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One heartbeat.

 

Those two words served as the rallying cry for the 1997 Florida Marlins, a team of veterans and young stars alike that reached the pinnacle of the baseball world in just their fifth season of existence. This weekend at loanDepot park, they will be honored at a 25th anniversary celebration, presented by AutoNation.

 

Though much is said about the Marlins buying their first World Series title, the foundation had been laid before their first game. The franchise picked University of Miami catcher Charles Johnson with its first selection of the 1992 MLB Draft. During its inaugural 1993 season, Florida dealt for All-Star outfielder Gary Sheffield and eventual closer Robb Nen. Prior to the 1996 campaign, the Marlins signed starters Al Leiter and Kevin Brown to front their rotation. All of that, plus a promising third-place finish by going 31-24 over the final two months of '96, led then-owner Wayne Huizenga to ask general manager Dave Dombrowski the following:

 

"Okay, let's try to win. What do you think it would take?"

 

Before going on a spending spree, the Marlins hired Jim Leyland, whose decade-long tenure with the Pirates came up short of reaching the World Series three times with NLCS losses. Then came time to upgrade the roster, with the intention of overthrowing the perennial-contending Braves and their future Hall of Fame staff of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. The Marlins signed Bobby Bonilla, John Cangelosi, Jim Eisenreich, Alex Fernandez, Dennis Cook and Moises Alou before the calendar turned to 1997. The club acquired Cliff Floyd from the Expos toward the end of Spring Training to cap a string of preseason moves.

 

"We thought we had a good team, felt very good about it, thought we had a chance to win," Dombrowski recently told MLB.com. "And really, to borrow one of Jim Leyland's lines, but I had felt the same way, 'You say pressure?' Well, there were expectations, but it was a good pressure, because we knew we had a good team. Now how good, only time tells. And of course, we made some adjustments. Trading Deadline time I think really did make a significant difference for us. But we knew we had a good ballclub, but we were also playing against a team that was really good in our division, the Braves. And so, no guarantees by any means. But we felt we could compete with clubs."

That became apparent early on as the Marlins boasted a 26-5 Spring Training record. There wasn't much of a drop-off once the games began to count, as the Marlins (92-70) settled for the NL Wild Card. In the playoffs, the Marlins disposed of the Giants in three games in the NLDS before knocking out the rival Braves in six games behind Livan Hernández's NLCS record 15 strikeouts.

 

"If you look at it all year long, we handled the Braves pretty good," Leyland recently told MLB.com. "I think that was a big step for us because they were the team, and they were the team that everybody looked at. And rightfully so. They've been a great team or a really good team. But we handled them pretty well during the season. That gave us confidence going into the postseason. We'd played them really well all year. That gave us a little bit of an air of confidence going in, and I think the Braves respected us. They knew we were for real. They knew we had a really good team, and I think that we earned their respect. That was probably the biggest thing during the course of the season."

 

Cleveland and Florida traded wins in an evenly contested Fall Classic, setting up one of the most dramatic Game 7 finishes of all time. The Marlins had gone 52-29 at home during the regular season, and 5-3 in the playoffs entering the finale. The atmosphere at Pro Player Stadium was electric on a late October night with 67,204 fans. Years earlier, the late Huizenga had brought baseball to South Florida because he believed it could thrive. Here was proof.

 

For the full story, click here.

TRIVIA

 

Who scored the winning run on the walk-off hit in Game 7 of the 1997 World Series? 

 

1. Craig Counsell
2. Édgar Rentería
3. Jeff Conine
4. Bobby Bonilla

PARTY LIKE IT'S 1997

 

Fans can purchase tickets at Marlins.com/Tickets to enjoy this weekend's festivities and meet members of the ballclub, including exclusive access to certain appearances for Home Run Rewards cardholders. Fans can sign up now for the complimentary program at Marlins.com/Rewards. 

 

The current Marlins team will wear a special commemorative 25th anniversary patch on the game hats. Florida Marlins merchandise also is available at the loanDepot park team stores.

 

Friday

• The Marlins will host fans who have been Marlins Members since the 1997 season for an exclusive pregame reception, which will include a photo opportunity with the World Series trophy and a special appearance by members of the team. 

Saturday

• The first 8,000 fans will receive a 1997 World Series replica ring presented by AutoNation.
• Fans should arrive early for a special on-field, pregame ceremony to recognize the 1997 team.
• Alumni selfie stations and special appearances will take place throughout the game. 

Sunday

• Members of the 1997 team will take the field for a special softball game, beginning at 11:45 a.m. ET. Gates will open at 11:30 a.m.
• Alumni selfie stations and special appearances will take place throughout the game. 

        

Members of the 1997 ballclub scheduled to attend include:

• Manager Jim Leyland
• Kurt Abbott
• Antonio Alfonseca
• Alex Arias
• John Cangelosi
• Craig Counsell
• Rich Donnelly
• Jim Eisenreich
• Alex Fernández
• Cliff Floyd
• World Series MVP Livan Hernández
• Charles Johnson
• Édgar Rentería
• Gary Sheffield 

 

Of note: Appearances are subject to change.

RECOMMENDED READING

 

• On Mother's Day, Marlins shortstop Miguel Rojas remembered how his mom Norma lit up every room and provided for the family. Read more.

 

• Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc of Ferrari stopped by loanDepot park last week ahead of the Miami Grand Prix. He and second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. exchanged gear. Read more.

 

• Padres catching coach Francisco Cervelli gifted a cigar to Marlins reliever Anthony Bass prior to last Thursday's game between the clubs. In 2020, then-Marlins catcher Cervelli hit a game-tying homer against then-Blue Jays closer Bass. The pair finally met in the series opener at Petco Park. Read more.

 

• Joe Dunand made club history by homering in his first Major League at-bat. His family, including uncle Alex Rodriguez, watched from afar. Read more.

THIS WEEK IN 1997

 

May 13: Making a statement

 

Signing Bobby Bonilla to a four-year, $23.3 million free-agent contract was the first big splash for the Marlins during an active Hot Stove season that would shape 1997. But the six-time All-Star didn't go deep until his 36th game (146th plate appearance). Bonilla broke open the ballgame with a grand slam against Braves righty Paul Byrd in the fourth inning. The Marlins would win, 11-6, at Turner Field behind Bonilla's three-hit performance. On the season, Bonilla would finish tied for fourth on the club with 17 homers.

TRIVIA ANSWER

 

A. Craig Counsell

 

Acquired from the Rockies on July 27 in exchange for Mark Hutton, the 27-year-old rookie started at second base in Game 7. Counsell produced the game-tying sacrifice fly in the ninth, then reached on an error in the 11th. As the inning progressed, Counsell found himself at third with two outs. When Édgar Rentería singled up the middle, Counsell raced home as the winning run. Counsell will be in town this weekend, when the Brewers visit the Marlins. He is in his eighth season as Milwaukee's manager.

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