In 2010, 31-year old righty swinging catcher John Buck played in 118 games for the Blue Jays and he was 115 for 409 (.281 avg, .803 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 20 homers and 66 RBIs. The Marlins then gave him a huge contract over the winter, based on last year’s production. Buck has played in 93 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 72 for 318 (.226 avg, .684 OPS) with 30 runs scored, 11 homers and 38 RBIs. You have to think that the Marlins didn’t scout Buck until last season to give him the kind of contract they did. In his six years in Kansas City, Buck played in 584 games in which he was 450 for 1,913 (.235 avg, .705 OPS) with 218 runs scored, 70 homers, 259 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Buck will have two more years with the Marlins to prove that his signing wasn’t the waste of money it looks like right now.

The Florida Marlins aren’t going to trade any of their younger players this week at the trade deadline with them moving into a brand new stadium next year. I still see them making some deals for prospects though. Closer Leo Nunez is the top trade chip the Marlins will likely make available this week. The Angels, Rangers, Phillies, Braves, Pirates and Diamondbacks will likely line up for a shot to get Nunez. Righty relievers Brian Sanches and Burke Badenhop could also be on the move as long as the Marlins get what they want for them. Infielder Omar Infante will be pursued by the Rangers, Braves, Brewers, Cardinals, Giants and D-Backs so he could be on the move by this Sunday too. The Marlins would love to dump righty starting pitcher Javier Vazquez or veteran infielder Wes Helms, but I don’t see them having much luck in those ventures.

The Marlins have sent 24-year old righty starting pitcher Chris Volstad to AAA. Volstad has started 20 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 5-8 with a 5.58 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. He has given up 134 hits in his first 111 1/3 innings for the Marlins this year so he wasn’t missing many bats. Volstad has now pitched in 94 games (93 starts) in his first four years with the Marlins and he is 32-34 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. The Marlins will likely call up 21-year old lefty starter Brad Hand to replace Volstad in the starting rotation. Hand has started 5 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 1-3 with a 2.77 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP.

35-year old lefty reliever Randy Choate has really been effective so far this year for the Marlins. He has pitched in 45 games (0 starts) for the Marlins so far this year and he is 0-1 with a 1.33 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. He has been used almost exclusively against lefty batters as he has only pitched 20 1/3 innings so far this year. He has only allowed 9 hits this year while whiffing 26 batters as he has been dominating in his role in the Marlins’ bullpen so far this year. Rumors abound that teams are calling the Marlins about Choate, but he’s signed for 2012 at $1.25 million bucks, so a team is going to have to overwhelm the Marlins if they want to trade for him.

25-year old righty reliever Steven Chisek came into this season as the Marlins’ #19 prospect according to Baseball America. Chisek has pitched in 20 games (0 starts) for the Marlins so far this year and he is 1-1 with 1 save, a 2.13 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. He has only given up 21 hits while walking 6 batters in his first 25 1/3 innings this year as he has been very aggressive in the strikezone. He also has whiffed 27 batters for the Fish as he was good stuff. Chisek could be moving up in the Marlins’ bullpen if they deal a reliever or two by the trade deadline.

The Florida Marlins finished the first half on a 5-game winning streak as they are starting to respond to “new” manager Jack McKeon. The Marlins are 11-8 (57.9%) under McKeon. The Marlins finished the first half of the season in last place in the N.L. East with a 43-48 record which has them 14 games behind the Phillies. The Marlins are also 10.5 games behind the Braves in the Wild Card race. Here is a look at the players who made the biggest impact in the first half of the season for the Marlins:

Team MVP: No one in baseball has more raw power than 21-year old righty swinging RF Mike Stanton. He’s streaky but when he’s on, he hits everything hard. Stanton has played in 85 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 77 for 302 (.255 avg, .842 OPS) with 44 runs scored, 18 homers, 51 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Stanton has whiffed 96 times so far this year so he has a lot of holes in his swing, but he has carried the team quite a bit this year offensively.

Biggest Surprise: 32-year old lefty swinging 3B Greg Dobbs was just supposed to be a pinch hitter for the Marlins this year but they have needed him more than that and he has responded well. Dobbs has played in 75 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 63 for 215 (.293 avg, .718 OPS) with 23 runs scored, 2 homers and 21 RBIs. In his first seven years in the majors prior to this year, Dobbs had never batted more than 324 times in a season.

Biggest Disappointment: 27-year old righty swinging shorstop Hanley Ramirez has been the best hitter on the Marlins every year he has been on the team until 2011. Ramirez has played in 73 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 64 for 265 (.242 avg, .706 OPS) with 46 runs scored, 8 homers, 37 RBIs and 15 stolen bases. The Marlins are hoping for Ramirez to have a big second half as he has a lot better since Jack McKeon has taken over as the manager.

25-year old lefty swinging CF Kevin Mattison is swinging the bat well this year in the minors for the Marlins. Mattison has played in 77 games in AA-ball so far this year and he is 88 for 303 (.290 avg, .836 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 6 homers, 36 RBIs and 25 stolen bases. Mattison also has 11 triples this season already but he has whiffed 80 times and that’s way too many. Mattison has now played in 355 games in his first four years in the minors and he is 340 for 1,367 (.249 avg, .707 OPS) with 222 runs scored, 28 homers, 133 RBIs and 129 stolen bases. Mattison could earn a promotion to AAA soon if he keeps playing like he is right now.

29-year old righty swinging Omar Infante had a career year in 2010 and the Marlins paid full price for him, getting him back as part of the deal for Dan Uggla. Infante made the All-Star team with the Braves in 2010. He played in 134 games for the Braves last year and he was 151 for 471 (.321 avg, .775 OPS) with 65 runs scored, 8 homers, 47 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Until this season, Infante had only played in over 100 games three times in his first 9 years, and now you’re seeing why. Pitchers have a better gameplan usually for guys in the lineup all of the time and they have done well against Infante. He has played in 87 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 86 for 334 (.257 avg, .618 OPS) with 23 runs scored, 1 homer, 25 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Look for the Marlins to consider dealing him later this month.

27-year old righty swinging 1B Gaby Sanchez will be the Marlins’ only representative in the All-Star Game next week. Sanchez has played in 86 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 95 for 325 (.292 avg, .842 OPS) with 41 runs scored, 13 homers, 47 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Sanchez has been one of the Marlins’ best kept secrets but that’s all about to change with him making the All-Star team in 2011.

The Florida Marlins have acquired 38-year old righty swinging CF Mike Cameron and cash considerations from the Red Sox for either a player to be named later or cash considerations. Cameron played in 33 games for the Red Sox this year and he was 14 for 94 (.149 avg, .477 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 3 homers and 9 RBIs. Cameron has now played in 1,910 games in his first 17 years in the majors and he is 1,666 for 6,696 (.249 avg, .782 OPS) with 1,046 runs scored, 272 homers, 950 RBIs and 296 stolen bases. Cameron will likely get the chance to start in CF for a while. Maybe consistent atbats will revive Cameron’s bat. This was a good low risk move for the Marlins.