Miami Palms Blog

The Palms lost a pair of starting pitchers this off season already, with John Danks catching on in Houston and Erik Bedard heading into the sunset, so it was clear that some new faces would join the staff in 2016. Brian Matusz brings the potential for some serious versatility. A heard thrower, he recently converted to the bullpen for the Orioles where he had over 10 k/9 last season. Once regarded as a top prospect, he began his career as a starter before moving to the pen, and could potentially occupy any role the Palms ask of him.

Player GS W L S BS IP ERA H R K BB WHIP Blake Johnston 33 13 11 214.67 4.28 256 102 119 46 1.41 Manny Parra 33 14 15 236.33 3.96 249 104 104 26 1.16 TJ McFarland 33 12 9 217 4.15 236 100 146 63 1.38 Erik Bedard 31 10 10 175.33 5.18 206 101 136 70 1.57 John Danks 32 12 15 214.67 5.07 244 121 123 72 1.47 Francisco Rodriguez 4 48 6 52.67 3.42 50 20 42 16 1.25 Cody Allen 4 2 1 1 66.67 3.91 52 29 60 18 1.05 Lucas Harrell 2 5 2 64 6.33 85 45 43 24 1.70 Pete Otterloop 3 5 1 1 49.33 3.83 55 21 27 13 1.38 Oliver Perez 4 3 1 82 3.73 85 34 ...

For the second year in a row, Miami will be facing the Yankees to start the season in 2015, and will square off with the National League West in their interleague schedule. Here is the schedule in full Yankees Away 4 April 3-6 A's Away 3 April 8-10 Yankees Home 3 April 12-14 Indians Away 3 April 15-17 Tigers Home 3 April 19-21 Blue Jays Away 3 April 22-24 Astros Home 3 April 25-27 Blue Jays Away 3 April 29-May 1 Diamondbacks Away 2 May 3-4 Tigers Away 3 May 6-8 Orioles Home 3 May 9-11 Angels Home 3 May 13-15 Twins Away 3 May 16-18 Angels Away 3 May 20-22 Braves Home 2 May 23-24 Braves Away 2 May 25-26 Orioles Away 3 May 27-29...

The Palms season really couldn't have ended in a more heartbreaking manner. The Palms were ahead most of the game thanks to a Chris Korb 2 run home rum in the first. TJ McFarland had 11 strikeouts over 8 innings and allowed only an Alcides Escobar lead off home run before leaving the game. Chris Korb struck out in the top of the 9th, for the final at bat of the season, and in the bottom of the inning, the Royals put two on base. Salvador Perez hit a home run off of K-Rod to end Miami's season.  Kansas City Royals 4, Miami Palms 2  Sunday, October 4, 2015  Miami Palms (80-80)                                      Kansas City Royals (4-2)                          ...

The season ending run of good pitching came to an end on the final Saturday. There Royals had a trio of clutch home runs, a 2 run shot from Alcides Escobar,  and a pair of three run homers from Ben Zobrist and Alex Rios. Manny Parra's season came to a grinding halt when he gave up 9 runs over the 3rd and 4th innings.  Kansas City Royals 12, Miami Palms 4  Saturday, October 3, 2015  Miami Palms (80-79)                                      Kansas City Royals (3-2)                                 Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave ...

The Palms were able to score all their runs in the first inning on a three run home run off the bat of Frank Sohn, before they shut it down for the rest of the game. Miami threatened a couple more times, but neither team scored a run beyond that one big swing at the top of the first. Blake Johnston, Cody Allen and Francisco Rodriguez combined for the shut out.  Miami Palms 3, Kansas City Royals 0  Friday, October 2, 2015  Miami Palms (80-78)                                      Kansas City Royals (2-2)                                 Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A...

The Palms ended their home schedule with a bang. Miami's final home run came from Billy Dupont, who had two big blasts. John Danks went into the 9th inning before allowing any runs, helping give the Palms a complete game, on offense and from the mound to finish things of at Palms Park.  Miami Palms 9, Atlanta Braves 2  Thursday, October 1, 2015  Atlanta Braves (2-5)                                     Miami Palms (79-78)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      ...

John Danks saw his option declined with the Miami Palms, and has now seen free agency take him to Houston. Danks had his best year with the Palms in 2015, though he wasn't really a success in 2014 or 15 with the Palms. He did eat a lot of innings, though, which was a boon in itself. He will likely be a 6th starter in Houston, a team that is definitely on the riise.

Miami didn't want to leave their cupboard bare in terms of infield bench players with Trevor Plouffe's tenure quickly coming to a close. Miami signed free agent Willie Bloomquist to a deal to play a super utility role, though he will most often be asked to play third or short when Chris Korb or Tony Abreu are off. Bloomquist's greatest value is his versatility, as he is able to play nearly every position, though his offense really fell off last season.

Erk Bedard's final career start was among his best in a Palms uniform. He went 8 strong innings, striking out 7 and allowing only 1 run, a lead off hoe run from Nick Swisher in the top of the 9th. Fortunately, John Jaso hit a home run of his own in the bottom of the 8th, so Bedard could finish his career off with the win. After the home run, Francisco Rodriguez came in to lock the game down.  Miami Palms 2, Atlanta Braves 1  Wednesday, September 30, 2015  Atlanta Braves (2-4)                                     Miami Palms (78-78)                                      Player      ...

Trevor Plouffe’s time as a free agent didn’t last long, as the third baseman was among the first players to latch on with a new team. Plouffe signed with the Red Sox after a relatively uninspiring run as a platoon third baseman in Miami. Third base is now Chris Korb’s to manage for as long as he can handle it.

Miami's final home series of the season didn't begin as the team would have hoped. The offense managed only 4 hits against Matt Wisler, while they withnessed Adonis Garcia compile 4 hits and three runs batted in, including 2 on a homer in the 9th.  Atlanta Braves 5, Miami Palms 1  Tuesday, September 29, 2015  Atlanta Braves (2-3)                                     Miami Palms (77-78)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player     ...

Trevor Plouffe and John Danks are free to explore free agency after failing to receive an offer this offseason, while Erik Bedard has announced his retirement. Coco Crisp, Chris Korb, TJ McFarland and Keith Harding have seen options picked up, wile Billy Dupont and Pete Otterloop are unrestricted free agents.

The Palms ended their series with the Kansas City Royals strong, as Manny Parra ptced a complete game shut out, scattering 5 hits and striking out 5. The Palms were aided by a pair of big hits from John Jaso and a two run homer from Frank Sohn for their scoring.  Miami Palms 4, Kansas City Royals 0  Sunday, September 27, 2015  Kansas City Royals (2-1)                                 Miami Palms (77-77)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player     ...

Kansas City made a bold move signing Kris Medlen this offseason, or at least it sure looked like it on Saturday afternoon, as Medlen struck out 11 Palms and allowed only 3 hits, though one of those was a Kelly Johnson home run. The Palms now only have 7 games left in their 2015 season.  Kansas City Royals 5, Miami Palms 1  Saturday, September 26, 2015  Kansas City Royals (2-0)                                 Miami Palms (76-77)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player ...

The Palms waited until the very end of the seasons to play the Royals, and they will have to wait another day until they can put a run on the board against the defending AL champs. Edison Volquez was dominant, while on offense, Christian Colon and former Palm Ayoz Sadan hit 2 run homers to pace the Royals.  Kansas City Royals 6, Miami Palms 0  Friday, September 25, 2015  Kansas City Royals (1-0)                                 Miami Palms (76-76)                                      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave    ...

The Tigers maximized their hits, including a three run blast from Victor Martinez, who later added a Sac fly. The Palms didn't let the Tigers run away with things, though, with Billy Dupont and Tony Abreu trying their hardest to keep pace, each hitting a home run.  Detroit Tigers 8, Miami Palms 5  Thursday, September 24, 2015  Miami Palms (76-75)                                      Detroit Tigers (3-4)                                     Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player  ...