Hanley Ramirez was benched on Tuesday for his lackadaisical efforts the night before. And without their star shortstop, the Marlins two-hit the visiting Diamondbacks en route to an 8-0 laugher. For good measure, Ramirez's replacement - 29 year old Brian Barden - went 1-3 with a beanball and an RBI single.
Said manager Fredi Gonzalez after the win:
I don't want to talk about Hanley I want to enjoy this win
Dan Uggla chimed in to say that everybody loves Hanley, while Cameron Maybin added that the team nevertheless supports its manager's decision. But perhaps the most important quotation of the day was all of two words long:
Fredi won't say if Hanley will start tomorrow. "We'll see.'' Hanley still hasn't apologized to the team.
While it's an unpleasant situation in which the Marlins find themselves at the moment, Tuesday's win makes everything better and relieves some of the pressure. With the team having played well without its best talent, the ball's in Hanley's court to apologize so everybody can move on.