Report: Marlins Are Finalists To Host The 2017 All-Star Game

Scott Alfano

Bob Nightengale has reported that the Marlins have put in a bid to host the 2017 All-Star Game and either the Marlins or San Diego Padres will be hosting.

The #Orioles are the leading contender to get the 2016 #MLB All-Star Game, while the 2017 All-Star Game will go to the #Marlins or #Padres
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 12, 2014

The Marlins have an interesting history with the MLB All-Star game. The 2000 All-Star game was actually originally awarded to the then Florida Marlins. However, Bud Selig changed the venue to Turner Field of the Atlanta Braves, citing that hosting an All-Star game in then Dolphins Stadium was not suitable for baseball’s highlight of the summer.

Of course, hosting the All-Star game also means hosting the Home Run Derby. Can you imagine Giancarlo Stanton hitting bombs in the Home Run Derby in front of the Marlins faithful? That in itself should be reason enough to award the game to Miami.

As mentioned above, the Padres are also looking to host the mid-summer classic. The stadium opened for the 2004 season and they have not hosted an All-Star game yet. While the Marlins have a great new stadium, baseball may decide to honor the older park that has been waiting over a decade to host the game.

Major League Baseball has a new commissioner coming in to replace Bud Selig in Rob Manfred. For the first time in a long time there is a bit of a wild card as to what the higher ups may do. The Marlins commitment to its youth may help sway the game their way.

Major League Baseball is still determining who will host the 2016 All-Star game, so we may not hear who wins the 2017 bid for some time. In the meantime, if the Marlins continue to build and prove they are committed to winning, there are few reasons for the higher ups to look elsewhere.

Besides, the Marlins are still owed the game from back in 2000.

Next: Report: Marlins Trying To Trade For Pedro Alvarez

Scott Alfano

Raised in the Bronx, NY, Scott has been surrounded by baseball since he could walk. His father was his first baseball coach and he soon moved on to the Bronx travel leagues. He was a pitcher and first baseman at Riverdale Country School and a pitcher at Union College. After a shoulder injury that stopped his playing career, he began instructing pitching, hitting, and first base work at Pro Prospects Training Center in Monticello, NY. He received his degree in English and Physics from Union College, and recently finished his MBA at Rollins College in Orlando, Florida.