New Bling-Bling Makes Hanley’s Heart Sing-Sing with Gratitude

Ten days before breaking Spring camp, SS Hanley Ramirez received a surprise gift from Jeffrey Loria. Knowing Hanley’s penchant for jewelry, the Marlins owner bestowed upon his All-Star shortstop a diamond-studded pendant -- 394 finely cut diamonds, to be exact, which formed the numbers 3-4-2 (Hanley’s league-leading average).
Inscribed with Hanley’s name and 2009 NL Batting Champion beneath the numbers, the gorgeous medallion is punctuated with a teal diamond decimal point. The gift floored Ramirez. “I’m going to keep it forever,” the 26-year-old gratefully said, as he showed off the heavy chain around his neck.
...The Fish got off on the wrong Opening Day foot, bowing to the Mets on Monday, 7-1. Ricky Nolasco, who had a great Spring, gets the start today at Citifield. He hopes to have better offensive and defensive support from his mates, who committed three errors in their debut. Nolasco will be trying to build on a rebound year of 13-9 in ’09, in which he started so poorly that the Marlins had to demote him to the minors last May. When Ricky returned he showed vast improvement. He whiffed nine straight Atlanta Braves batters in one particularly dominant outing last summer, an indication to his abilities when he has everything working for him.
...Anibal Sanchez, the number three man in the Marlins’ rotation, will close out the team’s first series of 2010 on Thursday. Sanchez, who showed great promise in 2006 as a rookie, has been plagued by shoulder injuries ever since. He is finally healthy and wants to show the Marlins he is the type of pitcher who authored the fourth no-hitter in franchise history.