Q&A with Marlin Maniac

The Giants are getting ready for four against Miami’s Marlins and to celebrate that, Ehsan Kassim of Marlin Maniac reached out to us to get an exchange of questions going to get to the teams better as we prepare to watch our boys in action at AT&T Park. You can check out the questions I asked him here. Some of the questions and answers from this post are also in Alex’s series preview which you can check out by clicking this link. I’ve bolded my questions for the visual contrast.

Jun 15, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins relief pitcher

(34) throws a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

1. Most Giants fans probably haven’t seen a start from Tom Koehler nor Jacob Turner. What kind of scouting report do you, or the fans give on them?

Tom Koehler is a lower tier 4/5 starter that is better suited for the bullpen longterm. Koehler has a strong fastball that comes in the
higher 90’s. He also features an impressive curveball. Koehler has been knocked around in the month to a tune of a 9.18 ERA and a FIP of 6.95.As for Jacob Turner, he was once a highly touted prep pitcher drafted by the Detroit Tigers. He was highly regarded as one of the top
pitching prospects in baseball, but has not lived up to expectations due to the Tigers rushing him through their system. Turner posses a fastball in the low-90’s, a curveball that is thought highly of, and a chanegup that is a work in progress.

2. How did the Marlins do without Giancarlo Stanton, and what’s the feel on one of their other young players, Marcell Ozuna?

Jun 12, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria (3) catches a fly ball during the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

3. If a Giants fan went with you to a game, and you wanted to point out one player that hasn’t been mentioned already, be it a reliever, starter, or bench player, and you wanted to talk about them because there’s something you really like about that player, who would it be and why do they get your love?

Would love to point out Adeiny Hechavarria to my Giants buddy. Hech has an unimpressive .248 wOBA early on, his defense at short stop is a marvel to watch. His bat maybe well below average but his defense is amazing to see in action. He has the range and the arm to be a perennial gold glover at his position, granted he starts to hit down the road.

The Marlins have not had a defensively talented short stop like Hech since Alex Gonzalez.

4. Your predictions for the series?

The Marlins split the series with the Giants, which will unfortunately end the team’s seven game winning streak in San Francisco. Giancarlo Stanton will continue to hit well at AT&T Park.

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Thanks to Ehsan for reaching out to us and for dealing with my inability to spell his name correctly (seriously addressed him as “Eshan” three times before he kindly let me know what I was doing). Best of luck to him and his Marlins for this series, and may Giancarlo Stanton only homer in all the games the Giants win!