Marlins’ Joke of a Season Ends Without Punchline

The Florida Marlins finished off what may be the biggest debacle of a season in their history Sunday. The 5-2 win over the hapless Pittsburgh Pirates (their 105th loss of 2010) had our beloved Fish finishing 80-82, the first time the team had finished with more losses than wins since 2007. But the mediocre record isn’t what made this season particularly alienating for Marlins fans. It was the way management conducted itself with complete disregard for the players, fans, and people of South Florida. Let’s take a look chronologically at how this season went from Spring Optimism to a complete travesty.

May 18 – Hanley’s Temper Tantrum - Normally-calm superstar Hanley Ramirez is benched after a too-public altercation with manager Freddi Gonzales.  After half-assing a play against Arizona, the All-Star shortstop was forced to sit out, sparking an in-game feud with the then-skipper. In baseball, these things happen, but it should never get out of the dugout.

May 28 – The Perfect Game - Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay pitches the 20th perfect game in history to defeat the Marlins in Miami 1-0. Again, in baseball sometimes these things happen and you hit a pitcher on the best night of his life. But what DOESN’T happen is the losing team selling the unsold tickets (which for the Marlins is always a lot) to the game. Essentially profiting from his own team’s misfortune, David Samson again shows his endless class.

June 19 – Vuvuzela Night -To honor the world cup, the Marlins hand out Vuvuzelas to 15,000 fans at a Saturday game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Not only is the incessant noise infuriating to fans, players, and umpires, a miscommunication between the Marlins’ manager and home plate Umpire caused the Marlins to make a crucial out, and ultimately lose the game. It was described by All-Star second baseman Dan Uggla as “The worst handout and giveaway I’ve ever been a part of.”

July 29 – Fan Favorite Jorge Cantu Traded to Texas - Despite being only a few games out of the playoff race, the Marlins trade fan-and-clubhouse favorite Jorge Cantu to the Texas Rangers. Cantu, perhaps the Marlins’ most clutch hitter, had been quoted as saying he would take less money to stay in Florida when he became a free agent at season’s end. Similarly, as rumors of the trade swirled Cantu was said to be visibly shaken in the clubhouse, and his production on the field dropped. Despite him loving the team – and the city – and both loving him back, Samson decided he’d rather have a couple of unproven AA pitchers. And Cantu’s salary? $6 million. Not exactly a payroll-hindering figure.

August 20 – Cody Ross Gone for Nothing - Another fan favorite, and proven Major League Center fielder, Cody Ross is claimed off waivers by the San Francisco Giants. For the unaware, this means the Marlins lost their everyday Center Fielder and got nothing in return. This was presumably to make room for Cameron Maybin, who has yet to show he can hit anything in the major leagues other than batting practice.

August 28 – Samson’s Greed Becomes Public - Despite managing to convince an inept local government to pay for the majority of their $642 million stadium, records show the Marlins have made $52 million in the past 2 years. This after dumping star players to avoid paying salaries and forcing taxpayers to foot the bill for the new park. Basically, the Marlins are one of the few profitable teams in major league baseball, yet still are forcing the public to pay for their stadium.

September 1 – Gaby Sanchez Clothesline – This one may actually be a highlight, depending on how you look at it. But as the Washington Nationals’ Nyjer Morgan charged pitcher Chris Volstad after Volstad threw behind him, Sanchez ran in out of nowhere and clotheslined Morgan to the ground. Hard. The former Hurricane made many in the University of Miami community proud.

These are but a few isolated incidents. The team also blew 24 saves during the year. Meaning that in 24 games, the team was in a good position to win but gave up a late lead. Don’t blow half of those, and this is a playoff team. But, again, Samson refuses to get any kind of bullpen help. Anyone who knows me will tell you, I’m a big Marlins fan. But when a team is so blatant in its greed, and so disregarding of both its players and the few fans it has, it’s hard to stay loyal. Hopefully Samson and his boys clean up their act in 2011. Otherwise, you better hope the seats in that new stadium look good on TV. Because they’re going to be very empty.

 

Related Categories: Miami: Local News, Miami: Sports News, About the Author: Matt Meltzer is a featured columnist at Miami Beach 411. See more articles by Matt Meltzer. See more articles by Matt Meltzer Was This Post Helpful? Please Share It With Others! Tweet

2 Comments on

"Marlins’ Joke of a Season Ends Without Punchline"

Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.

Discuss the surrounding area in our hugely popular Miami forum.