just be ready to play [Wednesday].”

According to MLB rules, the home team has the power to delay the start of the game and postpone or reschedule it due to inclement weather. Once the game starts, the umpires have the power to delay it or postpone the game.

In this case, with Nationals rookie Blake Treinen (0-2, 1.56) scheduled to start and three Nats All-Stars on the disabled list in Ryan Zimmerman, Bryce Harper and Gio Gonzalez, the home team came out with an obvious advantage by postponing the game until the end of the regular season when the Marlins visit again.

The make-up game has been scheduled as part of a day-night double-header on either Sept. 26 or 27. Redmond said Tuesday night he thought the double-header would take place on the 26th.

Asked if he went out for an evening stroll through D.C. Tuesday night Redmond said with a smile: "I did. And I didn’t even need an umbrella."

Stanton fourth among outfielders in first All-Star voting results; Heaney shines again

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- It's almost certain Giancarlo Stanton is going to get selected to the All-Star Game in Minneapolis in July. The only question now is if he'll be selected as a starter by the fans or picked as a reserve.

Wednesday, the first All-Star voting results were released by Major League Baseball and Stanton was ranked fourth among all National League outfielders with 426,228 votes. The Rockies' Charlie Blackmon (549,394 votes), the Pirates' Andrew McCutchen (467,378) and Brewers' Ryan Braun (446,780) are ahead of Stanton for the three starting spots selected by the fans.

Stanton, who leads the National League in homers (15) and major league baseball with 49 RBI, ranks seventh overall in the National League in votes. He's also the only Marlin listed among the top vote-getters by position. 

"He's been great," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said Tuesday. "Spring training was big for him. You could tell he was a new man. He was energized with the moves we made. He's doing great. He's happy He's gotten some huge hits for us including [Monday's] game. It's been fun to watch him go out there and run around. You can tell he feels healthy, everything is going good. He's in a good place right now and that's good for us."

HEANEY SHINES AGAIN

Marlins top prospect Andrew Heaney had another stellar start Tuesday night for Triple A New Orleans, tossing six scoreless innings of one-hit ball in a rain-shorted win at Round Rock.

Heaney (1-0) struck out seven without walking a batter and threw 55 of his 78 pitches for strikes. At one point he retired 16 in a row. 

"[My command]'s been a big help lately," Heaney told MiLB.com. "I've really put a lot of emphasis on pounding the strike zone lately. You don't ever want to give up walks, but I've been working to not give in on 3-1 or 3-2. I want to make guys beat me. You try and stay out of deep counts, but they are going to happen sometimes. It's OK to let them beat me, but not beat myself."

WEDNESDAY'S LINEUPS

> Marlins (27-25): 1. Christian Yelich LF, 2. Derek Dietrich 2B, 3. Giancarlo Stanton RF, 4. Casey McGehee 3B, 5. Garrett Jones 1B, 6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia C, 7. Marcell Ozuna CF, 8. Adeiny Hechavarria SS, 9. Henderson Alvarez RHP.

> Nationals (25-26): 1. Denard Span CF, 2. Anthony Rendon 3B, 3. Jayson Werth RF, 4. Adam LaRoche 1B, 5. Wilson Ramos C, 6. Ian Desmond SS, 7. Kevin Frandsen 2B, 8. Nate McLouth LF, 9. Jordan Zimmerman RHP.

Marlins-Nationals rain out will be made up as part of double-header on Sept. 26

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Marlins and Nationals were washed out Tuesday night at Nationals Park and the game will be made up as part of a day-night double header Sept. 26 when the teams meet in the final weekend series of the regular season.

"Not ideal for sure,"  Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "An ideal situation for us is to play. Nobody likes to play double headers late in the season. The only good thing is you have more players. But if you're in the race or have a chance, nobody wants to be playing double headers that late."

The Nationals (25-26) certainly do. With third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, outfielder Bryce Harper, and pitcher Gio Gonzalez on the disabled list it only makes sense for them to push a make-up game to when those players are supposed to be back.

Although both teams have a day off Thursday and Wednesday's game is scheduled for a 7:05 start, Redmond said no thought was given to playing on either of those days. 

With stormy weather expected to hit the DC area again on Wednesday there's a chance the teams could be washed out again. All that would mean is the Marlins and Nationals would play two double-headers and five games over a three-day stretch in late September, Redmond said.

"I've had that before," Redmond said. "In 1998, we finished the season against the Phillies in a double-header the last two games of the season because of the hurricane."

The Marlins won three of those four games against the Phillies.

ROTATION ADJUSTED

The Marlins have adjusted their starting rotation for the rest of this week. Tuesday night starter Henderson Alvarez will now pitch against the Nationals' Jordan Zimmerman, who was originally scheduled to face Tom Koehler on Wednesday.

After Thursday's day off, Koehler will start Friday when the Marlins return home to face the division-leading Braves. Jacob Turner will pitch Saturday for Miami and Nathan Eovaldi, who beat the Nationals on Tuesday, will pitch Sunday instead of veteran left-hander Randy Wolf. His next start will be made either Monday or Tuesday against the Rays, depending on whether or not the Marlins want to get Alvarez an extra day of rest. 

Which Marlins should be in the All-Star discussion aside from Stanton? Redmond thinks a few

The first results of the American League's All-Star Fan voting were released Tuesday and the National League will get its turn on Wednesday.

So who aside from right fielder Giancarlo Stanton should be in the discussion for the second-place Marlins? 

"I think we’ve had a lot of guys have some nice years," manager Mike Redmond said. "Casey McGehee has done a nice job. He's driving in a ton of runs. He hasn’t hit for the power, but he’s done a great job.

"Salty has done a nice job behind the plate. We've got a lot of guys. It's hard to sit here and single out one or two guys. I'm just happy with the way we’ve collectively played together. I know that our guys are out there focused on wha they can do to help this ball club win and its fun to come to the park every day and watch these guys compete."

What about closer Steve Cishek?

"That’s probably the wrong guy to forget about," Redmond said with a smile. "He's been so good. He has been for the last two years, last year too.

"Its so important for a ball club -- who you can trust down there to lock these games up. Steve's been able to do that. He's been patient. Its been tough at times to get him the ball. But when he’s gotten that opporurtity hes gone out there and he's done it. That’s been huge for us."

"He's a great competitor and a go to guy who wants to pitch and wants to win. That’s a perfect job for him, being a closer. Im glad he's on our side."

Capps heads to DL, won't throw for four weeks Redmond says; Furcal to play Thursday in Jupiter

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- On a day when Jose Fernandez was back in Los Angeles having his cast and stitches removed following Tommy John surgery, another hard throwing Marlins pitcher -- right-handed reliever Carter Capps -- was headed to the disabled list with a sprained right elbow injury.

Although Fernandez was sent to the disabled list on May 12 with a similar right elbow sprain and then had season-ending surgery a week later, manager Mike Redmond said Tuesday surgery isn't in the plans for Capps.

"I think we feel like right now it's something that can be treated with rest," Redmond said. "He's going to go four weeks without throwing or picking up a ball. He'll be down for an extended period of time, and then we'll start building him back up and see where we're at."

Redmond said Capps experienced tenderness in his elbow after his last appearance Sunday against the Brewers. Redmond said Capps didn't even make the road trip with the Marlins, and had an MRI performed. Asked if there was a ligament tear, Redmond said "I don't know."

"I didn't really get into depth about what they saw in the MRI -- just that it was a right elbow sprain," Redmond said.

Arquimedes Caminero was recalled from Triple A New Orleans to replace Capps in the bullpen. Capps was acquired in the Logan Morrison trade with Seattle in December and made nine relief appearances. He had a 3.00 ERA over 12 innings of relief work for the Marlins since being called up from New Orleans on April 23. His average fastball velocity this season was 97.7 miles per hour according to Fangraphs.com. That's second behind only the Reds' Aroldis Chapman (100.1 miles per hours).

Caminero had a 13.50 ERA in five relief appearances for the Marlins before being sent back down to Triple A New Orleans. He's gone 1-1 with a 6.63 ERA, 24 strikeouts and 10 walks in 19 innings and 11 relief appearances for the Zephyrs.

Caminero, though, could be coming out his slump. He's tossed two innings of scoreless relief in each of his last three appearances for New Orleans.

"The biggest thing for me is to get him up here and see him do it at the big league level," Redmond said. "We've all seen the arm and stuff. But it's been a battle, it's been a struggle for him at this level getting big league hitters out. So I think this is a huge opportunity for him -- and really, we need him. We need him to come up and throw strikes and get guys out and be able to log some innings."

Outside of closer Steve Cishek, the back end of the bullpen has been a bit of a headache for Redmond this season.

After Chad Qualls (2 years, $6 million to Astros) and Ryan Webb (2 years, $4.5 million) left via free agency, the team spent $1.25 million to sign reliever Carlos Marmol this past off-season and traded for Capps. Marmol was released by the team on May 19 after going 0-3 with an 8.10 ERA and 10 walks in 13 innings. It was reported Tuesday Marmol will sign a minor league deal with the Reds.

Henry Rodriguez, another hard thrower signed to a minor league deal by the Marlins as insurance, was called up May 11 and designated for assignment three days later after two bad relief appearances (10.80 ERA, five walks).

Sunday, the team recalled left-hander Dan Jennings from New Orleans and placed left-hander Brad Hand (0-1, 6.38) on the disabled list. Right-hander Chris Hatcher, designated for assignment before spring training and then resigned to a minor league deal, was called up last Thursday. Now Caminero will get his second crack this season at a bullpen spot again. 

"We have young guys who are still establishing roles at the big league level," Redmond said. "At one point these guys [Nationals relievers] were young pitchers in the major leagues too. They kind of worked themselves into those roles and established themselves. Their guys are probably a little bit farther along than our guys are.

"But we feel like we've got quality arms to be able to get to that point where maybe in the next year or so we say [Mike Dunn] this is your inning. Or, AJ [Ramos] this is your inning, go get them. The [Nationals] kind of have that luxury. Right now were still piecing it together and making sure that we try to get guys in situations where they can be successful."

FURCAL TO PLAY THURSDAY

Second baseman Rafael Furcal, who has yet to play for the Marlins despite signing a $3.5 million deal this past winter, will start playing in rehab games again Thursday, Redmond said.

Furcal first injured his hamstring at the start of spring training and battled his way up to Double A Jacksonville in mid-April when he injured his groin running the bases. After a week off, Furcal got back into a game in Jacksonville and reinjured his groin.

Last week, Furcal started playing in extended spring training games. He'll begin his rehab assignment playing for Single A Jupiter, and then will likely progress the same way he was before -- being promoted to Double A, Triple A and so on.

"We've been down that road before. So hopefully this time he's good, feels good and gets healthy," Redmond said. "We didn't really talk about how many [rehab] games [he'll play]. But it's just like we talked about earlier. When he starts coming back, he's got to be able to show his legs can play multiple days in a row and he can feel good and be able to run. That's the biggest thing."

TUESDAY'S LINEUPS

> Marlins (27-25): 1. Christian Yelich LF, 2. Derek Dietrich 2B, 3. Giancarlo Stanton RF, 4. Casey McGehee 3B, 5. Garrett Jones 1B, 6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia C, 7. Marcell Ozuna CF, 8. Adeiny Hechavarria SS, 9. Henderson Alvarez RHP.

> Nationals (25-26): 1. Denard Span CF, 2. Anthony Rendon 3B, 3. Jayson Werth RF, 4. Adam LaRoche 1B, 5. Wilson Ramos C, 6. Ian Desmond SS, 7. Kevin Frandsen 2B, 8. Nate McLouth LF, 9. Blake Treinen RHP.

Wolf will get another start in Marlins rotation; Redmond talks Beckett no-hitter

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Randy Wolf's rough first start for the Marlins hasn't knocked the 37-year old veteran left-hander out of the rotation.

Despite getting rocked for six runs on eight hits by the Brewers and struggling to get through five innings Sunday, Redmond said Monday Wolf will get another crack at it Saturday back home at Marlins Park against the Braves.

"He hasn't pitched in a big league game in a long time, which is a testament to how hard he's worked to get himself back," Redmond said of Wolf, who underwent Tommy John surgery at the end of the 2012 season. "First outing was a little rough, but hopefully the second one will be lights out. Because I've seen him be lights out. You know it's in there."

Wolf is the second pitcher to try and fill-in for the injured Jose Fernandez. Right-hander Anthony DeSclafani made two starts after Fernandez went down for the season on May 9. Sunday, DeSclafani lasted only four innings in his first start since being sent back to the minors. He allowed one run on four hits for Triple A New Orleans, but needed 75 pitches to get through it.

Top prospect Andrew Heaney was recently promoted to New Orleans. Heaney tossed five innings of one-run ball with five strikeouts last Thursday. He's scheduled to start for the Zephyrs again Tuesday. It's expected Heaney will at least get a few starts in Triple A before the Marlins call him up.

TEXTING JOSH BECKETT

Redmond said he sent a text message to former Marlins World Series hero and teammate Josh Beckett, who tossed his first no-hitter Sunday for the Dodgers in a win at Philadelphia.

Redmond said the two got a chance to catch up and talk baseball when the Marlins were in Los Angeles a couple of weeks ago. 

"I told him, 'Hey man you never know it might be your best year and where you have the most fun because you have no expectations on yourself. You're just out there pitching every five days, having fun, enjoying it,'" Redmond said. "It's great to see Josh is in such a different place than we played together. So different personality-wise. He has kids now, married. It's a totally different Josh. But it's great. I'm happy for him.

"I know personally for him he's not a guy who looks at the stats. But with all the big games he's pitched he definitely deserved the no-hitter. It was cool. I wish I could have been there to catch it."

Beckett no longer registers his fastball in the mid to high 90s like he did when Redmond was catching for him. Redmond said: "He's a pitcher now."

"Not that he wasn't before," Redmond continued. "He's just the true essence of a pitcher now where he has to throw off-speed pitches for strikes and still uses his fastball. But he doesn't have 96 or 97 in the tank all the time anymore. It's really made him learn how to pitch and carve through a lineup. He's a veteran that knows what he's doing. There were probably years there where that never would have come out of my mouth -- that he knows what he's doing. But he does now know what he's doing. It was good to see man. I'm happy for him."

HAPPY HOMECOMING

With a father who was an officer in the army for 23 years, Marlins utility man Jeff Baker has a special appreciation for the military and Memorial Day. And being able to come back home and play in the nation's capital Monday against the Nationals is extra special.

Baker said although his father, Larry, never battled on the front lines, "he was in charge of people who were getting shot at" and he took that responsibility for what it was. Baker said his father worked in both air defense and nuclear weapons and was involved in Desert Storm.

An only child, Baker said he and his parents never stayed in the same city more than two years. Born in a U.S. base in Germany, Baker said the family moved from West Point to Norfolk to Egypt to Kuwait to Abu Dhabi to Key West and then Colorado Springs. Baker said he was a sophomore in high school when his father finally decided to retire as a Colonel.

"He was about to become a General when he basically gave it all up so I could concentrate on high school and baseball," Baker said. 

His father is now a computer math teacher at Gar-Field high school in nearby Woodbridge, Virginia.

"It's one of things when you're going through those things you don't realize that's not the norm," Baker said of being "an army brat."  "But for me I thought it was cool. You're in Egypt you go see the pyramids, hang out with the camels, do all that stuff. Being able to be exposed culturally -- not knowing baseball was going to be a career -- was helpful. When you're in the minor leagues you're here for one stop, there the next. You have teammates that are Japanese, Dominicans, it kind of helps you fit in seamlessly in a lot of places.

"I enjoyed it. I thought it was cool, traveling, seeing the bases. I always liked going out seeing the ships, seeing the soldiers march around. When we were in Abu Dhabi they actually set up a t-ball league. I remember that was kind of interesting because we played basically on sand. There wasn't a lot of grass out there. You look out and the right fielder is building sand castles, not really paying too much attention to the game. The thing that was great was the moms and the dads and the families bonding together and trying to help us play sports, whatever it was."

MONDAY'S LINEUPS

> Marlins (26-25): 1. Christian Yelich LF, 2. Derek Dietrich 2B, 3. Giancarlo Stanton RF, 4. Casey McGehee 3B, 5. Garrett Jones 1B, 6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia C, 7. Marcell Ozuna CF, 8. Adeiny Hechavarria SS, 9. Nathan Eovaldi RHP.

> Nationals (25-25): 1. Denard Span CF, 2. Anthony Rendon 3B, 3. Jayson Werth RF, 4. Adam LaRoche 1B, 5. Wilson Ramos C, 6. Ian Desmond SS, 7. Danny Espinosa 2B, 8. Nate McLouth LF, 9. Tanner Roark RHP.