Marlins Buy Ticket To The Top Brown, Feeling Like $100 Million, Shuts Down Braves To Clinch N.L. Pennant

It was money well-spent.

The Florida Marlins, who shelled out nearly $100 million last winter with the expressed goal of shucking their label as expansion losers and buying a team to beat the Atlanta Braves, earned their way into the World Series on Tuesday night.

The wild-card Marlins, not even in existence when the Braves began their record run of playoff appearances in 1991, defeated Atlanta 7-4 behind Kevin Brown’s complete game and Bobby Bonilla’s three RBIs to win the N.L. Championship Series, 4-2.

“They talk about the money we spent, that we bought a championship,” Brown said. “The money is not what won this series. The heart, the determination, the pursuit of the right goal got us there.”

The victory over the two-time N.L. champions made the 5-year-old Marlins the fastest expansion team to reach the World Series, surpassing the eight years the New York Mets needed to get there in 1969, and made them baseball’s first wild-card club to make it.

Game 1 will be Saturday night in Miami against either Cleveland or Baltimore. It will mean the first trip to the World Series in 34 pro seasons for Jim Leyland, whose emotional ride in his first year as the Marlins manager may make him this October’s version of Joe Torre.

Leyland’s teams in Pittsburgh lost Game 7 of the NLCS to the Braves in 1991 and 1992, but there was no need to worry this time because of Bonilla’s hitting and Brown’s second win of the series.

“I felt all along we were going to win this series,” Leyland said. “This isn’t about me. I’m just glad I got the opportunity to come here.”

The Marlins’ win came five years ago to the day that the Braves rallied with three runs in the ninth to stun Leyland and his Pirates on Francisco Cabrera’s single in Game 7.

Marlins rookie Livan Hernandez, who struck out an NLCS record 15 in a 2-1 win in Game 5, was named MVP. He also won Game 3 in relief.

Atlanta, which had advanced to four of the last five World Series, led the majors with 101 victories, winning the N.L. East by nine games over Florida.

“We’ve had a great year,” Braves manager Bobby Cox said. “These things are crapshoots. You hope you get hot.”

The Braves did not, putting a disappointing end on their sixth straight trip to the NLCS.

The Marlins, meanwhile, overcame Alex Fernandez’s torn rotator cuff and Brown’s viral infection. Florida proved its 8-4 record against Atlanta this season was no fluke, winning despite hitting just .199 in the series.

The Marlins, coming off a firstround sweep of San Francisco, is 7-2 in the postseason. Florida has improved its record in each of its five years, but had never been over .500 until owner Wayne Huizenga went on a spending spree.

“This is for you, South Florida,” said Huizenga, who announced earlier in the season the team was for sale. “This is for all of Florida. Enjoy the moment.”

Bonilla, signed to a $23.3 million, four-year contract last November, hit a two-run single that keyed a four-run first inning against ineffective Tom Glavine. Bonilla had an RBI single in a three-run sixth that made it 7-3.

“We just did a lot of things right. There’s a great deal of emotion now,” Bonilla said. “It took a long time for me to the World Series - 12 years in the majors. I’m glad it’s with Jim Leyland.”

Brown, scratched from starts Saturday and Sunday because of illness, gave up three runs in the first two innings and little after that. The former Georgia Tech star allowed 11 hits and added another win to his Game 1 victory.

Florida broke it open with three runs in the sixth. Bonilla singled in a run, Moises Alou drove in another on a force and Craig Counsell’s infield hit finished Glavine.

Marlins 7, Braves 4

Florida AB R H BI BB SO Avg. DWhite cf 5 2 2 0 0 2 .190 Renteria ss 3 2 2 0 2 1 .227 Sheffield rf 3 2 1 0 2 1 .235 Bonilla 3b 5 1 2 3 0 0 .261 AArias 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 Conine 1b 4 0 1 0 0 2 .111 Alou lf 4 0 0 1 1 0 .067 CJohnson c 2 0 0 1 2 0 .118 Counsell 2b 4 0 2 2 1 1 .429 KJBrown p 4 0 0 0 0 2 .000 Totals 34 7 10 7 8 9

Atlanta AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Lofton cf 5 1 1 1 0 2 .185 Lockhart 2b 5 1 4 2 0 0 .500 ChJones 3b 4 0 0 0 1 0 .292 McGriff 1b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .333 Klesko lf 4 0 1 1 0 0 .235 JLopez c 4 0 0 0 0 2 .059 Tucker rf 4 0 0 0 0 2 .100 Blauser ss 4 2 2 0 0 1 .300 Glavine p 1 0 1 0 0 0 .333 Cather p 0 0 0 0 0 0 — a-Gregg ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Ligtenberg p 0 0 0 0 0 0 — Embree p 0 0 0 0 0 0 — b-Colbrunn ph 1 0 1 0 0 0 .667 Totals 37 4 11 4 1 8

Florida 400 003 000 - 7

Atlanta 120 000 001 - 4

a-lined out for Cather in the 6th. b-singled for Embree in the 9th.

E-CJohnson (2), Blauser (1). LOB-Florida 11, Atlanta 8. RBIs-Bonilla 3 (4), Alou (5), CJohnson (5), Counsell 2 (2), Lofton (1), Lockhart 2 (3), Klesko (4). SB-Lofton (1). CS-CJohnson (1). S-Conine, KJBrown, Glavine. GIDP-Alou.

Runners left in scoring position-Florida 6 (Bonilla 2, KJBrown 4); Atlanta 8 (ChJones 2, McGriff, JLopez).

Runners moved up-DWhite, Alou, CJohnson.

DP-Atlanta 2 (Ligtenberg, Blauser and McGriff), (JLopez and Lockhart).

Florida IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA KJBrown W, 2-0 9 11 4 4 1 8 140 4.20

Atlanta IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Glavine L, 1-1 5-2/3 10 7 7 7 4 107 5.40 Cather 1/3 0 0 0 0 1 3 0.00 Ligtenberg 2 0 0 0 0 3 22 0.00 Embree 1 0 0 0 1 1 15 0.00

Inherited runners-scored-Cather 3-0.

IBB-off Glavine (CJohnson) 1, off Glavine (Counsell) 1, off Glavine (Alou) 1. HBP-by Glavine (CJohnson).

T-3:10. A-50,446 (50,528).