Miami Marlins: Interview with Fan with Different Perspective on Owner Jeffery Loria

Since the November fire sale trade for the Miami Marlins, the talk around the team, especially the team owner, Jeffery Loria has been negative. I have not been one to bite my tongue since the deal about my bitterness towards Loria. If you type in Jeffery Loria’s name on Google right now, the results you would find would not be pretty, at least if you are Jeffery Loria.

Enter Tony Capobianco. Tony used to be a writer for the Marlins and Rays Bleacher Reports sites from 2010-2011. He now writes for the Tuscon Citizen and AZ Sports & Lifestyle Magazine.

Tony did not quite seem to understand all of the spite headed in Loria’s direction after the full-page ad in the newspaper or the fire sale in November. Since Tony brought a different perspective as a Marlins fan, I decided it would be a great idea for me to interview him to get inside of his thinking.

While I do not agree with everything Tony says, his logic is solid and I completely respect his opinion. I hope you guys do the same as well. You’ll also learn about the special connection that Tony has indirectly to the Miami Marlins front office. Here is a look at our interview:

Owner Jeffery Loria and President David Samson have become public enemy number 1 in Miami, but is the hate directed towards them deserved? photo/Robert Mayer

Ehsan Kassim: What is your connection to the Miami Marlins front office?

Tony Capobianco: My mother is their Financial Analyst.

EK: What can you tell me about the type of person Jeffery Loria is?

TC: Unfortunately I cannot tell you what kind of person Loria is. I haven’t met him and neither has my mother. But what I can tell you is that the owner is irrelevant. Fans shouldn’t go to the game because of the owner. They should go because of their love of the game and to pass it down to their children.

I got a little brother who loves baseball and loves the Marlins. He does t care who the owner is or the general manager. He just cares about watching the Marlins win and getting a ball from one of the players.

Fans, do not let people like Jeff Passen and Dan Lebatard ruin your love of baseball.

EK: The owner is usually irrelevant because they do not try to play the GM or manager of the team. Players have felt like Loria has done that in the past, your thoughts on this?

TC: That is another story, but you saw the NFL, NBA and NHL lockout. Owners want as much control as possible. It is always a smart move to get a deal with a player while leaving the no-trade clause on the table.

It allows them to rethink their strategy and freely change course for the better.

EK: What about the fans that feel cheated by Loria breaking his promise to field a competitive team?

TC:Media feeds the fans. Media only cares about the big names therefore fans only care about big-name. Loria never broke his promise. What he did was fail last year when he got just three guys for big contracts and everyone believed that was going to do the job. It resulted in 69 wins. Whatever they just did could count as a competitive team.

New Marlins manager Mike Redmond has his work cut out for him in his first season as a manager in 2013. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Understand what the Marlins did. They removed a crazy manager that did nothing to promote proper team chemistry. They deported a bunch of unspectacular veterans to Canada. They have a young squad that is yearning to establish themselves and a manager in Mike Redmond to make it work. If the right free agent comes, the Marlins could get them.

EK: Do you believe a free agent will seriously consider the Marlins after seeing now the past four free agents the Marlins signed shipped out after the first season? Especially if the team sticks to its strict no trade policy?

TC: Not if they’re looking for the next 7-10 year $100 Million contract. But as this young team establishes themselves and start to get noticed by veteran players from afar, who like the young talent that Miami possess and could offer 1 or 2 more good years before their career is over. Get a guy on the comeback trail like Jorge Cantu then and Scott Kazmir for the Indians now

EK: I generally agree with you there. What do you feel about the teams chances to resign Giancarlo Stanton?

TC: Right now there’s zero chance of resigning Stanton and there’s zero reason to do so. He is in his fourth year and is not yet in arbitration (or is in his first year of it) let both sides earn it for a couple of years before we revisit that topic. Stanton would like to see more than just unproven talent from the Marlins and the Marlins would like to see more than just power from Stanton

EK: And probably a healthy season from Stanton. What do you have to say to Marlins fans that plan to boycott the team?

TC: I would say to them that you are robbing yourself of experiencing the game you love. Don’t let snarky media degenerates like Jeff Passen cloud your minds. You honestly think that just because he writes a letter to the Marlins fans means he cares about you. Jeff Passen doesn’t give a shit about you people. He is literally making a living off using his platform as a sports writer as a way to attack and slander Jeffery Loria and YOUR Marlins. The same can be said about any columnist who is taking advantage of the very narrative they created.

Forget all this bullshit. Embrace these Marlins players that so desperately want to make you proud. Enjoy the beautiful game in your beautiful stadium.

Don’t boycott the Marlins. Boycott Jeff Passen!

I’m Tony Capobianco and I approve this message

EK: That sounds like a great bumper sticker, maybe the Marlins should pitch that idea next season.

I would like to thank  Tony for his time he took out to do this interview with me. Tony has a bunch of optimism that a lot of Marlins fans are lacking right now. While you guys may not agree with his views, it is good to see some sort of positive vibe when it comes to the Marlins.