And the lame-ass owner we got from Montreal - a patsy for Selig -is disbanding this team (MARLINS) for "salary reasons" and to "re-structure" and have a younger team. Hell this team was disbanded 4 years ago in '98 after we won the World Series! Most players are unknowns and don't command a high salary anyhow. And they're very young ballplayers.
Marlins have payroll under 42 mill., fifth from the bottom, and that was before trading Clement and Alfonseca. Payroll is less than Brewers, Cubbies, Reds, Detroit, Royals, Pittsburgh.
You disband a team if you've got high priced veterans and no-chance in hell. Something teams like Cleveland, Baltimore a few years back did, Toronto when they had some stars and high payroll... etc.
Floyd is arguably Marlins best outfielder. Dempster came of age with the Marlins and in my view is still their best starter (despite his season so far). Dempster is the second starter that Marlins get rid of this season.
Who's next? Lowell, Castillo, A.J. Burnett, Josh Beckett, Millar, Perston Wilson, Owen, Fox...
Who the hell are these guys, you ask? Same question here. Why the hell trade them? Ohhhh, their contract ain't up next year when this chit-hole owner gets out of Dodge, sells the team or moves it/contracts it - as requested last year by his jefe Mr. Bubba Selig.
I know people don't go to the game as much as in NY, San Fran, St. Louis, etc. But chit, you've had a team of mostly minor leaguers called up in 1998 to offset the tent sale we had after the W.S. season (season which was had very good attendance). Finally some of these guys are coming of age and now, being still young and CHEAP you get rid of them?? Hell, at least we have more attendance than Montreal - which isn't saying much.
Tell something ain't funny here. Tell me Selig and his buddies don't have a master plan to eliminate franchises through dirty schemes and then act like he had nothing to do with it.
Next year, if the marlins are still here and we have LITTLE-LEAGUERS playing, let's see how many people show up at the stadium (when they're not playing the Mets or Arizona or Atlanta).
Geez, I think they wanted to bring the Puertorrican (or dominican)little league kid Almonte to pitch since he was cheap and young, but I think he was to old for management's rebuilding plan!!!
Sorry guys, I'm just so pissed since the start of the season. Hell, since 1998. It's tough getting a local MLB team, in addition to NFL and NBA. I had to deal with ths SAINTS for many years as the only game in town, now I got baseball for a few years and they want to take it away...
There are perhaps too many teams in MLB, too many small markets, but give a team a chance with soe sound players, a few stars (homegrown if need be) and some incentive to the public and see how many people show up, be it hear in South Florida or Montreal, or wherever. I for one am tired of watching the Braves or Yankees or Mets play on ESPN or national TV. Mix it up a bit, and structure a plausibel salary cap. Then things might change.