Hanley Ramirez is settling in to his new third spot in the batting order, going 8-for-23 (.348) with nine RBIs over the season's first week after hitting .184 (9-for-49) in spring training.
More important for the Marlins, Ramirez's situational hitting has been solid. Last year, he hit just .239 with runners in scoring position. So far this season, he is 6-for-9 in those situations. "He could have been 0-for-7. I'm satisfied he can hit in that spot," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "He makes our lineup better in that spot. He needs to mature and learn from it and so far -- let's knock on wood -- there's no reason he can't (continue to improve). He's one of the best bats in the game."
Last year, Ramirez led the NL with 125 runs scored. Batting third this year, he wants to increase his RBI, which totaled just 67.
"That's in the past," Ramirez said. "I want to stay positive and concentrate on this year."
MARLINS 2, METS 1: Josh Johnson took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and was one strike away from a shutout before Carlos Delgado doubled and scored on Carlos Beltran's single. The Marlins got just three hits but took advantage of a fielding error by LF Daniel Murphy to score two unearned runs off Johan Santana. The Marlins struck out 14 times, 13 against Santana.
