David Samson
David Samson
afternoon break games keeping night open options people spring turned
We scheduled it that way. They were spring break games and we turned them into afternoon games so people who had commitments at night would be able to come to the game in the afternoon. It's keeping all the options open for everybody.
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Miami, the Gateway to the Americas, could well be the first American city in 35 years to see its baseball franchise leave. People in Washington D.C. know very well how long it took to get a team back.
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We thought it would be a good opportunity to have a chance to say hello and get to know them. The commissioners are very important people in the community. We want to spend a quality nine innings with them.
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We're marketing no expectation, and we're trying to introduce people to players.
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There were no deal discussions. It was very much an introductory meeting. It was 'getting to know you' day. We got to meet people and talk to them and learn more about Portland than what you can read about in the paper and in typical analyses.
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This is important because it shows it's not just about baseball. We've always said that the community is what matters the most. In order to have fans, you have to have a community. For people who lost their homes, it's hard for them to be fans if they have no place to live. This is a far bigger priority.
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I haven't seen a spot that really sticks out anywhere in South Florida. There is no perfect site. If you are too far south, the people north are unhappy. If you're too far east, the people out west are unhappy. So, I believe now the new perfect site is anywhere, and we'll teach people how to drive to the stadium. We'll build a tradition in this building for 30-40 years, and people will be more comfortable attending baseball games.
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We talked about a financing plan they had in mind that would require a very small contribution by the team. We told them our preference is to stay in Florida, but we have no deal in Florida. We agreed that we will stay in touch.
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I understand what they are doing. They are trying to do what is best for their community. At the same time, things don't often work as quickly as you like them to work in any scenario. Deadlines, once they are broken, you've got credibility issues.
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Right now we are working with the officials of Hialeah, and we're working with the mayor there. He's a great man. He's got vision. He wants to see baseball there. He's doing his work; we're doing our work. We hope to meet again in the next couple of weeks. We're exploring other cities with the focus still on Florida. We'll see how the year progresses.
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There's no more fake deadlines or real deadlines. This is about the Marlins trying to save its franchise. We need a place to play after 2010, and we don't have one.
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We're definitely negotiating with everybody, and we're trying to get a deal done here because it is our first choice. But we recognize it may not happen and we don't have much time left.
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We have bent over backwards with the amount of genuflecting we've done to ingratiate ourselves with the Montreal community.
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We do have the best grounds crew in the sport. But sometimes things happen that are out of their control.