33-year old lefty swinging 1B/3B Greg Dobbs has been rock solid in his time with the Marlins. Dobbs has played in 31 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 19 for 67 (.284 avg, .696 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 0 homers, 10 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 165 games in his first two years with the Marlins and he is 132 for 478 (.276 avg, .700 OPS) with 44 runs scored, 8 homers, 59 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Dobbs has been a real asset for the Marlins the last couple of years and they hope he keeps up the good work.

The Marlins have acquired 30-year old righty swinging outfielder Justin Ruggiano from the Astros for 20-year old switch-hitting catcher Jobduan Morales. Ruggiano played in 39 games in AAA-ball for the Astros this year and he was 38 for 117 (.325 avg, .990 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 5 homers, 29 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. He last played in the majors in 2011 with the Tampa Bay Rays. Ruggiano has played in 98 games in his first three years in the majors and he is 44 for 195 (.226 avg, .621 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 6 homers, 23 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. The Marlins need a lot of help in the outfield and they are hoping that Ruggiano can give them some right away. Jobduan Morales was still in extended spring training for the Marlins, so he hasn’t played in any games yet this year. Morales played in 127 games in his three years in the minors for the Marlins and he was 113 of 415 (.272 avg, .754 OPS) with 67 runs scored, 4 homers and 44 RBIs.

The Miami Marlins have placed 32-year old righty swinging outfielder Austin Kearns on the 15-day D.L. due to a strained right hamstring. Kearns has played in 22 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 18 for 48 (.375 avg, 1.090 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 3 homers, 9 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Marlins have called up 26-year old lefty swinging outfielder Kevin Mattison to replace Kearns on the active roster. Mattison has played in 38 games in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 38 for 151 (.252 avg, .743 OPS) with 28 runs scored, 5 homers, 15 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. The Marlins are going to miss Kearns’ bat off the bench.

28-year old righty starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez has been really sharp for the Marlins so far this year. He has started 8 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 2-2 with a 2.32 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. He has only given up 44 hits in 54 1/3 innings while whiffing 55 batters and only walking 14. Sanchez has now pitched in 122 games (121 starts) in his first seven years with the Marlins and he is 41-40 with a 3.61 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Sanchez is the often forgot about part of the Hanley Ramirez-Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell deal with the Red Sox, but he is starting to really make his mark for the Marlins.

The Miami Marlins have placed 27-year old switch-hitting CF Emilio Bonifacio on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to May 19th due to a sprained left thumb. Bonifacio has played in 39 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 40 for 149 (.268 avg, .667 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 0 homers, 6 RBIs and a major league leading 20 stolen bases. 26-year old lefty swinging Bryan Petersen will likely replace Bonifacio in CF until he’s ready to return to action. Petersen has played in 9 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 2 for 11 (.182 avg, .490 OPS) with 3 runs scored. The Marlins have called up 24-year old righty swinging infielder Donovan Solano for his first taste of the majors. Solano has played in 36 games in AAA-ball so far this year for the Marlins and he is 37 for 141 (.262 avg, .653 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 0 homers, 14 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Solano has now played in 738 games in his first eight years in the minors and he is 664 for 2,550 (.260 avg, .633 OPS) with 302 runs scored, 10 homers, 222 RBIs and 26 stolen bases. The Marlins hope that Bonifacio returns from the D.L. when he’s first eligible in early June, because they are going to miss his speed at the top of the batting order.

UPDATE: (5/26/2012) - Bonifacio had surgery on his thumb and he will likely miss the next 6-8 weeks.

The Marlins have sent 28-year old righty swinging 1B Gaby Sanchez to AAA-ball. Sanchez has played in 36 games for the Marlins so far this year and he was 24 for 122 (.197 avg, .539 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer, 11 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Sanchez will be replaced at 1B by LF Logan Morrison. 1B is Morrison’s natural position, so he should do o.k. there defensively. Morrison has played in 36 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 26 for 105 (.248 avg, .684 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 2 homers and 9 RBIs. The Marlins have called up 26-year old lefty swinging outfielder Chris Coghlan to replace Morrison in LF. Coghlan played in 19 games earlier this year for the Marlins and he is 4 for 34 (.118 avg, .290 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers and 2 RBIs.

In my opinion, no one has more pure power than 22-year old righty swinging RF Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins. He has played in 37 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 38 for 135 (.281 avg, .871 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 8 homers and 24 RBIs. Stanton has cut down on his whiffs as he has struck out 33 times this year. That should help his batting average. Stanton has now played in 287 games in his first three years with the Marlins and he is 266 for 1,010 (.263 avg, .869 OPS) with 143 runs scored, 64 homers, 170 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. Stanton is going to win some home run titles in his major league career and that could start in 2012.

23-year old righty starting pitcher Alex Sanabia is off to an excellent start in AAA-ball for the Marlins. He has started 7 games for the Marlins so far this year in AAA-ball and he is 3-1 with a 2.17 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. Sanabia has given up 44 hits in his first 45 2/3 innings this year, while whiffing 34 batters and only walking 3! He has pitched in 18 games (14 starts) in his first two years with the Marlins and he is 5-3 with a 3.67 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Sanabia will be the first starting pitcher called up by the Marlins if the need arises. He could also be an outstanding trade chip at the trade deadline in July, if the Marlins are buyers….which is likely.

30-year old righty starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano is locked in for the Marlins so far this year. Zambrano has started 6 games for the Marlins so far this year and he is 1-2 with a 1.98 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. He only has given up 28 hits in 41 innings so far this year with 32 whiffs and 14 walks. Zambrano is back to just pitching and he’s getting along well with Marlins’ manager Ozzie Guillen and his coaching staff. That bodes well for both Zambrano and the Marlins, who took a big chance on him by dealing for him with the Cubs over the winter.

21-year old righty swinging outfielder Marcell Ozuna came into this season as the Marlins’ #2 prospect according to Baseball America. But, he is struggling in A-ball so far this year. Ozuna has played in 26 games in A-ball so far this year and he is 23 for 101 (.228 avg, .674 OPS) with 12 runs scored, 5 homers, 14 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. He has now played in 349 games in his first five years in the minors and he is 363 of 1,339 (.271 avg, .805 OPS) with 220 runs scored, 61 homers, 229 RBIs and 35 stolen bases. The Marlins are going to take things slow with Ozuna.