1997 HEADLINE: Renteria’s 11th Inning Hit Clinches The World Series For The Florida Marlins!!!

1997 HEADLINE: Renteria’s 11th Inning Hit Clinches The World Series For The Florida Marlins!!!

On this day in 1997 Edgar Rentaria’s single in the bottom of the 11th inning in Game 7 of the World Series was the game winning hit that delivered the Florida Marlins their first ever World Series title!!!

Another boyhood dream was realized when under the ultimate amount of pressure Edgar shined and both he, the team, and the fans of the Florida Marlins reaped the benefits.

I was at Game 1 of this World Series and the atmosphere was incredible.  I could only imagine how much more intense it was on this night when the championship was finally won.

Happy Anniversary Edgar!!!

1997 HEADLINE: Kevin Brown Fires No-Hitter For The Marlins!!

1997 HEADLINE: Kevin Brown Fires No-Hitter For The Marlins!!

On this day in 1997, Florida Marlins starting pitcher Kevin Brown threw a no-hitter!

On the road in San Francisco to take on the Giants, Brown and his teammates suited up to play in front of a small crowd of just over 10,000 spectators. But for those in attendance that stayed throughout the duration of the ballgame, history was witnessed.

In a battle of a 1st place team(the Giants) and a 2nd place team(the Marlins), it was 1 player that dominated the action from start to finish.

Throughout the night, Brown was amazing. He needed just 98 pitches to complete the game, allowing no hits in the process. Brown struck out 7 batters on the night while pitching almost flawlessly. He walked nobody, and faced just 28 batters.

The Marlins gave Brown all of the offensive support that he needed to remain confident on the hill. Tallying 9 runs, Edgar Renteria, Charles Johnson, and Moises Alou provided the firepower enabling Brown to remain calm during the course of the game.

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary Mr. Brown!!!

I have watched parts of a handful of no-hitters on television. This is the first one that I can recall watching the entire game.

Baseball Card Show Purchase #8 – Sports Illustrated 1997 Florida Marlins World Series Celebration

Baseball Card Show Purchase #8 – Sports Illustrated 1997 Florida Marlins World Series Celebration

I’ve been wanting to add a few more Marlins commemorative pieces to my collection.  Maybe a few inaugural pieces for both the 1993 and 2012 teams would be fun to go after.  And certainly stuff from the 1997 and 2003 World Series championships would be a blast as well.

Well, a dealer that I have never bought from before had a stack of magazines on his table, and they all appeared to be in pretty solid condition.

Thankfully, the top of the stack featured the November 1, 1997 issue of Sports Illustrated that celebrates the Marlins winning the World Series in walk-off style against the Indians in extra innings of Game 7.

And the issue was mint!!!

 

There was no way that I was not going to bring this home.  I have so many memories of this series, and this team is easily one of my favorites of all-time.

More than 15 years after the event, I still vividly recall this game and exactly where I was and who I was with while watching it all unfold.

A perfect collectible for my collection and a great way to end the card show!!!

1997 HEADLINE: Renteria’s 11th Inning Hit Clinches The World Series For The Florida Marlins!!!

1997 HEADLINE: Renteria’s 11th Inning Hit Clinches The World Series For The Florida Marlins!!!

On this day in 1997 Edgar Rentaria’s single in the bottom of the 11th inning in Game 7 of the World Series was the game winning hit that delivered the Florida Marlins their first ever World Series title!!!

Another boyhood dream was realized when under the ultimate amount of pressure Edgar shined and both he, the team, and the fans of the Florida Marlins reaped the benefits.

I was at Game 1 of this World Series and the atmosphere was incredible.  I could only imagine how much more intense it was on this night when the championship was finally won.

Happy Anniversary Edgar!!!

1997 HEADLINE: Kevin Brown Fires No-Hitter For The Marlins!!

1997 HEADLINE: Kevin Brown Fires No-Hitter For The Marlins!!

On this day in 1997, Florida Marlins starting pitcher Kevin Brown threw a no-hitter!

On the road in San Francisco to take on the Giants, Brown and his teammates suited up to play in front of a small crowd of just over 10,000 spectators. But for those in attendance that stayed throughout the duration of the ballgame, history was witnessed.

In a battle of a 1st place team(the Giants) and a 2nd place team(the Marlins), it was 1 player that dominated the action from start to finish.

Throughout the night, Brown was amazing. He needed just 98 pitches to complete the game, allowing no hits in the process. Brown struck out 7 batters on the night while pitching almost flawlessly. He walked nobody, and faced just 28 batters.

The Marlins gave Brown all of the offensive support that he needed to remain confident on the hill. Tallying 9 runs, Edgar Renteria, Charles Johnson, and Moises Alou provided the firepower enabling Brown to remain calm during the course of the game.

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary Mr. Brown!!!

I have watched parts of a handful of no-hitters on television. This is the first one that I can recall watching the entire game.

1997 HEADLINE: Renteria’s 11th Inning Hit Clinches The World Series For The Florida Marlins!!!

1997 HEADLINE: Renteria’s 11th Inning Hit Clinches The World Series For The Florida Marlins!!!

On this day in 1997 Edgar Rentaria’s single in the bottom of the 11th inning in Game 7 of the World Series was the game winning hit that delivered the Florida Marlins their first ever World Series title!!!

Another boyhood dream was realized when under the ultimate amount of pressure Edgar shined and both he, the team, and the fans of the Florida Marlins reaped the benefits.

I was at Game 1 of this World Series and the atmosphere was incredible.  I could only imagine how much more intense it was on this night when the championship was finally won.

Happy Anniversary Edgar!!!

Edgar Renteria 2002 Upper Deck World Series Heroes

Edgar Renteria 2002 Upper Deck World Series Heroes

Yes, yet another ‘shout-out’ to one of my favorite sets from the 2000’s.

And while I have yet to declare my desire to scoop up the entire set of cards from this 2002 Upper Deck World Series Heroes set, I am not at all interested in halting my desire to grab a few more either…

My most recent haul from this issue brought me a lot of cards of the guys that I vividly recall doing great things in the World Series.

Guys like Gary Carter.  And Livan Hernandez.  And Kirby Puckett as well.

And my latest addition?  Edgar Renteria!!!

Here is the card:

How sweet is that, huh??

Many recall Edgar’s more recent World Series success as he led the Giants to the 2010 title.  But for this fan and collector, Edgar Renteria is a Marlin.  And his hit in the 11th inning of Game 7 of the 1997 World Series is a baseball memory I will never forget!!!

Thanks for the memories Edgar!!!

Happy Anniversary Kevin Brown!!!

Happy Anniversary Kevin Brown!!!

On this day in 1997, Florida Marlins starting pitcher Kevin Brown threw a no-hitter!

On the road in San Francisco to take on the Giants, Brown and his teammates suited up to play in front of a small crowd of just over 10,000 spectators.  But for those in attendance that stayed throughout the duration of the ballgame, history was witnessed.

In a battle of a 1st place team(the Giants) and a 2nd place team(the Marlins), it was 1 player that dominated the action from start to finish.

Throughout the night, Brown was amazing.  He needed just 98 pitches to complete the game, allowing no hits in the process.  Brown struck out 7 batters on the night while pitching almost flawlessly.  He walked nobody, and faced just 28 batters.

The Marlins gave Brown all of the offensive support that he needed to remain confident on the hill.  Tallying 9 runs, Edgar Renteria, Charles Johnson, and Moises Alou provided the firepower enabling Brown to remain calm during the course of the game.

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary Mr. Brown!!!

I have watched parts of a handful of no-hitters on television.  This is the first one that I can recall watching the entire game.

Happy Anniversary Edgar Renteria!!!

Happy Anniversary Edgar Renteria!!!

On this day in 1997 Edgar Rentaria’s single in the bottom of the 11th inning in Game 7 of the World Series was the game winning hit that delivered the Florida Marlins their first ever World Series title!!!

Another boyhood dream was realized when under the ultimate amount of pressure Edgar shined and both he, the team, and the fans of the Florida Marlins reaped the benefits.

I was at Game 1 of this World Series and the atmosphere was incredible.  I could only imagine how much more intense it was on this night when the championship was finally won. 

Happy Anniversary Edgar!!!

’30-YOC Top Ten Lists’ – ‘Top Ten Favorites Florida Marlins’

’30-YOC Top Ten Lists’ – ‘Top Ten Favorites Florida Marlins’

Man, my team has been making headlines of late – and very little of it is good.

So, I wanted to flip the script a bit and think of my ‘fish’ in a more positive light.

And what better way to do that than to present to you my ‘Top Ten Favorite Florida Marlins’.

And while some of these players may not have reached the peak of their career while suited up for my ‘home team’, they certainly did make me smile while playing in Miami.

Here we go:

Honorable Mention:  Hanley Ramirez, Benito Santiago, Devon White, Gary Sheffield, Bobby Bonilla, Ivan Rodriguez, Livan Hernandez, Charles Johnson, Al Leiter, Miguel Cabrera, Cameron Maybin, Juan Pierre, Dontrelle Willis, Tim Raines, and Craig Counsell.

10 – Andre Dawson.  Come on, you know that he was going to be on the list…

9 – Logan Morrison / Chris Coghlan / Mike Stanton / Gaby Sanchez – Neither of these guys has done quite enough yet to earn a spot to themselves, but between the four of them I think our core of offense looks great for the future.  I could very easily picture each of these guys occupying a spot for themselves a few years from now…

8 – Luis Castillo.  A very solid defender who put up solid batting averages, on-base percentages, and stolen base numbers on a consistent basis.

7 – Jeff Conine – ‘Mr. Marlin’.  He is probably the team’s most recognized player of all-time, and he is worthy of the title.

6 – Dan Uggla.  I loved watching this guy club homer after homer into the empty outfield seats in Miami.

5 – Josh Johnson.  He will go down as the team’s greatest pitcher to date.  Now, JJ just needs to focus on maintaining his health.  When he is on, he is a Cy Young candidate with very few equals.

4 – Edgar Renteria.  This guy delivered offense at the best times, when they were needed the most.  Very soft-spoken and generally hiding from any form of spotlight, Edgar let his game do the talking.  It it spoke volumes!!

3 – Josh Beckett.  We got to see Josh when he was green.  But even back then, he showed us flashes of his great command and powerful stuff.  No player can single-handidly win you a championship, but Josh certainly played a big part of our 2003 title.

 

2 – Cody Ross.  Nothing but smiles from and for Cody.  A truly class act with a a respect for the game that is obvious with each act he completes on the field.  Probably one of the most popular Marlins players of all-time.

1 – Mike Lowell.  There was very little that Lowell couldn’t do.  He was a solid teammate, a vocal leader, and he backed up his words with great offense and supreme defense.  You cannot help but cheer for a player that has been through what he has been through – A class act all of the way!!!

And there you have it, my ‘Top Ten Favorite Florida Marlins’.

Did I miss anyone???  Let me know.

And week, I have a great idea… Think Long-Ball…  Stay tuned.

Thanks for reading!!!