Tuesday, Sept. 30, 1997 | 11:21 a.m.
A look at the best-of-5 National League division series between the San Francisco Giants and Florida Marlins:
SCHEDULE
Game 1, Tuesday, at Florida (1:07 p.m., ESPN)
Game 2, Wednesday, at Florida (1:07 p.m., ESPN)
Game 3, Friday, at San Francisco (5:07 p.m., NBC)
x-Game 4, Saturday, at San Francisco (8:07 p.m., ESPN)
x-Game 5, Sunday, at San Francisco (8:07 p.m., ESPN).
x-if necessary.
SEASON SERIES
San Francisco won, 6-5.
LINEUPS
Giants: Darryl Hamilton cf (.270, 5 HRs, 43 RBIs), Bill Mueller 3b (.292, 7, 44), Barry Bonds lf (.291, 40, 101), Jeff Kent 2b (.250, 29, 121), J.T. Snow 1b (.281, 28, 104), Stan Javier (.286, 8, 50) or Glenallen Hill rf (.261, 11, 64), Jose Vizcaino ss (.266, 5, 50), Brian Johnson c (.279, 11, 27).
Marlins: Devon White cf (.245, 6, 34), Edgar Renteria ss (.277, 4, 52), Gary Sheffield rf (.250, 21, 71), Bobby Bonilla 3b (.297, 17, 96), Moises Alou lf (.292, 23, 115), Jeff Conine (.242, 17, 61) or Darren Daulton 1b (.263, 14, 63), Charles Johnson c (.250, 19, 63), Kurt Abbott 2b (.274, 6, 30).
ROTATIONS
Giants: LH Kirk Rueter (13-6, 3.45 ERA), LH Shawn Estes (19-5, 3.13), LH Wilson Alvarez (4-3, 4.48, 9-8 with White Sox), RH Mark Gardner (12-9, 4.29).
Marlins: RH Kevin Brown (16-8, 2.69), LH Al Leiter (11-9, 4.34), RH Alex Fernandez (17-12, 3.59), LH Tony Saunders (4-6, 4.61).
RELIEVERS
Giants: RH Rod Beck (37 saves), RH Roberto Hernandez (2.48 ERA since trade from White Sox), RH Julian Tavarez (1 inning at a time), LH Rich Rodriguez (lefty specialist), LH Terry Mulholland (6-13 for Giants and Cubs), RH Doug Henry (4.71 ERA).
Marlins: RH Robb Nen (35 saves), RH Jay Powell (7-2, 3.28), LH Felix Heredia (4.29), LH Dennis Cook (3.90), RH Livan Hernandez (9-3 as starter).
MATCHUPS
Giants: Bonds hit only .103 (3-for-29) with one homer against Marlins, but they pitched him carefully, walking him 13 times. ... Estes was 2-0 with 1.93 ERA in two starts. Rueter also had 1.93 ERA in two starts. ... Beck pitched three scoreless innings in three appearances. Roberto Hernandez, however, allowed four runs in 1 2/3 innings. ... Gardner was 0-2 with a 7.47 ERA in three starts. ... Hill drove in a team-high seven runs.
Marlins: Brown pitched no-hitter at San Francisco on June 10. He went 2-0 in two starts against the Giants, allowing one run in 18 innings. ... Alou batted .359 with three home runs and 11 RBIs. ... Nen struggled with 13.50 ERA in four appearances. ... Fernandez was 0-2 with 7.84 ERA. ... Leiter was 1-0 with 1.06 ERA in three starts. ... Sheffield hit .324, homered twice and drove in six runs.
BIG PICTURE
Giants: Won first NL West championship since 1989. ... Only the fourth team to go from last place to first place in following year, joining 1991 Twins, 1991 Braves and 1993 Phillies. Giants were 68-94 last year, then traded away Matt Williams. ... First playoff team since 1987 Twins to be outscored during season. ... Bonds surged in final month, looking for postseason redemption. ... Kent set Giants record for most HRs by a second baseman, passing Rogers Hornsby. ... Snow came back from Randy Johnson beaning in spring training. ... Midseason acquisition Brian Johnson hit two game-winning homers in stretch. ... Roberto Hernandez, acquired with Alvarez from White Sox in late July, joined Beck as strong bullpen tandem.
Marlins: Earned first playoff spot in five-year history, winning wild card. Have improved record in each season of existence. ... Spent nearly $100 million to lure manager Jim Leyland from Pittsburgh and sign Alou, Bonilla and other free agents, then spent more than $60 million on Sheffield's extension. ... Went 23-5 in one-run decisions at Pro Player Stadium ... Sheffield did not produce as expected. ... Nen blew seven save chances, had higher-than-expected ERA. ... Despite Florida's first playoff appearance, several Marlins have postseason experience - White, Bonilla, Fernandez and Daulton, among them.
WATCH FOR
* The Pittsburgh connection. The last time Bonds, Bonilla and Leyland were all together, it marked the Pirates' third straight loss in the NL playoffs. Bonds, a three-time MVP, looks to atone for .191 postseason average. Bonilla is .190 lifetime in playoffs.
* Brown's opener. He's 4-0 with an 0.61 ERA lifetime against Giants. Could give Marlins an early lead, or give San Francisco a big boost if they beat him.
* Defense. Charles Johnson, White and Renteria are real strong for Marlins. Kent can be shaky for Giants.
PREDICTION
Giants in 5.
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