Remember earlier this year when a dozen or so Miami Dolphins fans showed up to Joe Robbie Pro Player Sun Life their stadium to protest the ongoing employment of general manager Jeff Ireland and everyone was like, “Awwwww, those poor fans think they can make Stephen Ross make good decisions”? Well, Miami Marlins fans just made those Phins fans and their “Fireland” signs look like the million man march.
With news today that the blockbuster trade between the Miami Marlins and Toronto Blue Jays has been finalized, fans of South Florida’s embattled baseball franchise flocked to their year-old stadium to express their disdain with owner Jeffrey Loria for trading away half of their team for a group of players that doesn’t even include the Blue Jays’ top prospect. And as anyone would have expected, you could count the Marlins fans protesting on one hand.
But commissioner Bud Selig ain’t care, because this trade is in the best interest of something, apparently.
“This transaction, involving established major leaguers and highly regarded young players and prospects, represents the exercise of plausible baseball judgment on the part of both clubs (and) does not violate any express rule of Major League Baseball and does not otherwise warrant the exercise of any of my powers to prevent its completion,” Selig said in a statement. “It is, of course, up to the clubs involved to make the case to their respective fans that this transaction makes sense and enhances the competitive position of each, now or in the future.” (Via ESPN)
Loria supposedly reassured Selig and league officials that the Marlins are committed to winning, which is like a convicted serial killer telling a judge that he’s totally going to stop cutting peoples’ heads off and filling their skulls with queso if he just gives him another chance.
As for the fans protesting… yikes. As you can see in the pictures Tweeted earlier today by AM 790’s Brendan Tobin, Loria could probably walk out there and slap one of them before they’d even know it. Bless their hearts for trying, I guess.
