Fredi Gonzalez Should Get His Due

Joe Girardi's sycophants will rave about Girardi leading the Yankees to the playoffs once the second season starts in October, and they will validate his success over there and take a shot at the Marlins for letting him go after one year.

It's funny those people keep savaging the Marlins for that move, nevermind that marriage was doomed after Larry Beinfest and Girardi argued about personnel moves from the day Josh Beckett was traded along with several other stars on that team.

Even if Girardi did not tell Jeffrey Loria to shut up during the game, the former Marlins manager was going to be fired because Beinfest couldn't stand him to the point. If Girardi was retained, Beinfest was going to go, and Loria was not going to let his bright general manager leave.

Girardi's bobos make it a point to mention Girardi not making the mistake that Fredi Gonzalez has.

While Girardi and his bobos enjoy the success at the Bronx, there is a good chance Girardi's successor could be leading his team to the playoffs this season if the Marlins keep playing well.

The Marlins are currently three-and-a-half games back of first place in the NL East  and three games back in the Wild Card race after an 8-6 victory over the Astros last night at Land Shark Stadium.

Wouldn't it be a hoot if the current Marlins manager and the former Yankees manager meet in the World Series? Beinfest would love nothing more than seeing his team deny Girardi a chance of leading the Yankees to a 27th championship.

It's time to give credit to Gonzalez for the job he has done, and quite frankly, he has done a great job since the day he was hired. The Marlins overachieved in Gonzalez's first two years as the manager, and now the team gets an opportunity to be a playoff team in Gonzalez's third year as a manager.

People quibble about Gonzalez's decisions at times, such as going with a particular reliever or leaving a starter too long. But guess what? Most managers make questionable strategies in games.

If the move works, the manager is a genius. If it does not, the manager is an idiot.
Gonzalez has several strong points that make him a good manager.

The players love playing for Gonzalez, and that's a tribute to him right there. Most of the players were not happy when Girardi was fired, and Gonzalez needed to make a good impression to his current players that were loyal to Girardi, and he did that in his first year of managing the Marlins.

The guys hustled and played as well as they could with Gonzalez, and they make it a point to praise their manager for getting the most out of them.

Also, Gonzalez's knack for getting success out of his pinch-hitters is amazing. Every time he gets a pinch-hitter to hit, that guy hits home runs or drives in runs to win games or tie the game.

It takes a special manager to get it right with his gut instinct knowing that it would not work out half the time when it comes to pinch-hitters.

Plus, the young players have gotten better as players under Gonzalez's leadership.

Beinfest is not an easy guy to work for yet Beinfest and Gonzalez managed to work well together, and it's been obvious with Beinfest raving about his manager most of the time.

The Marlins could have folded after being swept by the Phillies, yet Gonzalez kept his team believing they are good enough to contend in the playoffs.

With a discouraging sweep, a manager's value comes to play by telling his players that everything is not lost and that they have something to play for.

Gonzalez preached the message well, and guys listened to his plan with the wins speaking for itself.

Right now, it's time to consider Gonzalez as NL Manager of the Year.

Gonzalez, Bruce Bochy, and Jim Tracy are candidates for the award, with Tracy being the slight favorite right now for staking the Rockies for the wild-card lead after a rough start that got Clint Hurdle fired as the Rockies manager.

The Marlins need to make the playoffs for Gonzalez to win the award.

Everything is going right for the Marlins right now, and when looking at the team's success, Fredi deserves praises for the Marlins' success.

Even the pro-Girardi camp would reluctantly agree.