Jeffrey Loria reportedly had his previous attempts to meddle with the Marlins lineups ignored by former manager Ozzie Guillen. (Marc Serota/Getty Images)

Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria has alienated the team’s fans and the city’s politicians after following last season’s new stadium opening with a firesale of players. On Tuesday, Loria reportedly gave his players and manager reason to join critics after meddling in the Marlins’ starting lineup.

Loria personally called for rookie manager Mike Redmond to flip-flop starting pitchers Jose Fernandez and Ricky Nolasco in Tuesday’s doubleheaders against the Twins at Target Field, according to a Yahoo! Sports report. The move left Marlins players furious, according to three sources:

“He was embarrassed,” one source said of Redmond, who nonetheless claimed publicly the decision was an organizational choice. “He tried to fight it. He had nothing to do with it.”

This is not the first time Loria has tried to tinker with his team’s on-field product. Loria, one source said, also made lineup suggestions to Ozzie Guillen, the team’s previous manager. Guillen ignored them.

Loria reportedly wanted 20-year-old rookie pitcher Fernandez to pitch in the first half of the doubleheader when the temperature was expected to be warmer at Target Field. Veteran pitchers are often given their choice of which game they’d like to pitch in doubleheaders, and Nolasco had picked the day game. Temperatures ended up measuring 42 degrees at the first pitch of Nolasco’s start and 38 degrees for Fernandez’s night outing.

The Marlins own baseball’s worst record (5-17) and attendance has dropped dramatically after Loria traded off more than $100 million in players and payroll last summer halfway through the team’s first season in Marlins Park.

LEMIRE: Marlins at bottom of MLB Power Rankings

With their starting rotation depleted by injuries, the Miami Marlins have opted to move 20-year-old prospect Jose Fernandez onto their Opening Day roster.

Fernandez will start the fifth game of the Marlins’ season — against the New York Mets at Citi Field on Saturday — just one year after beginning 2012 in Single-A Greensboro.

Young pitchers Nathan Eovaldi and Henderson Alvarez, a right-hander acquired from the Blue Jays in the offseason mega-deal, will both start the season on the disabled list with shoulder injuries.

Fernandez, a 6-foot-2, 220-pounds righty, was Miami’s first-round draft pick (14th overall) in 2011 — 26 picks before Jackie Bradley Jr., who made the Red Sox’s roster — pitching just 4.1 innings in low-A and the Rookie League that year.

Last season, he posted a 14-1 record, 1.75 ERA, 158 strikeouts and just 35 walks in 134 Single-A innings, earning the No. 5 spot on Baseball America‘s top 100 prospects list.

From the Palm-Beach Post‘s Joe Capozzi:

The roster changes were announced by baseball operations president Larry Beinfest. The team was at Nationals Park this morning for a workout.

The rotation for Week 1 will be Nolasco, Kevin Slowey and Wade LeBlanc in Washington with Sanabia followed by Nolasco and Fernandez in New York. The Marlins are off Tuesday.

The opening day lineup for the Marlins has only one holdover from last year’s Game 1 lineup.

[SI's Complete Team-By-Team MLB Season Preview]

Miami Marlins outfielder Kolby Copeland has been suspended by Major League Baseball for 50 games after refusing to take a drug test under the minor league program, according to a report Tuesday afternoon from MLB.com writer Danny Wild.

Copeland, 19, was drafted by the Marlins in the third-round of the 2012 draft but will now miss the first 50 games of the season without pay. His refusal to submit to a drug test is considered a violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. He is the eighth minor leaguer to be suspended in 2013 for violating the drug program.

Entering this year, he was ranked the Marlins’ No. 4 outfield prospect after getting drafted out of Parkway (Bossier City, La.) High School. Last season he split time between the Class A Short-Season Jamestown Jammers and the Marlins’ Rookie-level Gulf Coast affiliate, batting .280 with 34 RBIs and recorded four stolen bases in 62 games. He signed a $367,000 deal with the Marlins after getting drafted last year.

Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria said the team will not discuss a contract extension with slugger Giancarlo Stanton this season. (Marc Serota/Getty Images)

Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria said that the team would not discuss a contract extension with star outfielder Giancarlo Stanton until after the season.

“I dont think this is the year to go to Giancarlo with an offer. We have to let him play it out, let him feel more comfortable,” Loria said, according to The Palm Beach Post.

Loria spoke to reporters for the first time Monday since a shocking offseason trade with the Toronto Blue Jays in which the team unloaded shortstop Jose Reyes, pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle.

Loria’s comments aren’t exactly a surprise, as Stanton is under team control through 2016. But Stanton has been the subject of trade rumors since the Marlins’ payroll purge in November. Loria was asked if Stanton would remain with the Marlins beyond one more year.

“I don’t have any comments about that,” he said. “One more year? He will be here this year and I’m hopefully he will come here the next year. … I would love to see him be the centerpiece of this ball club. He’d the young giant in the ball club, but you can’t make promises in this game because strange things happen all the time.”

In just his third full season, the 23-year-old Stanton hit 37 homers last season in 123 games with a .969 OPS last year.

Loria also defended the team’s offseason fire sale, saying the moves were needed because the team was not in a position to immediately contend.

“It’s not a fire sale. You can call it a fire sale. It’s called hit the restart button because it didn’t damn work,” Loria said, .

“I understand the feeling, but I have no interest in endless losing and we had two years of that. I want to us get back to our winning ways.”

A group headed by former Florida governor Jeb Bush reportedly offered to buy the Marlins. (William Thomas Cain/Getty Images)

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush tried to buy the Marlins from owner Jeffrey Loria this offseason, according to a source in a report by Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.

Loria has rejected offers from several interested buyers including the brother of former President — and Texas Rangers co-owner — George W. Bush.

Jeb Bush made a “large offer” to buy the Marlins according to the source. Another source said Bush’s group of investors included Venezuelan media owner Gustavo Cisneros.

Loria has come under heavy criticism since authorizing the trade of several high-priced players in a salary dump after opening a new stadium that included government funding.

A friend of Loria told Jackson that barring a health problem or change of heart, he does not want to sell because he loves owning a team. An unnamed, longtime MLB official said the league has long hoped an owner with deeper pockets than Loria would buy the Marlins.

Would the Marlins trade young slugger Giancarlo Stanton? At least five teams have inquired about the possibility. (Marc Serota/Getty Images)

After the Miami Marlins completed a gigantic payroll purge in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays last week, at least five teams have inquired about the availability of young star outfielder Giancarlo Stanton.

The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo reports that the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles, the Chicago Cubs “and many more” have all asked about the 23-year-old Stanton’s availability.

From Cafardo’s report:

“Commissioner Bud Selig is watching the Marlins closely after the salary dump in the Blue Jays deal. While Selig did not step in to change or block that trade, he may not look too fondly upon a deal for the Marlins’ biggest draw. Teams would have to give their very best to the Marlins for baseball’s best young slugger. The Phillies, Red Sox, Yankees, Orioles, Cubs, and many more are inquiring, according to a major league source.”

In just his third full season, Stanton hit 37 homers last season in 123 games with a .969 OPS. He would likely bring a coup of prospects to Miami if the organization decided to trade him.

Last week, Selig approved the Marlins’ salary-dump trade, which sent All-Star shortstop Jose Reyes, pitchers Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson, catcher John Buck and outfielder Emilio Bonifacio to the Blue Jays for seven players. The trade saved the Marlins $146.5 million in payroll. Stanton will be eligible for arbitration following the 2013 season, but he would be under club control until the 2016 season.

Pitcher Mark Buehrle was traded to the Blue Jays after posting a 3.74 ERA in his lone season with the Marlins. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

The day after the Marlins officially completed their shocking trade with the Toronto Blue Jays, starting pitcher Mark Buehrle and agent Jeff Berry issued a joint statement criticizing the Marlins for their handling of Buehrle’s contract, reports the Sun-Sentinel.

The 33-year-old lefty signed a four-year, $58 million deal before the 2012 season, but was traded after just one year in Miami along with high-salaried stars Josh Johnson and Jose Reyes.

Buehrle’s desire to reunite with former White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen played a large role in his decision to sign. Guillen was fired after one season.

Buehrle and Berry’s statement indicated that the team had assured him that the pitcher would remain in Miami long term.

“I’m upset with how things turned out in Miami,” Buehrle said. “Just like the fans in South Florida, I was lied to on multiple occasions. But I’m putting it behind me and looking forward to moving on with my career.”

“In an off-season of change and uncertainty, the overriding factor in Mark’s signing with Miami was Ozzie Guillen and the level of comfort his presence provided Mark and his family,” Berry said in his statement. “While the Marlins were the highest bidder, baseball had already made Mark a wealthy man, so money was far from the most important factor in his decision.

“Throughout the recruiting process, the Marlins made repeated assurances about their long-term commitment to Mark and his family and their long-term commitment to building a winning tradition of Marlins baseball in the new stadium. This was demonstrated by their already completed signings of Ozzie, Heath Bell and Jose Reyes.

The Miami Herald reported earlier this week that Jose Reyes was also “shocked” by the move because he had also been told he would not be traded, according to his agent.

Owner Jeffrey Loria and president David Samson have slashed the Marlins payroll. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Two of the five Marlins traded to Toronto in a controversial blockbuster deal claim the team broke verbal no-trade promises, according to sources in a report by Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com.

The Marlins do not award no-trade clauses, but club officials, while recruiting Jose Reyes and Mark Buerhle as free agents last offseason, assured both players that they would not be moved, sources said.

Buehrle knew the Marlins’ history of dumping high-priced players, and it concerned him, according to a friend. Team president David Samson, however, told both Buehrle and his wife, Jamie, that the team was committed to a long-term vision, sources said.

The Buehrles have two children — a son, Braden, 5, and a daughter, Brooklyn, 3. They also own a 2-year-old pit bull, Slater. The province of Ontario, where Toronto is located, bans pit bulls.

Samson did not respond to a FoxSports.com request to comment on the specifics of this story. Neither did Buerhle’s agent, Jeff Berry.

A source close to Reyes, asked if the shortstop also received verbal assurances from the Marlins that he would not be traded, responded, “The answer is yes. A vehement yes.”

Buehrle and Reyes are part of a proposed 12-player trade between the Marlins and Jays that still must be approved by commissioner Bud Selig. The trade will slash more than $90 million from the Marlins’ 2013 payroll.

In a stunning move,  the Miami Marlins reportedly agreed to a trade on Tuesday that would send five veterans, including former All-Stars Mark Buehrle, Josh Johnson and Jose Reyes, to the Toronto Blue Jays for shortstop Yunel Escobar and a package of prospects.

The trade has since been criticized as another Marlins fire sale, with more than $160 million in salary being sent to Toronto. But on Wednesday, Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria defended the trade in an interview with CBSSports.com, saying that the organization has “to take a new course.”

“We finished in last place. Figure it out,” a defiant Loria said.

Loria emphatically said he isn’t selling the team.

“Absolutely not,” Loria said. “That’s more stupidity.”

Loria took issue with the coverage and suggested selling the team’s veteran stars was the right course of action.

“We have to get better,” Loria said. “We can’t finish in last place. We finished in last place. That’s unacceptable.”

Meanwhile, the team is reportedly also looking to trade outfielder/first baseman Logan Morrison and starting pitcher Ricky Nolasco, according to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post:

Several GMs expect #Marlins to trade Ricky Nolasco. Marlins also shopping Logan Morrison—
Joe Capozzi (@joecapMARLINS) November 14, 2012

The Yankees are interested in the 30-year-old Nolasco, reports Erik Boland of Newsday. One player the team almost certainly will not shop is 23-year-old slugger Giancarlo Stanton, according to MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro.

The Toronto Blue Jays and Miami Marlins are close to agreeing to a blockbuster deal that would send shortstop Jose Reyes and pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle to Toronto, as first reported by FoxSports.com’s Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal.

#BlueJays and #Marlins are in midst of EPIC trade right now, sources say. And I mean EPIC.—
Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 13, 2012

ESPN’s Buster Olney is reporting that top outfield prospect Jake Marisnick will be included in the package headed to Miami, along with veteran shortstop Yunel Escobar.

The Blue Jays-Marlins trade is done… This is going to be one of the all-timers, with Reyes, Johnson, Bonifacio, Buck, Buehrle…holy crow.—
Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) November 13, 2012

The Marlins considered trading Johnson, a 28-year-old right-hander who finished fifth in Cy Young voting in 2010, before the trade deadline last season, in the midst of his 8-14 campaign. Buehrle went 13-13 with a 3.74 ERA last year, his first with Miami after signing a four-year, $58-million contract.

Miami signed Reyes to a six-year, $106-million deal last offseason, and the former Mets All-Star hit .287 and stole 40 bases for the last-place Marlins.

Free agent Anibal Sanchez is looking for a contract nearing six years and $90 million. (Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Free-agent starter Anibal Sanchez is seeking a contract in the neighborhood of six years and $90 million, Fox Sports’ Jon Paul Morosi reported Thursday.

The average yearly salary of $15 million is on par with what C.J. Wilson received as the league’s top free agent starter last offseason, when he signed a five-year, $75 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels.

Zack Greinke is widely viewed as the top free-agent pitcher this offseason, followed by the interchangeably ranked Sanchez and Kyle Lohse.

Splitting time between the Miami Marlins and Detroit Tigers this season, Sanchez went 9-13 with a 3.86 ERA. He pitched well in the postseason, going 1-2 with a 1.77 ERA.

Morosi reported that at least four teams have interest:

In addition to the Tigers, the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Dodgers are known to have interest in Sanchez, sources say. It’s not clear if any will meet the $90 million price tag, but Sanchez could sign for more than initially expected because of his performance in the American League, the volume of interest and overall industry health.

Having just dismissed manager Ozzie Guillen after one year, the Marlins have already requested and received permission to interview Blue Jays minor-league manager Mike Redmond for the vacant position.

Mike Redmond receives early call to interview for #marlins job; as @JoeFrisaro said, a favorite. cbsprt.co/SsoYTr

—
Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) October 24, 2012

After Ozzie Guillen failed as manager for the Marlins, the team appears to be focusing on young candidates. Redmond was a Marlins catcher from 1998-2004 and is currently being called “a strong frontrunner” for the position.

Guillen was fired from the Marlins after one year, during which he only managed a 69-93 season. The $7.5 million remaining on his contract will be paid through 2015.

The Miami Marlins fired manager Ozzie Guillen after one season. (Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins have fired manager Ozzie Guillen after one season.

Here’s the statement from Marlins baseball operations president Larry Beinfest:

“After careful consideration following the disappointment of the 2012 season, we decided to dismiss Ozzie,” said Beinfest. “Our managerial search begins immediately and our hope is that a new manager, along with roster improvements, will restore a winning culture.”

Guillen’s future was in doubt after his role in several controversial incidents including a pro-Fidel Castro comment and the team’s disappointing performance.

The Marlins traded reliever Heath Bell to the Arizona Diamondbacks. (Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins acquired minor league third baseman Yordy Cabrera from the Oakland A’s and sent reliever Heath Bell and cash to the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team announced Saturday.

The Athletics received Diamondbacks outfielder Chris Young in the deal. The A’s also sent middle infielder Cliff Pennington to Arizona.

Bell signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Marlins in December 2011. In May, Bell was demoted by manager Ozzie Guillen and had an ERA of over 10 for the first part of the season. Arizona is picking up $13 million of the remaining $21 million on Bell’s contract.

Bell pitched in 73 games in 2012, finishing with a 4-5 record and a 5.09 ERA.

RT @MarlinsMedia: #Marlins acquire minor lg 3b Yordy Cabrera from Oak; send Heath Bell & cash to Arizona—
Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) October 20, 2012

The Marlins could look to trade starter Josh Johnson this offseason. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins will dangle starter Josh Johnson as “trade bait” this offseason, The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo reported Sunday.

From Cafardo’s report:

Despite some talk out of Florida that the Marlins won’t deal Johnson, who can become a free agent after 2014, the 28-year-old will be trade bait. The Marlins would likely get a boatload back from teams such as Baltimore, Toronto, Boston, Kansas City, Minnesota, Texas, and the Dodgers. The Red Sox were interested at the trade deadline. The 69-win Marlins look as if they’re cleaning house again and they, like Cleveland, could be a good trading partner for the Red Sox.

Johnson’s name came up near the trade deadline in July, and the Marlins could look to maximize their potential return by dealing him this offseason. He has one more year left on his current contract, during which he is due $13.75 million.

The injury-prone Johnson pitched a full season in 2012, but he fell off from his performance level in earlier seasons. Still, he went 8-14 with a 3.81 ERA and had 165 strikeouts in 191 1/3 innings.

Ozzie Guillen could be on his way out of the Marlins organization. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins are “aggressively seeking” a replacement for manager Ozzie Guillen now that the team has finished its season at the bottom of the NL East, according to a tweet on Thursday from ESPN’s Buster Olney.

Guillen led the team to a 69-93 record in his first season as manager. He signed with the Marlins last year on a four-deal year worth $10 million. According to The Miami Herald, he and Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria have spoken on several occasions in the past week but the conversations were more about how to improve the team than anything specific about Guillen’s job status.

Guillen reportedly went overseas today for vacation, so it’s possible that we won’t hear an announcement one way or the other until his return to Miami. The team wrapped up its season on Wednesday with a loss to the New York Mets.

Marlins are aggressively seeking a replacement for Ozzie Guillen. Will they wait to find someone before firing him? We'll see.—
Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) October 04, 2012

A day after reliever Heath Bell sounded off on Ozzie Guillen, Marlins players listened to their manager fire back via radio in their clubhouse while the media looked on.

Miami Herald beat writer Clark Spencer tweeted the awkward scene:

Ozzie asked if he respected heath bell: "as a player, yes. As a guy, i dont know #marlins—
  (@clarkspencer) September 25, 2012

Very surreal scene inside #marlins clubhouse as players listening to ozzie discuss bell situation #teamturmoil—
  (@clarkspencer) September 25, 2012

#marlins players, including heath bell, were listening to ozzie talk about bell on dan lebatard's radio show on 790 the ticket—
  (@clarkspencer) September 25, 2012

Media just kicked out of #marlins clubhouse by greg dobbs.—
  (@clarkspencer) September 25, 2012

Guillen’s comments come on the heels of Heath telling a Miami-area radio audience that he didn’t respect his manager.

“It’s hard to respect a guy that doesn’t tell the truth,” Heath said.

Bell has lost the Marlins’ closer role twice this season, was upset by Guillen’s handling and what he considers a lack of opportunity to regain the role after pitching well in middle relief.

On Tuesday, Bell attempted to backtrack on his comments, saying they were taken out of context.

Marlins reliever says it is hard to respect a person like manager Ozzie Guillen. Bell lost his closer role earlier in the year. (Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)

Amid speculation that first-year Miami Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen is on his way out, relief pitcher Heath Bell took the opportunity to speak his mind about his manager on various topics.

Bell has converted on 19 of 26 save opportunities and was replaced as the closer earlier this season.

“I stunk in April, plain and simple. I said I stunk, I worked hard, I busted my butt. I think I’ve had a tremendous second half,” Bell tells “The Dan Sileo Show” on 560 WQAM in Miami. ”I’m not closing–I know that. But I just kept my mouth shut because I want to regain what I had, and I feel like I can’t do that.”

Bell’s ERA has hovered around 3.00 since being replaced but still has not gotten his job back. For the season, Bell is 3-5 with a 5.19 ERA and 1.57 WHIP.

“It’s hard to respect a guy that doesn’t tell you the truth or doesn’t tell you face-to-face,” Bell said. “There’s probably reasons why. It’s just one of those things that–what you see is what you get. I’m not going to be two-faced. I’m not going to sneak around your back and say this and that.”

Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria fired back at Fredi Gonzalez. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins’ underwhelming makeover season has featured an under-performing, highly paid roster and internal rumblings. Rumors of manager Ozzie Guillen and/or president Larry Beinfest taking the fall have surrounded the languishing team as it finishes out the 2012 schedule. Now Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria is defending his management style following comments from one of many former managers.

Atlanta Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez told the Miami Herald that the owner will never be totally pleased with a manager:

“There’s not a manager dead or alive that Jeffrey thinks is good enough. Not Connie Mack, not anyone.”

Loria has had five since 2006, including two that went on to win a lot elsewhere: the Yankees’ Joe Girardi (78-84 with the Marlins, 470-327 with the Yankees) and Gonzalez (276-279 with the Marlins, 175-137 with the Braves).

The lesson Loria should learn here? “Stick with someone,” Gonzalez said. “Give guys opportunities. But he likes to make changes. As long as he owns the team, he makes the decisions. In his mind, they’re the right ones.”

Loria fired back at Gonzalez on Sunday:

Loria said that if Gonzalez made those comments, “I’m a little surprised because it’s classless — and you can quote me — especially because he was with us for five years and he was a colossal failure. Not nice. Not nice.”

In a text message Sunday night, Gonzalez indicated he stood by his comments.

Lower-than-expected attendance in the team’s new Little Havana stadium apparently will lead Loria to roll back on last year’s franchise-record $95 million payroll. Sources told the Miami Herald to expect a roster “somewhere in the $70 million to $80 million range.”

The Marlins already have 2013 salary commitments of $65.5 million for eight players: Josh Johnson ($13.75 million), Mark Buehrle ($12 million), Ricky Nolasco ($11.5 million), Jose Reyes ($10 million), Heath Bell ($9 million), John Buck ($6.5 million), Greg Dobbs ($1.6 million) and Jacob Turner ($1.175 million).

Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen’s job could be in jeopardy. (Jason Arnold/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins are in the process of re-evaluating their front office and that includes the job of first-year manager Ozzie Guillen could be in jeopardy, reports FoxSports.com.

Multiple reports said that the Marlins were planning to fire Larry Beinfest, the president of baseball operations and replace him with Dan Jennings, the team’s assistant general manager.

Guillen is in the first year of a four-year, $10 million contract. The Marlins are last in the National League East with a record of 66-84.

MLB.com reported that the Marlins have looked into former third baseman Mike Lowell as an option to replace Guillen. Washington Nationals third base coach Bo Porter and San Diego Padres special assistant Brad Ausmus are also being considered.

Miami Marlins fans have endured a disappointing 2012 season. (Sarah Glenn/Getty Images)

USA Today MLB beat reporter Bob Nightengale’s analysis of which MLB managers and execs are sitting firmly on hot seats includes this ominous note:

The Marlins are planning to fire president and team architect Larry Beinfest, perhaps as soon as next week, according to two high-ranking executives with knowledge of the move but not permitted to speak publicly because the final decision will be made by owner Jeffrey Loria.

Beinfest would be replaced by Dan Jennings, the Marlins assistant general manager and vice president of player personnel.

In the midst of a disappointing showing by the newly made-over — and salary heavy – Miami Marlins roster, Beinfest sounds like he won’t be shocked to get his walking papers:

“When you sign up for this job and you don’t win, you know you can be in the cross hairs and lose your job,” Beinfest told a Miami radio station last week.

Loria won’t publicly address Beinfest’s future, or other front office personnel whose tenures are in jeopardy, but the two Marlins executives say they would be stunned if Beinfest is the only change.

Loria may not be the only Marlins front-office head to roll. Manager Ozzie Guillen may not have generated enough wins to put up with his often controversial, off-the-cuff style. Of course, many in Miami’s Cuban community haven’t forgotten, or forgiven, his controversial Fidel Castro observations.

Guillen said on Tuesday that he expects to return in 2013. Nightengale’s sources agree with Guillen’s prediction.

Manager Ozzie Guillen, in the first year of a four-year, $10 million deal, had private differences with Beinfest but is expected to keep his job. For now.

After an underachieving season marked by his poorly conceived comments about Fidel Castro, Guillen will be on the hot seat to produce in 2013.

It was simply a matter of timing for Miami Marlins shortstop Jose Reyes, and in his case he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Baseball-Reference.com reports that three errors were committed back-to-back-to-back in a minute’s time on Saturday, and Reyes was the winner of the booby prize: He committed the 500,000th error in major league history.

Error 500,000. Marlins SS, Jose Reyes just seconds after 499,999 by SFG SS Joaquin Arias—
Baseball Reference (@baseball_ref) September 16, 2012

Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports has the play-by-play, as it were:

Just watched Reyes' error. A two-hop grounder from Drew Stubbs. Tried to hurry. Bobbled ball in his glove. E-6. History.—
Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 16, 2012

Reyes’ miscue was his 16th of the season, two shy of his career high set in 2005 and tied in ’11.

The Miami Marlins are unlikely to trade pitcher Josh Johnson. (Sarah Glenn/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins likely will not trade starting pitcher Josh Johnson before Tuesday’s trade deadline, reports ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark.

The 28-year-old Johnson, a two-time All-Star, had been expected by many to be moved this July. The Marlins were reportedly asking for top prospects to get the pitcher.

The Texas Rangers were one of the teams believed to be interested in Johnson. But after the Angels traded for pitcher Zack Greinke, there were reports that Texas would not try to match Los Angeles’ move by trading for Johnson.

Stark reports that Johnson didn’t help his trade value with an average performance Sunday while 15 scouts looked on. Johnson gave up only one earned run in five innings but walked six batters.

Johnson is 6-7 this season with a 4.04 ERA in 21 starts.

Marlins pitcher Josh Johnson might not go anywhere if the team doesn’t lower their asking price for him with the trade deadline approaching. (Sarah Glenn/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins are continuing with their fire sale, seemingly offering a new player every other day.  This time, it’s right-hand pitcher Josh Johnson who is on the trading block, reports ESPN.com. 

But for other clubs to land Johnson, they are basically going to have to give up their farm system.

Several baseball sources told ESPN.com the Marlins are asking for each team’s top two or three prospects in every trade scenario involving Johnson. ”They’re asking for a ton,” an American League general manager said.

Reports are that the Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Angels, Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox are interested in dealing for Johnson.

Johnson is 6-7 with a 4.14 ERA and 105 strikeouts this season for the Marlins, who begin the day 45-53, good for 4th place in the National League East.

The Marlins could be open to trading Hanley Ramirez in the next week. (Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins could be in full fire-sale mode over the next week, and Monday’s trade of second baseman Omar Infante and starter Anibal Sanchez to the Detroit Tigers could only be the start. CBS Sports baseball columnist Scott Miller reported that the Marlins might be open to trading third baseman Hanley Ramirez. From Miller’s report:

Rival executives who have spoken with Marlins people believe they’ve never been more open to the idea. Halfway through a bitterly disappointing season, the Marlins aren’t so much trying to blow things up (as they have in the past) as they are simply trying to change the ingredients. [...]

Clubs who have spoken with the Marlins think more moves will follow, sources tell CBSSports.com. There is a strong belief that the Marlins would like to deal Ramirez, who has not produced under first-year manager Ozzie Guillen the way they hoped he would.

Ramirez has been somewhat of a disappointment both on and off the field in his first season under Guillen. He has continued his sluggish pace from last season, batting just .246 with a .322 on-base percentage. He has 14 homers and 47 RBI in 92 games.

On top of that, Ramirez hasn’t played since Friday after developing an infection in his hand, which he cut just before the All-Star break when punching a cooling fan in the Marlins dugout. Miller noted that Guillen didn’t think Ramirez’s injury showed much sign of maturity at the time.

“Very stupid injury. Very immature. You’re going to hurt yourself because you can’t hit? Good hitters don’t do that. Good hitters battle back and try to get better.”

After this season, Ramirez has two years and $31.5 million left on his contract.

The Detroit Tigers have traded for infielder Omar Infante and starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez of the Miami Marlins, reports FOXSports.com’s Jon Paul Morosi on Twitter.

#Tigers acquire Infante and A Sanchez from Marlins

—
Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 23, 2012

#Tigers giving up Jacob Turner plus in deal for A Sanchez and Infante.

—
Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 23, 2012

Infante, a second baseman who can also play other positions, is hitting .287 this season. He was an All-Star with the Atlanta Braves in 2008.

Sanchez is 5-7 with a 3.94 ERA this year. His best season came as a rookie in 2006 when he went 10-3 with a 2.83 ERA.

The Tigers are reportedly giving up Jacob Turner, a top pitching prospect, in the deal.

Detroit is 1.5 games ahead of the Chicago White Sox in the AL Central and looking for help for the playoff push.

Miami Marlins third baseman Hanley Ramirez has an infected hand after hitting a cooling fan in the dugout. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Miami Marlins’ third baseman Hanley Ramirez is in the hospital with an injured hand and is not in tonight’s lineup against the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to the Palm Beach Post.

Ramirez injured the hand hitting a cooling fan in the Marlins dugout after grounding out in the sixth inning of Sunday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals. Ramirez received two stitches on his knuckle just above his ring finger and is currently in a 2 for 22 slump.

“I got mad,” Ramirez said about the incident. “I think it’s starting to bother me because I know we can do better than this. Personally, I’m not comfortable with what I’m doing right now. I know I’m playing hard, but at the same time I have to produce more.”

Ramirez, a three-time All-Star, is hitting  .248 with 12 home runs and 44 RBIs with a .323 on-base percentage.

Hearing that Hanley Ramirez's right hand — one that had stitches from hitting fan in st Louis — is infected. At hospital now. #Marlins—
joe capozzi (@joecapMARLINS) July 20, 2012

Miami Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen said in a radio interview on Tuesday that he will clear the air with closer Heath Bell over the next few days and that the Marlins will begin using a closer-by-committee, according to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.

After Bell allowed three runs in a 5-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday, Guillen said:

“I have to make a decision, and if I have to make a solution that will be drastic, I will do it. We’re going to wait until after the All-Star break, and I’m going to pick whoever is better out there to close the game. That’s the bottom line. If you can’t do the job, we’ll find somebody else to do the job.”

Bell signed a three-year, $27 million deal in the offseason but has blown six of 25 save opportunities and is 2-5 with a 6.75 ERA.

Frisaro said that righty Steve Cishek is “the likely first choice to close,” but that lefty Randy Choate, right Edward Mujica and righty Juan Carlos Oviedo (formerly Leo Nunez) could also get their chances.

Miami Marlins third baseman Hanley Ramirez cut his hand hitting an electric fan in the team’s dugout Sunday. (Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

Miami Marlins third baseman Hanley Ramirez cut his hand when he hit an electric fan after returning to the dugout following a sixth-inning groundout Sunday, reports HardballTalk‘s Matthew Pouliot.

Ramirez left the game and received stitches for the injury, Pouliot reports.

“Very stupid injury,” manager Ozzie Guillen told reporters. “Very immature. … You make an out, you hit something and you injure it, you don’t just hurt yourself, you hurt the ballclub.”

Ramirez may not miss any games because of the upcoming All-Star break, Pouliot reports.

Ramirez, a former All-Star, has struggled this season. He is hitting .249 with 12 home runs.

The Marlins have also struggled recently. The team spent freely in the offseason as it prepared to move into a new stadium, signing free agents Mark Buehrle and Jose Reyes. But Miami is in fourth place in the National League East heading into the All-Star break. Closer Heath Bell, another offseason acquisition, blew a late lead in a 5-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.

Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton will have surgery on his right knee Sunday and will be out of the Marlins lineup for four to six weeks, the team announced Saturday.

The Miami Herald’s Manny Navarro reported, via Twitter, that Stanton will have surgery at 7 a.m. Sunday on the knee to remove bone chips. Stanton was pulled in the third inning of the Marlins’ 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday.

Guillen said he expects Stanton to be out for at least 4-6 weeks. He will fly back to Miami tomorrow to have surgery #Marlins

— Manny Navarro (@Manny_Navarro) July 7, 2012

#Marlins say Stanton will have surgery at 7 am Sunday. He’s already on his way back.

— Manny Navarro (@Manny_Navarro) July 7, 2012

Stanton had previously hoped to delay any knee surgery until after the season. The surgery ensures that Stanton will miss both Monday’s Home Run Derby and Tuesday’s All Star Game in Kansas City. Washington Nationals outfielder and fellow young superstar Bryce Harper will replace Stanton on the All-Star roster, MLB announced Saturday night.

The 22-year-old sensation Stanton will be missed in the Marlins’ lineup. He was the team’s only All-Star, and he’s hitting .282 with a .915 OPS this season. He has 19 homers and 50 RBI.

The Astros traded Carlos Lee to the Miami Marlins to help their struggling offense. (Scott Halleran/Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins search for help for their struggling offense might have ended Wednesday with the team trading for Houston Astros first baseman Carlos Lee, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney.

The Marlins gave up minor leaguers third baseman Matt Dominguez and pitcher Rob Rasmussen in the deal.

Lee, 36, a three-time All-Star, is batting .286 with five home runs and 29 RBI in 65 games this season.  Lee is in the final year of a six-year, $100 million contract and declined a trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday.

The Marlins are concerned about the status of right fielder Giancarlo Stanton, who is battling a knee problem. The Marlins began the day 38-42, good for 4th in the NL East and 9.5 games back of the first-place Washington Nationals. They have scored 314 runs, which is fourth worst in the majors.

Sources: The Marlins are trading Matt Dominguez and P Rob Rasmussen for Carlos Lee.—
Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) July 04, 2012

Carlos Lee's locker is empty.—
Zachary Levine (@zacharylevine) July 04, 2012

Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton has a knee problem and could miss time. (Sarah Glenn/Getty Images)

Miami Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton will miss this week’s series against the Milwaukee Brewers, and possibly the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby because of a knee problem, reports MLB.com.

Stanton had an MRI on his right knee on Tuesday and felt his right knee lock up in the eighth inning of Monday’s 6-5 loss to the Brewers. He developed soreness in the knee in Spring Training.

“One day at a time,” Stanton said. “It’s pretty important right now to kind of evaluate everything and make sure all is good to go.”

Stanton, in his third season, is batting .283 with 19 home runs and 50 RBIs in 78 games and might miss this weekend’s series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

“I’m going to go for this weekend,” Stanton said. “I feel all right. I just have got to let some swelling and stuff go down.”

He was the only Marlin selected for the All-Star Game.

“I think we’ve been lucky because he’s played this long without any problems,” Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen said. “I thought he was going to be a little bit worse. When we left Spring Training, we didn’t know exactly what we were going to get. That’s the reason we have to wait and see how he feels the next couple of days.”

Carlos Zambrano left Saturday’s game with stiffness in his back. (Chris Trotman, Getty Images)

Miami Marlins pitcher Carlos Zambrano left Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays after 2 1/3 innings, according to MLB.com.

Zambrano started off the game well enough, getting through the first inning pitching only seven times. In the second, things began to fall apart. The Rays scored five runs on four hits, and Zambrano appeared to be less and less in control of his pitches.

Manager Ozzie Guillen pulled Zambrano from the game after the Rays’ Ben Zobrist hit a two-run homer to make the score 7-0. The Marlins reported that Zambrano has “lower back stiffness.”

Miami Marlins center fielder Emilio Bonifacio will have thumb surgery on May 25 and is expected to miss four to six weeks. (Drew Hallowell/Getty Images)

Miami Marlins center fielder Emilio Bonifacio, who leads the league in stolen bases, will have surgery on his thumb May 25 and is expected to miss the next four to six weeks, according to Juan Rodriguez, the Marlin’s beat writer for the Sun Sentinel.

Bonifacio sat out the Marlins May 19 game in Cleveland  because of what the Indians doctors called a sprained thumb. At that time, the doctors said Bonifacio would not need surgery.

Paul Severino of MLB Network tweeted minutes after the news that the Marlins recalled Kevin Mattison  in the wake of Bonifacio’s absence. The team had drafted Mattison in the 28th round of the 2008 draft.

Kevin Mattison has been recalled by the #Marlins. Saw him in the @MLBazFallLeague lightning quick!—
Paul Severino (@SeverinoMLB) May 24, 2012

Miami Marlins catcher Brett Hayes was sitting in traffic on the Florida turnpike when he saw a man with a gun walk by, according to the Miami Herald. The man later shot two police officers before shooting himself.

Sitting in traffic on the turnpike and a man with a gun just walked by our car.. Not good.

—
Brett Hayes (@bretthayes9) May 10, 2012

“It was pretty scary, to be honest with you,” Hayes said.

“He and I made eye contact, and he looked like he was up to no good,” Hayes said. “Something was very wrong. I just had a very bad feeling. My wife and I were in shock. I told her ‘Do not look at him.’ He was walking like he was walking down the street. It was really creepy. but his face….it was pretty scary to be honest with you.”

After the man passed the car, Hayes said he saw a law enforcement officer wearing a bulletproof vest walk by with a gun drawn; after traffic began moving, Hayes turned on the radio and heard two officers were shot, according to the Herald.

“My wife and I said a big, long prayer for them,” Hayes said. “We heard later that they were going to be all right. What a blessing.”

The two officers both will survive, according to the Herald.