Miami Marlins should go Retro, but only when they’re ready to win

Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Urena (62) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the San Diego Padres on Sunday, June 10, 2018 at Marlins Park in Miami, Fla. (Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald/TNS via Getty Images)
Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Urena (62) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the San Diego Padres on Sunday, June 10, 2018 at Marlins Park in Miami, Fla. (Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald/TNS via Getty Images)

The Miami Marlins should strongly consider going old school full time when it comes to their look, but only when the next big Marlins star is wearing it.

This past weekend was a fun one for Miami Marlins fans.

True, they were nearly no-hit Sunday and lost yet another series. But this weekend was scarcely about the 2018 Miami Marlins performance. If anything, fans were encouraged to feel better about this year’s club, given the huge amount of evidence paraded around Marlins Park all weekend that rebuilds can work.

For three days, and three days only, the Marlins were back in old school teal. The occasion was the team’s twenty-fifth anniversary. A checkered history to be sure, but one with two world championships and plenty of memorable moments other, more established franchises would kill for.

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Just consider that almost no-hitter from Clayton Richard on Sunday. It would have been the Padres first in their nearly fifty seasons of existence.

The Miami Marlins have cranked out six in half the time. Four of them came in Florida Marlins teal.

Only the season-opening series against the ever-popular Chicago Cubs was better attended. All player comments were extremely positive. Overall, the promotion was a huge success; arguably the first well-received act of the Derek Jeter-Bruce Sherman era of Marlins ownership.

Naturally, more than a few fans have expressed their desire to see the change made permanent. When asked if such a change could happen, Jeter didn’t say anything to suggest that was off the table. And given all the bad press over the last two seasons, there’s a lot to like about a retro rebranding.

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However, it would be extremely short-sighted on the part of Miami Marlins ownership to think a uniform change alone will be enough to repair the damage done to their fanbase. Even Jeffrey Loria knew that much.

When the Marlins made the switch from Florida black and teal to Miami multicolors, they weren’t just offering fans new merchandise. A new stadium was opening too. Most importantly though, a franchise record payroll was trotted out. Expectations were as high as they’d been since 2005.

The Marlins signed superstar Jose Reyes and made a serious run at Albert Pujols. All that in addition to plenty of existing, established stars. Cy Young contender Josh Johnson, the emerging Giancarlo Stanton.

In 2012, the uniform switch was just the most visible part of a brand new identity. A palpable buzz that had fans excited about the future. That buzz made this fan spend money he didn’t have on new Miami Marlins duds, not the new color scheme.

And then that team flopped spectacularly. Another dismantling ensued. Payroll dropped again. South Florida fans renounced baseball once more, really before even having a chance to discover it again. For every day that followed, unless Jose Fernandez was pitching, the flashy new uniforms just served as one more reminder of every negative thing Jeffrey Loria was about.

Style over substance. Profits over product. Emphasis on all the wrong things.

Oh, and that home run sculpture everybody loves. Again, all the wrong things, and none of the right ones. It was three years until I bought another piece of Marlins merchandise.

The initial approach, combining a new look with a new reason to hope, was solid. That’s a lesson the Miami Marlins front office should keep in mind if they go the rebranding route once more.

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So, yes, the Marlins should absolutely bring back teal. It is the better, more popular uniform. It’s just essential that Derek Jeter holds off on pulling the trigger on that move until a couple of these prospects become potential All-Stars. Until fans have the option of going out and buying that new teal Manny Machado jersey, or a similar big name.

Going retro really could be a popular, fan friendly move. The catch is, it will only work when the Miami Marlins stop conducting business old school as well.