One of the subplots that has emerged from the Miami Marlins offseason is the fact that they’ve managed to alienate Marlins Man so badly that he’s on the verge of walking away from his season tickets.
Now, that’s exactly what’s happening, after the team turned down $200,000 in a three-year “offer.”
Marlins Man, real name Laurence Leavy, sent the team a $200,000 check and a letter directly to CEO Derek Jeter, saying he’d be willing to pay for three years of season tickets up front. The Marlins do not offer any packages like this and turned him down, though they did send counter-offers, signaling a willingness to negotiate.
In the end, no agreement was reached, and Leavy won’t be renewing his season tickets for the first time since the franchise’s inception in 1993.
“I’ve received more of a discount for other teams with a multi-year deal, including the Yankees, and I never have to pay years in advance,” Leavy said, via Andy Slater of SlaterScoops. “This very reasonable offer was made in good faith and had nothing to do with Jeter getting in my Marlins car, throwing out the first pitch, or any other falsely reported nonsense.
“I’m disappointed they didn’t take almost a quarter-million dollars for empty seats.”
On one hand, season ticket packages aren’t really meant to be negotiable years in advance. On the other, this is more negative publicity for an organization that has had far too much of it, and a team desperate to fill their stadium rejecting $200k isn’t the greatest look in the world.
