Fans at Marlins Park in 2020? Team isn’t thinking about that just yet, Jeter says
The Miami Marlins return to Marlins Park on Friday for their first day of training camp. Three weeks later, they will finally start the 2020 MLB season that has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
And when that time comes, the stadium will be empty.
While the admission of fans into stadiums will be decided on a team-by-team basis in accordance with local officials and MLB, the Marlins are not planning to have fans inside Marlins Park to start the season.
“I think that’s getting too far ahead of ourselves,” Marlins CEO and part-owner Derek Jeter said Tuesday in an interview on the team’s YouTube page. “Ultimately, yeah, we’d love to have fans at the ballpark, but it would be kind of irresponsible for us to be thinking about that right now, taking into consideration what’s going on in South Florida.”
Let’s get the jokes about Marlins Park usually being empty out of the way now. Yes, the Marlins are consistently among the bottom of the league when it comes to attendance. They averaged just 10,016 fans per home game last year.
But 10,000 fans — even 5,000 or so, which the Marlins had on three occasions last year — creates more of an environment than no one in the stadium at all.
“It’s going to be different, of course, and it’s going to be a challenge for us to to find that excitement and that extra edge that fans bring to the game,” shortstop Miguel Rojas said, “but at the same time we understand that this is going to be a weird and different season in all aspects. I feel like knowing that you don’t have fans in the stands, we have to have a mindset that we are giving a good show for people at home.”
And, of course, health and safety comes above all else while trying to maneuver through this season.
Miami-Dade County is one of the hotbeds for COVID-19 cases in the country. As of Wednesday, the county has 37,961 of the state’s 158,997 confirmed positive cases, according to the Florida Department of Health.
As for logistics should fans eventually be allowed in stadiums, the only reference to fans inside MLB’s 101-page operation manual says that “If and when play resumes with fans, Clubs must adhere to all requirements of the 2020 BSOP [Best Stadium Operating Practices] unless MLB specifically provides otherwise.”
“Any plans that we’re going to have, we want our fans to be safe,” Jeter said. “We want our players to be safe. We want our employees to be safe. So any 2020 plans to have fans in the stands, we’re gonna have to coordinate with MLB, government officials, health protocols, health professionals, our ballpark, our ops partners. There’s a lot of things that have to go right in order for us to have fans in the stands. Ultimately, we’d love to do it. I’d love to do it sooner rather than later, but at this particular point of view irresponsible even think about it.”
Mattingly endorses DH
Count Marlins manager Don Mattingly among the supporters for the universal designated hitter, which is taking effect this season.
“It just changes what you do as a manager. There’s a lot less to think about with the DH because you know it’s a batter, you’re not changing pitchers and matching up and things like that,” Mattingly said. “You don’t have to worry about who’s coming up to pinch-hit or who’s available right there or making a quick change or how many outs.”
The Marlins don’t have a player who is going to be tabbed as a full-time DH — Mattingly was quick to point out Miami doesn’t have a David Ortiz-type player on its roster. Instead, they will rotate players into that spot who need off days from the field but are still valuable at the plate.
“It enables us to be [get] of our better players in the lineup,” Mattingly said. “... I think we have an idea who DH’s the most. But I do look at it as using that as a rotation, where guys can get a little bit of a breather but also stay in the lineup.”
This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 1:44 PM.
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