After what has been a rough start to the new era of Miami Marlins baseball, the front office needs to start being brutally honest to win back fans.
It’s no secret that the biggest story surrounding the 2017 Miami Marlins, even when Giancarlo Stanton seemed certain to eclipse 60 HRs in a season, had nothing to do with on-field performance. All that mattered was that at long last, the Jeffrey Loria era was coming to a close in South Florida. Respectability and stability were at hand.
Which made it all the more surprising when Derek Jeter immediately started making Loria look like the second coming of Art Rooney. An offseason of public relations missteps, as well as the franchise’s fourth selloff, has pulled the team right back into the muck of the “same ol’ Marlins” storyline.
From local fans to national pundits, the belief is the same: nothing has changed.
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The stated mission of the new regime is to make the Miami Marlins profitable, and in a position to enjoy sustained success. More than a reasonable mission statement for a new business. However, changing that legacy of negative perception needs to be Priority No. 1 for Jeter and Friends. And there’s no better place to start than being completely, brutally honest about what the goal is for the 2018 Miami Marlins.
That goal, of course, is to be the worst team in baseball. Putrid enough to draft the next Carlos Correa or Bryce Harper.
The thing is, that isn’t quite the vision Marlins GM Michael Hill is selling. In a recent interview covering the Christian Yelich trade, Hill proceeded to make two eyebrow raising statements about the 2018 campaign. Bill Chastain and Daniel Kramer of MLB.com have him quoted as saying the club’s:
"“Expectation every year [when] we report to Spring Training is to win as many games as possible… There’s a lot of reasons for our fans to be excited.”"
Let’s take these statements in turn.
Saying that the goal is to win as many games as possible is a bald-faced lie, and frankly insulting to the intelligence of South Florida baseball fans. The front office plan for the 2018 Miami Marlins is the same one Rachel Phelps had for the Indians in Major League, except this club is already located in Miami. But put together a team bad enough to finish in last place? Hard to argue that isn’t the plan here.
As for there being plenty to be excited about, there’s at least a way to see how that might be the case. Provided, of course, you take the long view and start dreaming about that 2021 season. But excitement for 2018? With the possible exception of J.T. Realmuto, any veteran player that has a productive first half will be on the market come July. Mr. Hill is clearly trying to pull the wool over the eyes of his customers.
The problem is that the Miami Marlins fanbase has rightly become the most skeptical in baseball. Even the long-term dream took a blow earlier this offseason when projected future payroll information leaked, as shown in this fine piece by the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson. The obvious goal for the organization is to go the route of the Chicago Cubs and the Houston Astros, via tanking and rebuilding. However, what’s being ignored is that tens of millions were spent on starting pitchers for those clubs. The Miami Marlins aren’t projected to come close to what last year’s Astros did on payroll until after the 2023 season.
Naturally, those numbers can change, and it would be foolish to hold the team to that Project Wolverine prospectus. If Lewis Brinson becomes Mike Trout at the plate, Team Jeter probably breaks the piggy bank open early.
But the Miami Marlins front office needs to own the rebuild. Stress that there are rough years ahead, but that hey, it took Luis Castillo and Josh Beckett a couple years to become great. Point to the recent history of the Cubs and the Astros, and hope no one notices the absence of Jon Lester. Focus on love of the game, joy of baseball. Ramp up the community involvement. Go big on international signings, find the next Jose Fernandez for the city to embrace. This talk of improving the team for 2018 though? Of trying to win this year?
That needs to go out the same door Jeffrey Loria just walked out of. Or else Marlins fans are going to do something worse than wish Derek Jeter and Bruce Sherman would leave town as well.
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They’re not going to care whether they do or not.