Comparing the Florida Marlins' young pitching staff to any I saw during my career is as tricky as trying to hit one of their exploding fastballs. I can't think of another like the Marlins, especially where the oldest one is only 25.

	A.J. Burnett has been the Marlins' best pitcher, going 5-3 with a 2.94 ERA.

In other words, the Marlins have baseball's top young staff. All four -- Ryan Dempster, A.J. Burnett, Brad Penny and rookie Josh Beckett -- fit the mold of right-handed power pitchers, with fastballs in the 93-98 mph range. The only thing they lack is experience. They are learning on the fly. With each start, they are figuring out how to use their overpowering stuff properly. It takes time for a pitcher to know when to throw his best fastball and when to throw an average one.

Dempster, in his fifth season, is the staff leader because he has pitched more innings than the other three. During my career I only faced Dempster and Burnett. I have seen Penny pitch a few times in person against the Padres, and I have only seen Beckett pitch on TV.

Of the four, however, Burnett has the best stuff. As a hitter, you don't feel comfortable hitting against him. He can throw a 98 mph fastball, has a big, overhand, hard-breaking curveball and a decent changeup. His motion is so smooth and deliberate; his fastball starts out looking like a 92 mph heater, but then -- pow! -- the ball is on top of you.

Burnett also has good command. He works both sides of the plate, changes speeds and isn't afraid to pitch inside. Burnett has a presence about him on the mound. He doesn't get rattled and has good composure.

In three at-bats against Burnett, I got one hit -- a double -- only because the left fielder fell down on a flyball. Burnett is starting to mature and to get a grasp on how to pitch.

Dempster, an All-Star two years ago, doesn't throw a blazing fastball like Burnett. It still reaches 93 or 94 mph, but that four mph between his and Burnett's can make a difference. Along with the fastball, Dempster throws a slider to go with a good curveball and changeup.

No One Like Doc

Dwight Gooden was the best young pitcher I ever faced. At only 19, he was already polished. He had great stuff, threw strikes, had an overpowering fastball and wasn't afraid to throw his other pitches as well. As he got older, he could throw the breaking ball early in the count instead of trying to strike a hitter out with it. He would also mix in a changeup early in the count. Sometimes, young pitchers are afraid of getting beaten with their third- or fourth-best pitch, but not Doc. The first time I faced Doc, in 1984, I hit a triple to right-center field. I was ahead in the count and got a fastball. But that was the only hit I got off him for a long time. -- Tony Gwynn

When his mechanics are solid, Dempster is tough to hit. Yet while he will battle hitters and usually throw strikes, Dempster has bouts of not locating his pitches well. When he loses command, he gets hit.

I only had one hit in seven career at-bats against Dempster, but it was a home run. At Qualcomm Stadium in 1999, I got the green light on a 3-0 count and swung at a ball over my head. Luckily, I fouled it off. I stepped out of the box to try and get my composure back. On the next pitch, he tried to go up in the zone again, and I hit it over the fence in right-center.

While I never batted against Penny, I have seen him pitch several times. He is a bulldog. When he locates the ball well and moves it in and out, he gets a lot of outs. But sometimes he will try to overthrow instead of maintaining his mechanics. When we had success against him in San Diego, he couldn't locate his pitches and would give our hitters good pitches to hit. But he can be dominating at times.

The Padres happened to be in Miami the day Beckett signed with the Marlins as their No. 2 overall pick in 1999. His mom came over to me and asked me to meet him. So I went over and said hello. Beckett told me he hoped to be in the big leagues in two years. And sure enough, he came up at the end of last season -- two years after he signed. The Marlins were raving about him and thought he would be a great big-league pitcher. And here he is, already performing well at the major-league level.

Pitching is the Marlins' backbone, and their young starters are going through the learning process together. Burnett and Dempster seem to have the most polish. Penny is getting there, and Beckett won't be far behind. I'm sure the Marlins hope they can click at the same time. They will if they keep their composure and focus.

If the Marlins can keep the four pitchers together and the team away from contraction, they could have one of the best staffs in baseball for a long time.

Tony Gwynn, who will take over as the head baseball coach at San Diego State next year, is working as an analyst for ESPN.