20-Year Marliniversary: Aven Hits First Grand Slam in Marlins History to Lead Fish Past Dodgers

Getty Images
The 1999 season wasn’t one that the Florida Marlins will remember with any particular fondness, but like any other baseball season, it had its fair share of memories. One of the most thrilling from that particular season took place on this day two decades ago.

The Marlins were a league-worst 6-22 as they made their way to Dodger Stadium to begin a three-game set against the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 7, 1999. Florida had lost eight straight heading into the contest and had failed to win a series all season.

That trend looked to inevitably continue as Florida trailed 3-1 after six innings. To that point, the Marlins had mustered just a run on four hits against Los Angeles starter Darren Dreifort before stringing hits together in the top of the seventh.

After an RBI double from Todd Dunwoody cut the Dodgers’ lead in half, Dreifort intentionally walked catcher Jorge Fabregas to load the bases. From there, Los Angeles went to the bullpen and Florida went to the bench.

Bruce Aven was called to pinch-hit for starting pitcher Dennis Springer and stepped to the plate to face Alan Mills with one out. On a 2-2 pitch, Aven was able to hammer a fastball over the left field wall for a pinch-hit grand slam to give the Marlins a 6-3 lead. The blast for Aven was just the second home run of his career and the first pinch-hit grand slam in club history.

Aven’s memorable blast would cap the scoring as the Marlins went on to win the series by taking the rubber game two days later. Springer earned the win for Florida while Dreifort was tagged with the loss. The only other ball to leave the yard that night was hit by Los Angeles third baseman Adrián Beltré—a solo shot in the third to get the scoring started.

There have been other notable pinch-hit grand slams in the Marlins’ 27-year history from the likes of Ryan McGuire and Jeremy Hermida. The first-ever, however, came from Bruce Aven and on this day 20 years ago.

View the article on Fish Stripes. This is posted here only for personal archives.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

15-Year Maliniversary: Lowell Becomes First Marlin to Homer Three Times in One Game

Image
Rich Pilling/MLB Photos via Getty Images Third baseman Mike Lowell certainly had his share of postseason heroics with the Florida Marlins and Boston Red Sox, but on this day 15 years ago, the Gold Glove third baseman did something that no Marlin had ever done -- leave the yard three times in one game. The defending world champion Florida Marlins were riding high on April 21, 2004 as they looked to clinch the series by taking the middle game of a 3-game set at Citizens Bank Park against the Philadelphia Phillies. Florida was 9-4 on the young season compared to just 5-7 for Philadelphia. Through five and a half innings, a solo home run by Lowell off Philadelphia starter Eric Milton to lead off the second inning accounted for all the scoring. Then in the bottom of the sixth, the Phillies pushed across five runs with a 2-run homer from Jim Thome putting Philadelphia ahead. Trailing 5-1 entering the seventh, Florida answered back with five runs of its own. After the Marlins pushed
Read more

5-Year Marliniversary: Stanton's Walk-Off Slam Downs Mariners

Image
Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images Few things in baseball are mre exciting than a walk-off home run and during his tenure with the Florida/Miami Marlins, Giancarlo Stanton had his fair share of those. One of those came on this day five years ago and it came with the bases loaded. Both the Miami Marlins and Seattle Mariners were below .500 early in the 2014 season when they began a 3-game set at Marlins Park on April 18, 2014. The Marlins never trailed in the contest, but Seattle seemed to always have an answer -- at least that was the case until Stanton came to the plate with the bases filled in the bottom of the ninth. Yoervis Medina came in to pitch for Seattle in a 4-4 game to start the ninth, but never was able to record an out. After Reed Johnson singled to start the inning, Christian Yelich was able to reach on a bunt hit. A misplayed bunt off the bat of Marcell Ozuna loaded the bags and set the stage for Stanton. Medina was able to get ahead in the count before Stanton launched
Read more

Marlins' Top 5 Mother's Day Moments

Image
(Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports) Whether you're just enjoying a day with mom, taking her out to the ballgame or trying just to leave her alone, there's one thing about Mother's Day and the Florida/Miami Marlins. They've played on that day every year since their inception in 1993. This year's opponent for the second Mother's Day in a row will be the Atlanta Braves. Whether you get to watch the action or are busy with mom, we've got the good times for you. Here's a look at the top five moments in Marlins' history on Mother's Day: 5. Moore's Pinch-Hit Blast May 14, 2017 For most of last season's Mother's Day contest, the Miami Marlins had been unable to figure out Atlanta Braves' starting pitcher R.A. Dickey. Through six innings, the Marlins had been kept off the scoreboard and held to three hits. Trailing 1-0 in the seventh however, the Marlins had something brewing. After Giancarlo Stanton doubled and A.J
Read more