At Least, Renteria Remains Following Purge, Young Shortstop May Hold Key To Marlins Franchise

Jim Leyland leaned against the batting cage and peered through the screen, looking at the Florida Marlins’ fuzzy future.

Several dozen players worked out, most of them unproven youngsters. They fielded grounders, shagged flies and took batting practice, hoping to catch the manager’s eye.

One player did.

“That guy at shortstop’s pretty good,” Leyland said. “What’s his name? Renteria?”

As Florida rebuilds, Edgar Renteria provides a reminder of last year’s glory. This season, the Marlins will be so young that they must look to the 21-year-old Colombian kid for leadership.

He has become a cornerstone of the franchise, and the role suits Renteria fine. After all, he’s already a World Series hero.

With exceptional defense, a .277 average and 32 steals, Renteria achieved stardom last year. He delivered six game-ending hits, and the final one was the most dramatic: an 11th-inning single to win Game 7 of the World Series.

That made Renteria a celebrity in the United States and a national idol in Colombia, where he was selected man of the year and honored at the presidential palace. Marlins general manager Dave Dombrowski and his wife considered naming their first child Edgar, then decided against Edgarina when they had a girl last month.

At home this winter in Barranquilla, Renteria happily watched replays of the season’s final pitch. He’s only the fourth Colombian to reach the major leagues, and he rivals red-haired soccer star Carlos Valderrama in popularity.

The two sports stars became friends and made several joint public appearances, where the attention of fans was evenly divided.

“He would sign 100 autographs, I would sign 100,” Renteria said. “Now, the kids want to play baseball instead of soccer. I’m happy about that.”

Valderrama will make his Major League Soccer debut Sunday with the expansion Miami Fusion, while the season opener for Renteria and the Marlins will come two weeks later. The Marlins may struggle this year, but they consider Renteria a potential Gold Glove winner who could hit .300 with 20 home runs.

“He’s an All-Star shortstop,” Leyland said. “He’s a special player, and it’s written all over his face.”

Renteria went 1 for 3 in Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to Houston and is batting .444 in spring training. In a revamped lineup, he’ll hit second again.

“Edgar is one of the smarter young players I’ve been around,” Leyland said. “He’s very good at realizing what each at-bat dictates. He can bunt for a base hit, he can sacrifice bunt, he can move the runners, he can shoot a ball through the hole the other way, he can turn on a ball now and then. He’s a real bright player.”

And, at a salary of $250,000, he’s a bargain for the cost-conscious Marlins. Renteria declined to bemoan the purge that led to the departures of Moises Alou, Jeff Conine, Kevin Brown, Al Leiter and Robb Nen.

“I think this is still a good team,” he said. “It’s a new team with young talent. I’m excited.”