Announcement

Ted will henceforth be known as Tie Guy. Which makes him way better than Hat Guy.

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Happy Holidays

The Marlins Diehards editorial staff will be holding our Winter Meetings this weekend, so we won't have any new content up until after the new year most likely. Merry Christmas, enjoy the holiday, be safe, and eat as much as you can this weekend. To our Jewish readers, a belated Happy Channukah, and enjoy the Chinese food and movie on Saturday (I recommend True Grit). And to our pagan readers, I hope you had a pleasant solstice.

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Ricky Signs

The Marlins have signed Ricky Nolasco to a 3-year deal worth $26.5 million. That's one less uncertainty for Marlins fans, and the Johnson-Nolasco-Vazquez-Sanchez-Volstad starting rotation is just about set in stone.

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There's Still Time

Today at Fish Stripes, GameFish informs us of the existence of a Marlins toaster, just in time for the holidays. I thought I'd point out another Marlins-related gift idea, though this might be better for the Marlins fan who is more of a frenemy than a garden-variety buddy, via @sweetcarolin_a:

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New Potential For Marlins Twitter Curse

Courtesy of MLB, we now know Marlins first baseman and team muscle, Gaby Sanchez has a Twitter account. This sounds great, but as you may remember, Marlins players who used Twitter during last year did not fare too well. A recap:

• Chris Coghlan: Unfortunate pie injury, torn meniscus
• John Baker: Missed season, had Tommy John surgery
• Brett Hayes: Separated shoulder, ended season
• Logan Morrison: Foul ball to the face, luckily okay

Look Gaby, the diehards love you. You're a Miami guy, a "U" alum, and just an all around dude, but we urge you, PLEASE BE CAREFUL. Either delete Twitter immediately, or stay close with Mike Stanton, who somehow has avoided this nasty disease.

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DVH

Marlins radio man (and longtime Expos broadcaster) Dave Van Horne has been selected as the 2011 recipient of MLB's Ford C. Frick Award, presented annually for major contributions to baseball broadcasting. Partisan as I may be, I cannot think of anyone more deserving.

Ted and I are both fans of DVH, but in this case we defer to Jonah Keri, who penned a lovely tribute to the man who called Expos games during his youth:

For as long as I can remember, I had a little radio by my bed. Nearly every night from age 8 through the end of high school, the voice coming out of that radio belonged to Dave. He called the game like a master, showing just the right amount of excitement when a big play happened (take note, Joe Buck) and the right amount of healthy skepticism when a player, manager, umpire or anyone else failed in their duties. He was exciting and informative all at once, the perfect blend for a play-by-play man. Dave's voice carried with it the nightly rhythms of the season, his measured pace carrying me off to sleep even as the Expos toiled deep into the night at Candlestick or Jack Murphy. As hard as it is to do catchphrases well, Dave's were seamless and comforting, like the warm blanket I slid over my shoulders on a cold Montreal April night. "Hi again, everybody. Glad to have you aboard for this game," he'd say at the start of every telecast. Dave wasn’t just describing the action. He was inviting us into the booth to sit with him for a few hours, even when he was 2,000 miles away.

Read the whole thing here. Here's hoping Jonah gets DVH to appear on his podcast real soon.

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A Philosophical Question

News that the Boston Red Sox have agreed in principle to a trade for All Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez has me wondering, can we legitimately call Gonzalez a member of the Marlins diaspora? Gonzalez, as you may recall, was the first pick in the 2000 amateur draft by the Florida Marlins, and was traded to the Texas Rangers at the 2003 trade deadline for closer Ugueth Urbina (an iffy move, but the Marlins did win the World Series in 2003, so I never got too worked up about it).* However, Gonzalez did not make his major league debut until 2004 as a Ranger. So I ask, should we include Gonzalez in the Marlins diaspora? He spent more time with the team than Mike Piazza, but never actually played for the big club, save for Spring Training action.

Ted and I usually hold a Fidel-and-Raul grip over the undergirding philosophy of Marlins Diehards, but we are interested in what our readers have to say on this one. Let us know what you think.

*Besides, the truly egregious Adrian Gonzalez trade came in 2006, when Texas traded Gonzalez, Chris Young, and Termel Sledge for Adam Eaton and Akinori Otsuka.

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It's Official

The Marlins finalized their deal with Javier Vazquez: one year, $7 million, and a no-trade clause. It is almost the ideal Marlins contract.* The Marlins have called a press conference for 10:30 this morning to announce the signing. Much has been written about a possible Vazquez deal, and my sentiments echo Marlin Maniac, he's a medium-ranged bargain with high upside. I think he'll slot in nicely at the 2 or 3 slot in the rotation, behind Josh Johnson and ahead of Ricky Nolasco and/or Anibal Sanchez. Throw in Chris Volstad or Sean West for the number 5 (and LHP) slot, and this is your 2011 starting rotation.

*The ideal Marlins contract would be less money and minus the NTC.

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