Introducing The Miami Marlins

by Slica on Feb 17, 2008 8:18 AM PST

"The Marlins, Miami-Dade County, the city of Miami and Major League Baseball reached agreement late Friday to finance a $515 million ballpark at the site of the Orange Bowl, according to a source.

The agreement was not released, but was expected to be distributed to county and city commissioners, who will need to approve it. The city has scheduled a special commission meeting to consider the deal at 9 a.m. Thursday; the county commission is to meet at 1 p.m. that day.

The deal calls for the county and city to contribute $360 million mainly in tourist taxes and a $50 million general obligation bond Miami-Dade voters approved in 2004 to renovate the Orange Bowl, but which will instead be moved to the ballpark project.The Marlins are to contribute $155 million.

The Marlins hope to break ground by year's end with the stadium opening by April 2011, when the team would be renamed the Miami Marlins."

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/baseball/marlins/sfl-0215marlstad,0,6954135.story

Coolness. Bennett prolly loves this right now.

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Damn

I want a team in Vegas

by George702 on Feb 17, 2008 9:07 AM PST reply actions

I am interested in how the Marlins will do

since their whole payroll will be a whopping $9.50.

by mark s @ Lookout Landing on Feb 17, 2008 9:38 AM PST reply actions

Before Larry Beinfest signed free-agents ...

Luis Gonzalez (one-year, $2 million) and Mark Hendrickson (one-year, $1.5 million) to contracts, the Florida Marlins were on pace to have a payroll under $10 million.

by AK1984 on Feb 17, 2008 3:43 PM PST up reply actions

I know they're cheap and all . . .

but under $10 million is impossible, unless only one or two guys are arb-eligible and the rest make the minimum, right? A team of 25 guys, all making the minimum ($390,000 this year), would have a payroll of $9.75 million. But Kevin Gregg makes $2.5 million, Andrew Miller makes more than $1 million, Mitre makes more than a million, Amezaga makes almost a million, etc.

by Teej on Feb 18, 2008 4:24 PM PST up reply actions

Yeah, that's a good point.

I was way too lazy to do the exact calculations.

by AK1984 on Feb 19, 2008 7:49 PM PST up reply actions

Sweet.

Right in time for their next WS win. Perhaps they can even keep their team together after it too. Maybe even bring back the tattered remains of Luis Castillo and Jeff Conine (is he retired yet?) for it.

My mom says I'm cool

by aestivalis on Feb 17, 2008 9:55 AM PST reply actions

Miami finally caved

They didn't think he'd hold out for this long.

So I guess it's time for Loria and the Marlins to start from scratch... again?

I'm Gomez and I write about many things.

by Gomez on Feb 17, 2008 10:03 AM PST reply actions

I wanted Portlanmd to get a team.

"You know, as that was coming out of my mouth, I knew that it was wrong."

by JI on Feb 17, 2008 10:06 AM PST reply actions

Never gonna happen

Portland doesn't have a big enough large-business community - the Blazers can't even sell out their 66 luxury boxes, there's no way a MLB stadium with its 100+ boxes and 3-4,000 club seats would ever sell anything close to what would be necessary to make it work.

Nice Guys Finish Third - Hopelessly lost, but makin' good time.

by pdb on Feb 17, 2008 10:28 AM PST up reply actions

Maybe MLS

That's the closest Portland is likely to get to another big league franchise -- the owner of the Beaver/Timbers is interested and is connected to the money necessary, though PGE Park would take some... work. The Blazers WILL sell out their suites at some point soon, don't you think? But the point stands: Portland isn't rich enough with corporate bucks to fuel an MLB team (unless Phil Knight just really wants one).

rightly, in every age it is assumed we are witnessing the disappearance of the last traces of paradise... Cioran

by toonprivate on Feb 17, 2008 10:50 AM PST up reply actions

The Blazers may sell out their boxes

but if an MLB team comes in, the companies that buy one team's luxury package will in all likelihood not buy the other; there's just not enough money in this town.

Phil Knight's sports dollars pretty much all go to UO, at this point - I think you're right, MLS is the best bet for a pro sport in Portland, at least until the NHL is fiscally healthy enough to expand.

Nice Guys Finish Third - Hopelessly lost, but makin' good time.

by pdb on Feb 17, 2008 10:58 AM PST up reply actions

If the Marlins were moving anywhere else

it'd have been Vegas. The gambling fear has been mostly put to rest, and the city is loaded with big corporate money ready to throw at suites and sponsorship.

I'm Gomez and I write about many things.

by Gomez on Feb 17, 2008 11:51 AM PST up reply actions