NewsRookie Taylor to start crucial finale
Florida (11-6) vs. Philadelphia (8-8), 12:10 p.m. ET
By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com
04/26/09 12:40 AM ET
MIAMI -- Welcome to the Major Leagues, Graham Taylor.The Marlins badly need a win. They started off the season 11-1, but after another late-innings meltdown by the bullpen on Saturday night, they are riding a five-game losing streak heading into Sunday.
And with a brutal seven-game road trip against the Mets and Cubs coming up, a victory in the home finale is crucial.
Oh yeah, you'll be going up against the defending World Series champion Phillies, and their starter, Jamie Moyer, is 11-1 in his career against your team. And the game will be nationally televised.
So, are you ready for your Major League debut?
The nation will find out when it tunes to TBS on Sunday at 12:10 p.m. ET. Chip Caray will provide the play-by-play, and Ron Darling will serve as the analyst for TBS, which has broadcast Major League Baseball coverage for more than 30 years, serving mostly as the television home of the Braves.
Taylor, 24, will be taking the place of injured starter Andrew Miller, who's dealing with an oblique strain and isn't scheduled to come off the disabled list until May 6, at the earliest. Because of that, the rookie's stint in the big leagues could be two or three starts long.
In order to open a roster space for Taylor, the Marlins needed to make a difficult decision: designating Logan Kensing for assignment.
The Marlins thought highly of Kensing. But the 26-year-old right-hander gave up five runs in 10 2/3 innings in Spring Training, and after giving up two go-ahead runs in the 10th inning on Saturday, his ERA stood at 9.82 for the season.
Said manager Fredi Gonzalez: "We had to make a move."
That move meant hoping the untested Taylor could temporarily right the ship. Although the Kentucky native's Major League experience may be zero, one of his teammates sure knows what he's going through.
Chris Volstad, who got a no-decision on Saturday after giving up three runs on four hits in seven innings, came up as a 21-year-old rookie in early July last season and sizzled through the rest of the 2008 season.
His advice: Pitch your game.
"Really, the biggest thing is probably just be yourself," Volstad said. "Do what got you here. That's what people told me. You don't have to try to do anything extra special or be something that you're not when you're up here, because you can get in trouble.
"I'd tell him to just be the pitcher that you are. That's what got you here in the first place, so just keep doing that and you'll be all right."
Taylor isn't a very overpowering guy. He's actually more of a younger version of Moyer, who relies on pitching to contact and doesn't walk or strike out many batters. Over his four-year Minor League career, Taylor averaged 1.4 walks and 6.6 strikeouts per nine innings.
Taylor, a 10th-round pick by the Marlins in the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, last pitched on Monday, and although he wasn't in big league camp this spring, he did make one Grapefruit League start.
During a March 29 game against the Nationals, Taylor pitched three perfect innings.
Maybe not a big sample size, but the Marlins have seemingly seen enough to at least make him an emergency stopgap.
"It's been a couple years now," Gonzalez said. "And his numbers in the Minor Leagues are the numbers you want. Lot of innings, lot of strikeouts, not very many base on balls. Those are the type of guys that you want. And we're going to give him an opportunity to come up here and pitch in the big leagues."
And what an abrupt emergence into the big leagues it will be.
"Yeah, we need to win one of these [games]," right fielder Cody Ross said. "We need to win [on Sunday]. Get something rolling."
Pitching matchupFLA: LHP Graham Taylor (Major league debut)
Taylor owns a 3.08 ERA in four seasons in the Minor Leagues. In three starts for Double-A Jacksonville this season, his ERA is 3.24, having struck out 10 while walking six in 16 2/3 innings. Last year, he pitched mostly for Class A Jupiter, where he went 11-6 with a 3.46 ERA in 23 games -- 22 starts -- for the Hammerheads. PHI: LHP Jamie Moyer (2-1, 6.35 ERA)
Moyer pitched better in his last start Tuesday against the Brewers, allowing four runs in six-plus innings. That fourth run scored more than an hour after Moyer left the game because of a rain delay. It cost him his first quality start of the season, but there is reason to be optimistic. Moyer went 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA in five starts last season against the Marlins and is 11-1 with a 2.95 ERA in 12 starts against them in his career. Tidbits
Hanley Ramirez caught a bit of heat from fans after Friday night's 7-3 loss because of his adventurous fifth inning. Before Saturday's game, Gonzalez said he talked to Ramirez about it, though he didn't get into specifics. Gonzalez also defended Ramirez: "Players make mistakes. Not only young players, but 15-year veterans make mistakes." In that frame, Ramirez trotted out of the batter's box on a ball to deep center field and ended up with a double when some thought he could've had a triple. He then did not tag up on a fly to deep left-center field by Ross Gload and was caught trying to steal third base. On Saturday, he went 2-for-4 with a double. ... Matt Lindstrom wasn't available to pitch on Saturday, but that was because he threw 38 pitches on Friday night, not because he gave up seven runs. Gonzalez said Lindstrom is still the man for the ninth inning. ... Rick VandenHurk threw off the mound Friday for the first time since a March 28 game against the Mets, when he said he first felt discomfort in his right elbow, which currently has him on the disabled list. Gonzalez said he'd like to see VandenHurk throw off the mound five or six more times before he faces hitters. Tickets
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• WAXY 790, WAQI 710 (Español) Up next
• Monday: Marlins (Anibal Sanchez, 1-1, 2.50) at Mets (John Maine, 0-2, 7.47), 7:10 p.m. ET
• Tuesday: Marlins (Ricky Nolasco, 1-2, 6.86) at Mets (Livan Hernandez, 1-1, 7.31), 7:10 p.m. ET
• Wednesday: Marlins (Josh Johnson, 2-0, 2.20) at Mets (Johan Santana, 3-1, 0.70), 1:10 p.m. ET
Alden Gonzalez is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
