Marlins Man is a free agent and is actively looking for a new team
Marlins Man might be the biggest free agent of 2018.
OK, not really. But Marlins Man, whose real name is Laurence Leavy, is the the baseball fan equivalent of a free agent now. Just a few days after announcing that he wouldn’t be renewing his season tickets with the Miami Marlins, Leavy told ESPN on Wednesday that he’s actively looking for a new team.
“Four teams reached out to me already and said that I could become, like, the Tigers man or other teams, and they would be happy to sell me tickets on TV view for three years paid in advance with a substantial discount.”
That’s certainly more than the Marlins were willing to give him. Leavy also said that he plans on attending just one Marlins series this year, when they take on the New York Yankees.
[Still not too late to join a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league]
On Monday, Leavy told Andy Slater of Slaterscoops.com that the Marlins rejected his $200,000 check, which was meant to reserve four tickets behind home plate for the 2018, 2019, and 2020 seasons. The team did send him two counter offers, but Leavy didn’t reveal the details of either one, and he turned both down. Leavy told ESPN that he paid $250 per ticket for his seats last year, and this year they asked for $260 per ticket despite the departure of pretty much every single young, promising Marlins star.
Leavy also revealed more details about the deal-making between him and the Marlins. According to him, a Marlins representative came to his office to discuss possible season ticket arrangements. And it didn’t go that well.
“They said that I did nothing for the team, I don’t promote the Marlins, nobody buys season tickets because of me, nobody buys advertising because of me, and they don’t care what I do,” Leavy said.
Maybe the Marlins’ heart wasn’t really in it, since that’s essentially the opposite of what someone should say when they’re trying to make a deal. For his part, Leavy has made his peace with moving on from the team that’s been part of his life for a quarter century.
“I have been a full season-ticket holder since the first year 25 years ago in 1993, and I don’t know anybody else who spent as much money on the Marlins for tickets as I have in the last 25 years,” Leavy said. “While they asked us to be loyal to them and faithful and patient, they are not faithful and loyal to us.”
Leavy might eventually find another team, but he’s not sure about losing his trademark bright orange jersey. He told ESPN that he’s thinking about continuing to wear it, but only after removing all the Marlins insignia. Ouch.
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Liz Roscher is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on twitter! Follow @lizroscher
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• Yahoo Sports’ MLB predictions for 2018
