Marlin (Makaira
nigricans). 1) Any of several large game fishes of the genera Makaira
and Tetrapturus of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, having an elongated,
spearlike upper jaw. It is found primarily in the temperate and tropical regions of the
Atlantic Ocean, from about 44° N to 30° S. 2) A member of a major league baseball team that
plays in an empty football stadium
located in Miami, Florida. As part of the awful National
League, the team is easy prey for the likes of the Boston Red Sox — except,
of course, when ace Dontrelle
Willis is facing scrap heap pick-up Jason Johnson, a game that ended
the Red Sox’ recent 12-game winning streak. The next
two
contests were easy wins, however, thanks to the guts of Mike Timlin and the
longball heroics of David
Ortiz and Manny
Ramirez. The Marlins roster, incidentally, includes a shortstop, also
named Ramirez, and a pitcher, Anibal Sanchez, who were developed by the Red
Sox. (Anibal Sanchez pitches
very well against the Yankees, but not
so well against the Red Sox.) The Red Sox roster includes a shortstop, Alex
Gonzalez, a pitcher, Josh Beckett, and a third baseman, Mike Lowell, who used
to play for the Marlins. The Marlins were once owned by Red Sox principal
owner John Henry, who wishes
his current team could play his old team a lot more.
Devil
Ray (Mobula hypostoma). 1) Any of several rays of the
family Mobulidae, inhabiting tropical and subtropical seas and having a large
flattened body, wing-like pectoral fins, a whip-like tail, and two hornlike
fins that project forward from the head. Also called devilfish, manta ray, sea devil.
2) A member of a major league baseball team that plays in a cavernous orange
juice advertisement in St. Petersburg, Florida. Although they are the worst
team in the American League East, the
Devil Rays are better than many National League teams, and the sheer fact
that they are in the AL at all (rather than the pitiable NL “senior circuit”)
means that they are able to stop the rolling Red Sox in their tracks, handing
their two ace pitchers two losses in a row, blasting
home runs all over the damn place. These losses include a two-hit,
complete game shutout on Monday, and a game on Tuesday in which Boston’s best
setup man surrendered five runs
(three earned) in just one third of one inning. The Red Sox have
another game to play against the Devil Rays tonight, but no one
holds out much hope that they will win it, because Jason Johnson
doesn’t seem to be very good. Some fans, however, hope to be proven wrong.