Loria Holding Marlins Back

      The Florida Marlins, whose payroll routinely ranks among MLB's lowest, have consistently produced competitive teams capable of contending for playoff berths. The foundation of these scrappy Marlins teams was laid by the team's front office, led by President of Baseball Operations Larry Beinfest. Beinfest's reputation as one of baseball's top executives is well-deserved, as evidenced by the fact that Beinfest has led the Marlins to a World Series title and winning seasons in five of the past seven years.
     
      Owner Jeffrey Loria, however, may be holding his team back from joining the ranks of baseball's elite. Loria has established himself as one of the least attractive employers in the big leagues. In 2006, Loria fired Joe Girardi (now the manager of the New York Yankees) following a 78-84 campaign. Girardi was named NL Manager of the Year by MLB executives and The Sporting News, in large part because he kept the Marlins competitive despite working with the lowest payroll in MLB, $14 million. Girardi was fired immediately after his lone season with the Marlins due to an in-game altercation with Loria in. The Loria-Girardi feud arose in early August when Loria was heckling home-plate umpire Larry Vanover, who then warned Girardi. When Girardi told Loria to calm down, an incensed Loria had to be talked out of firing Girardi that day.
      
      Loria also squabbled with Girardi's successor, Fredi Gonzalez. Gonzalez, like Girardi, was named NL Manager of the Year by The Sporting News following the 2008 season. However, during his three plus seasons in Florida, Gonzalez's name was constantly mentioned among managers on the hot seat. At the time of Gonzalez's firing, Loria claimed, "Everyone knows how I feel about winning. That's the reason we're making this change." It seems that while the majority of MLB teams and executives recognize the difficulties inherent in managing the Marlins, Loria expects his skippers to win in spite of the lack of financial resources available in other organizations. Loria professes his desire to win, yet fails to put his money where his mouth is. Loria has been so notoriously cheap that he was essentially forced by MLB and MLBPA to dedicate funds given to the Marlins (via league-wide revenue sharing) to increase the team's paltry payroll. Prior to MLB's mandate to increase spending, the popular belief among baseball insiders was that Loria had been pocketing the revenue-sharing funds rather than investing them in his team via free agent international signings or re-signing some of his prominent young players.
      
      This is not the first time Loria's leadership has come into question. He took control of the Montreal Expos in 2000, and promptly irritated the fanbase by demanding a new stadium. By 2002, after running the Expos into the ground, Loria sold the team to MLB as a prelude to his purchase of the Marlins. Now, Loria's tight-wad ways threaten to prevent MLB's most exciting teams from reaching its full potential. Let's
hope Loria is as serious about winning as he claims.