The 2012 Major League Baseball offseason had been somewhat quiet up until yesterday, when reports surfaced that the Miami Marlins and Toronto Blue Jays were on the verge of a blockbuster trade involving a whole bunch of big names and a whole bunch of money. The problem with this trade? The big names and the big money were all going from Miami to Toronto, and what the Marlins are set to receive in return is equal to not far above zero. Miami is set to send Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, Jose Reyes, John Buck, and Emilio Bonifacio to Toronto for Yunel Escobar, Henderson Alvarez, Jeff Mathis, and multiple minor league prospects.
Going into the 2012 season, the Marlins were one of the most talked about teams in all of baseball. They were moving into a new, publicly-funded ballpark in downtown Miami, they had new jerseys, a new manager, and a whole lot of new players. This wasn't the first time that we had seen an offseason like this from the Marlins. Just like the 2012 season, prior to the 1997 and 2003 seasons, the Marlins went on spending sprees. The difference between 2012 and those two years? 1997 and 2003 ended with the Marlins winning the World Series. 2012 ended with the Marlins in last place.
While it was obviously not a good year for the Marlins, finishing in last place is not the end of the world. Their roster was still loaded with a lot of young players who were under contract for multiple years. Teams like the Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, and Phillies all had a lot of money invested into teams that did not live up to expectations in 2012 (for various reasons). However, I find it hard to believe that these teams will not get better over the next few seasons (although Boston will be putting that theory to the test after some of the moves they made at the end of 2012).
However, there is a distinct difference between the Red Sox and the Marlins. The Red Sox have fans that are willing to put themselves through incredible torture in order to support their team. Despite decades of losing, Red Sox fans stood by their team, and were finally rewarded for their faith in 2004 and 2007 when Boston won the World Series. The undying love for the Red Sox by their fans despite its team's failures is unmatched in most cases. The only teams that can claim to have fan bases that have proven themselves to be more tortuously supportive than in Boston are probably fans of the Chicago Cubs, Toronto Maple Leafs, and maybe the New York Jets or Cleveland Browns. Marlins fans should not even be mentioned in a conversation discussing how ardently they support their team in comparison to the fans of those franchises. In fact, just mentioning the Marlins right now in an essay including the fans of those franchises makes me feel like I am doing a disservice to Cubs, Maple Leafs, Jets, and Browns fans everywhere.
What I am basically trying to say is that the Marlins fan base is pretty much nothing in comparison to most professional teams across the country. Not only do they not show up when the team is losing, they don't even show up when the team is winning! How the team got a deal to build a stadium with hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars, I will never know. They did it with the expectation that they would be able to field a competitive team in 2012, and I must say that their moves prior to the year proved that they were willing to spend the money to attempt to field such a team. However, once the play on the field did not meet expectations, the Marlins ownership gave up far too quickly on their investment.
Instead of choosing to try to ride out the struggles, Miami's owner Jeffrey Loria demonstrated that he is only in charge of the team for his own financial gain, and that he has no emotional investment whatsoever in the product he puts on the field. As I take a look at the Marlins' roster as it is currently constructed, it is stunning to see how much it has changed in just under a year's time.
Since the beginning of the 2012 season, the Marlins have traded their entire starting infield (including the catcher), three of their top four starting pitchers, their three best pitchers in the bullpen, and their starting center fielder who was their leadoff hitter. What have they gotten in return? A backup catcher in Jeff Mathis, a very solid shortstop in Yunel Escobar (the one positive acquisition they made here), a very unproven Major League starting pitcher in Henderson Alvarez, and a bunch of guys who have proven nothing at the Major League level.
When you think about this, it's honestly nearly inconceivable. To put this is terms that are easier to relate to (since, of course, 99% of the world is composed of Yankees fans), it is like the Yankees traded Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Curtis Granderson, Russell Martin, C.C. Sabathia, Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova, Mariano Rivera, David Robertson, and Rafael Soriano for Erick Aybar and Chris Iannetta. I'm not sure what Yankee fans would do if something close to this ever happened to their team, but it doesn't matter because such a thing will never happen. However, if it were to happen in the Bronx, I would be willing to bet that attendance in Yankee Stadium would see a considerable decrease. I am also willing to bet that Marlins Park in Miami will also see a significant dip in attendance. The difference between Yankee Stadium and Marlins Park? Yankee Stadium is always full and Marlins Park is always about 75% empty.
That means that in 2013, the Marlins might as well play their home games in Gainesville or Tallahassee at college ballparks. That way, the stadiums might have a better chance to actually fill up. As it stands right now though, I doubt that Marlins Park will sell out even one game all season in 2013, and with the way that Jeffrey Loria and the rest of the Marlins' organization has handled itself this offseason, I will not blame Marlins fans one bit for not showing up to support a team that clearly is run by a group that does not support the on-field product.
I drifted away from why this trade and the moves that the Marlins have made over the past few months are a disgrace to the Marlins organization, and my original intent was to kill Jeffrey Loria for running this team in such a dishonorable manner. Stay tuned for a more financially-based look at why this trade is not only an insult to Marlins fans, but an insult to Major League Baseball in general...
Daily Giants Update: As I said before, the bye week could not come at a better time for the Giants. Thankfully, Tim Tebow and the Jets are (shockingly!) stealing all of the headlines in New York newspapers, so we will be able to shed the spotlight for the next week, and hopefully come back stronger than ever against Green Bay in 11 days. The Eagles are in shambles and are about one loss away from becoming an afterthought, but the Cowboys still are within striking distance and, on paper at least, have a much easier schedule than the Giants from here on out. We still are well in control of our own destiny at 6-4 with six games remaining, but there will be no more excuses for poor play after a week off.
Daily Nets Update: A win last night at home against the Cavaliers brought the record to 4-2 on the season, but the Nets once again turned a big lead into a game that was closer than it should have been. Joe Johnson had a bad night, but the bench came through with some big production that eventually led to a win over a less-talented Cleveland team. Next up is a nationally televised home game against the Celtics tomorrow night. Be on the look out for Rajon Rondo passing up numerous open shots, Paul Pierce complaining to the referees, and Kevin Garnett doing push ups on his knuckles!
Daily Diamondbacks Update: As expected, Wade Miley did not win National League Rookie of the Year, finishing second to Bryce Harper. While it would have been great to see Miley win the award, the Diamondbacks organization and its fans know what a great year he had, and I'm really looking forward to seeing what our potentially outstanding rotation could look like in 2013. Now, as long as Kevin Towers doesn't trade Justin Upton.......
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