The Marlins Family

Well if you already didn’t hear, the Top 30 for the MLB Fan Cave was announced on February 13, 2013. The Top 30 were flown out to Arizona on February 18 and returned home February 21. Sad to say that this Marlins Fanatic didn’t make the Top 30 cut this year. Although, I do have to say that some great things did come out of my campaign to make it into MLB Fan Cave. One of the most important things I did was get know the  Marlins Family.

The “Marlins Family.” Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Now, what do I mean by “Marlins Family?” I have come to terms with the fact that currently the Marlins’ fan base does not equal in numbers what the Cubs, Yankees, Red Sox, or other teams like that which have been around for decades.

Some day it might, but not as of this moment. What I did find out was that the fan base for the Marlins is more like a family than just a bunch of people sharing a common love for a team. When it was announced that I made the MLB Fan Cave Top 52, the out pour of support from Marlins fans on my twitter was more then I could have ever dreamed; and that was just the start!

I have lived in Orlando for 10 years. I miss going to Marlins games and meeting new people; but with Twitter and this site I have learned that the game is just a fraction of the “Marlins Family” outreach. Going down to The Winter Warm Up, fans were texting me, calling me, tweeting me, and any other way to get a hold of me to meet up and hang out with them. Everyone I met introduced me to other fans. Almost everyone knew each other that were there. After the Warm Up, a group of fans invited me to join them for sushi. We had a great time. Still to this day fans are tweeting and Facebooking me ways for us fans to get together. There is not a day that goes by where I am asked by Marlins fans on my Twitter what games I’m coming down to see so we all can hang out again. This “Marlins Family” has gotten to know the players on their team so well that the players know their fans by name. These are my types of fans.

Look, from a business aspect I would want the millions and millions of fans the historic teams have; but without a long history those fan numbers have to come from winning (Déjà Vu, I’ve said that before haven’t I?) Until then, these fans, this “Family” is great for the team. Seeing these die hard fans day in and day out cheering, rooting, and loving there team and players no matter what happens just shows other fans that baseball and the Marlins are still great. This is why I’m proud to say I’m a Marlin, and a member of the “Marlins Family!”