Miami Marlins: Players vs. Front Office?

It’s been a wacky week around baseball, but especially for the Miami Marlins. After many hours of standstill, the trade which sent Mat Latos and Michael Morse to the Dodgers was finally passed.

And again, like many Marlins moves in the past, the focus seemed to be surrounding money. While fans have voiced frustration throughout the so-called ‘process,’ Marlins players have begun to speak out on the front office decisions.

The on the field aspect surrounded the fact that although Michael Morse had been traded, he still came up to bat in the ninth. While that seems odd, off the field actions by Miami have taken the center stage.

I have tried to stay neutral. As a newer Marlins ‘fan’ (of sorts) and editor, I attempted to take the side of the front office to begin. That eventually shifted to neutrality, while many fans held, and still hold, negative opinions on Miami’s front office.

But the Latos trade took me over the edge. Granted, I did agree with some of Hill’s moves at the end of the deadline, but the Latos/Morse situation is flat out embarrassing. It’d be one thing if the fans were behind the judgements of the front office, but it appears that even some of the players aren’t. 

Yet it seems as if Miami’s front office isn’t trying to gain respect from the fans, but further their relationship gap with the team’s fanbase. President Michael Hill responded to the trade by saying that he “hopes the fans are educated enough to understand” what the front office is doing. It doesn’t appear so.

Now, we all know the struggles this team has gone through since winning the World Series in 2003. The point I would like to make is that the Marlins as an organization should be embarrassed with themselves.

Among professional athletes, I have never seen such reaction to a trade. Generally, because the players are employed under the team, they’ll support their ball clubs through and through. Apparently, employment cannot hold back the curtain of frustration held by at least one player on the team.

The only situation in the recent past I can draw similarities to is the firing of University of Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, where the players openly criticized the decision from their respective athletic department. But even then, their income isn’t directly impacted by the athletic department, nor is it handed to them like any professional team.

Never have I seen such display of emotions among a baseball team, or professional sports team, without punishment or change. Hopefully this sends a message throughout the organization, one who desperately needs everyone involved to be on the same page in order to succeed again as a franchise.

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