Joe Girardi @ MindSay

I was a big fan of Joe Girardi while he was playing baseball, so when he became the manager of the Florida Marlins this year, I was super-excited.

He did a great job with the team, that's for sure.  No one expected the Marlins to do anything, and yet they finished the season with a 78-84 record.  They still lost more games than they won, but they did a lot better than anyone thought they would.  And Girardi had a lot to do with this.

But even so, the Marlins might not bring him back next season because of some discrepancies between Girardi and owner Jeffrey Loria.  In fact, it sounds pretty certain that Girardi will not be with the Marlins next year, and Braves' third-base coach Fredi Gonzalez sounds like he'll become the Marlins new manager.

That's just not fair.  Girardi turned the team around, and he had never managed before.  The Marlins were projected to lose 100 games this season, and now Girardi is a candidate for National League Manager of the Year.

And he's still getting canned.

I hope some other team is smart enough to pick him up (hey, the Cubs, Nationals and Giants all need managers).

Now that the Florida Marlins have trimmed their payroll, facial hair is next.

New manager Joe Girardi wants to see no goatees, mustaches or beards when players begin reporting for spring training Feb. 18.

A former catcher with the New York Yankees, Girardi liked owner George Steinbrenner's rule that permitted neatly trimmed mustaches but no beards or shaggy hair. Girardi's policy of no facial hair will be even stricter, and a first for the Marlins.

"I want players to look neat and responsible," Girardi said at a media luncheon Monday. "Maybe it's old school. But it's kind of neat when people are always clean, and I like it."

At 41, Girardi is the successor to 75-year-old Jack McKeon and part of a youth movement for the Marlins, who unloaded seven everyday starters, two starting pitchers and their closer to reduce the payroll.

Battling for the vacated jobs in spring training will be plenty of prospects. Some of them might struggle to grow a beard, even if allowed.

"I don't have too much facial hair, so unfortunately for me, it's not an option," said first baseman Mike Jacobs, stroking his smooth chin. "If the manager has certain things he wants his way, you have to go with it."

Girardi said his players have laughed about the rule, and he expects little resistance. He said he'll likely always prohibit facial hair, even with a veteran team.

"You have a responsibility of what you look like," he said. "You find out which players want to be disciplined in the little things. And if you can be disciplined in the little things, a lot of times you can be disciplined in the big things."

Pitchers and catchers report to the training complex in Jupiter on Feb. 18, with the rest of the squad to follow by the 21st. The first full-squad workout is Feb. 23.

Expectations are similar to 1998, when another salary purge sent the Marlins reeling to a 108-loss season a year after they won the World Series. Mike Lowell, Josh Beckett, A.J. Burnett, Carlos Delgado, Luis Castillo and Juan Pierre are among those to depart since last season.

Still, Girardi is raring to go.

"I can't wait," he said. "Baseball is a passion of mine. You take a month off, and then you miss it. I find myself watching the Caribbean World Series on TV, and there probably aren't a ton of people doing that. But I love the game.

"You manage the club you have. A lot of kids will have a lot of opportunities."

They just won't have beards.

MIAMI (AP) - New York Yankees bench coach Joe Girardi was hired Wednesday as manager of the Florida Marlins, agreeing to a three-year contract. Girardi, who also interviewed for the Tampa Bay job, spent 15 years as a major league catcher, then went into broadcasting in 2004 and came out of the booth to join the Yankees' staff this season. He'll be introduced by the Marlins at a news conference Thursday, the team said.

"I am extremely pleased to have Joe in our organization, and I look forward to his input as we start focusing on next year," owner Jeffrey Loria said in a statement. "Joe was known as an intelligent player with great leadership skills, and he will bring those traits to his new position. "He is the right man to lead our team, and I'm proud that he will start what will be a long, successful managerial career here in South Florida."

Girardi was apparently Loria's first choice from the outset and was the first candidate to interview with the Marlins owner. A follow-up interview took place Oct. 12 in New York with Loria and general manager Larry Beinfest.

"This is an exciting day for the Marlins organization," general manager Larry Beinfest said. "After several discussions with him, it became clear that not only was Joe ready to manage, but he is the right guy to manage the Florida Marlins. Joe has a tremendous reputation throughout the game and I am eager to start working with him."

The 41-year-old Girardi will succeed Jack McKeon, who led the Marlins to the World Series title in 2003 but resigned after the team finished a disappointing 83-79 this year. Girardi was a member of three World Series championship teams with the Yankees. He caught two no-hitters with the Yankees and also played for the Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies and St. Louis Cardinals before retiring as a player in 2003.

Among other candidates interviewed by the Marlins were Atlanta Braves bench coach Fredi Gonzalez, Oakland Athletics third-base coach Ron Washington and Tampa Bay coaches Billy Hatcher and Tom Foley. Girardi interviewed twice for the Devil Rays job vacated by Lou Piniella.

An Illinois native with an engineering degree from Northwestern, Girardi also weighed the option of turning down the Marlins to remain with the Yankees until the Cubs' job becomes available. He spent seven seasons with the Cubs.

Girardi takes over a Marlins team facing a likely roster shake-up. Spending cuts are possible after Loria approved a franchise-record $60 million payroll this season and was rewarded with a late-season meltdown, the second-lowest attendance in the National League and a stalemate in his bid for a new ballpark. Still, the Marlins have a strong young core with 22-game winner Dontrelle Willis and slugger Miguel Cabrera.

McKeon led the Marlins to three of the four winning seasons in franchise history, but there was a consensus within the organization that a managerial change was in order. Players complained that the 74-year-old McKeon was too abrasive, and clubhouse tension mounted as the season soured.

Girardi becomes the seventh manager for the Marlins, who played their first game in 1993.