By Lesley Visser
CBS Sports
Did the dish run away with the spoon? After Dan Uggla's eighth-inning home run against the lowly Nationals, the Florida Marlins moved to 23-14, the best record in the Major Leagues.
What?
Of course, the Red Sox are in first place, ditto the Diamondbacks, but the Marlins?
After the 5-4 win in beautiful National Park, where you can see the Capitol lit up at night from the empty seats, David Samson, the youngest team president in baseball, lightly bumped fists with a friend and said, "It's only May, but leading the league feels pretty good."
The team with the lowest payroll in the majors -- $22 million -- has hit a grand slam. Samson would not confirm, but did not deny, that Hanley Ramirez is about to sign a six-year, $70 million contract, which would lock up the great young shortstop through his arbitration years.
Ramirez currently makes $439,000. His new contract would average $11 million a year. The highest-paid Marlin is closer Kevin Gregg, who earns $2.5 million. Only 24, Ramirez was the NL Rookie of the Year in 2006 and broke out last year, hitting .332 with 29 home runs 81 RBI and 51 stolen bases.
"He can do everything," said Nationals manager Manny Acta. "He can hit a home run, he can bunt, he can steal. He'll be a superstar."
And with a new Marlins stadium set to open in 2011, the times-they-are-a-changin' around South Florida.
"Of course, we'd like more fans," said Samson. The announced attendance is often 15,000 (nothing to brag about) but on some nights, there are no more than 5,000 fans in Dolphin Stadium.
Signing Ramirez might help turn the double play. If the deal is completed, it would be the first time the Marlins signed one of their players to a multiyear extension since 2005. They've traded away the likes of Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis, and Carlos Delgado and Paul Lo Duca are also gone, but Ramirez looks like a future MVP.
Are the Marlins for real?
"They can hit," said Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman. "They hit a million home runs, their pitchers are solid and they play hard."
It's too early to know how long the dance will last. Ramirez, for all his greatness at the plate, still has to improve his fielding, the pitchers still walk too many batters and first baseman Mike Jacobs missed his fourth game with a strained left quad.
But these are minor quibbles compared with seven straight wins and the best record, through 37 games, in franchise history -- which includes two World Series.
"We know these wins are just in April and May," said Uggla, "but we're hoping they play a part in September."
There have been surprises already in this young baseball season. For different reasons, the Orioles, Cardinals, Tigers, Rays and the Yankees have all made headlines. But none more startling than the Marlins.
For a team with a history of tight budgets and terrible attendance, a new retractable-roof stadium near the heart of downtown and an exciting young squad could finally make long-term baseball fans out of a football nation.
While standing around the batting cage before the Nationals game, I asked Ramirez which football team he rooted for. With a grin as wide as the Potomac, he showed his optimism for all things South Florida:
"The Dolphins, of course."
