How the Miami Marlins history timeline game works

Start with the Marlins' founding and keep going: this deck is the franchise's history in milestones, each with a short line under the title, ordered by the year they happened. The first card is already on the timeline with its year shown. You place each new card into a gap of your choice. If it's right, the year shows up. If not, the card drops into its true spot and you lose one of your three lives.

The Marlins have a short, dramatic history: surprise championships, roster sell-offs, new owners, a new ballpark and a new name. Rookie of the Year cards come up several times and are hard to separate, so think about who was the face of the team when. Big contracts and the trades that followed them are another trap, since the same star can appear on both sides.

Want a longer game? On the deck tree you can tick this deck alongside any other one measured in release years and dates, and they shuffle into a single timeline together.

What's in the deck

Here are 21 of the 21 cards you might be dealt. Their values stay hidden until you place them.

Awarded a National League expansion franchise Miami is granted a new team to begin play within a couple of years
The Florida Marlins play their first season An expansion club debuts at Joe Robbie Stadium
Owner Wayne Huizenga funds a spending spree Big free-agent signings set up a run at a title
Win the World Series as a wild card Edgar Renteria's walk-off caps an improbable title over Cleveland
A championship fire sale and a 108-loss season The roster is dismantled the year after the crown
Win the World Series again Josh Beckett and manager Jack McKeon topple the Yankees
A second major fire sale Payroll is slashed again amid a long stadium standoff
Hanley Ramirez wins Rookie of the Year A young shortstop headlines the rebuild
Miguel Cabrera is traded to Detroit The young slugger is dealt in a franchise-altering move
Chris Coghlan wins Rookie of the Year A late-season surge earns the outfielder the award
Josh Johnson leads the league in ERA The ace posts a 2.30 mark for a rebuilding club
Final season at Sun Life Stadium The last year sharing a football stadium before the new park
Marlins Park opens and the club is renamed The team becomes the 'Miami' Marlins in a new retractable-roof park
Jose Fernandez wins Rookie of the Year A dazzling young Cuban ace debuts
Giancarlo Stanton signs a record contract A 13-year deal, the largest in North American sports at the time
Ichiro's 3,000th hit and the death of Jose Fernandez A milestone hit and a tragic boating accident mark the year
Giancarlo Stanton hits 59 home runs and wins MVP A monster power season earns him the award
Derek Jeter's group buys the team; Stanton is traded New ownership triggers yet another teardown
First postseason series win in the Miami era A short-season club advances in an expanded playoff field
Sandy Alcantara wins the Cy Young Award The workhorse ace claims the honor
Return to the playoffs as a wild card A late push earns a rare postseason berth