Showtime officially announced on Monday that the Miami Marlins will be featured on Season Two of their reality series titled “The Franchise”. The announcement has been rumored for the past couple of months but the network was awaiting a finalized agreement with Major League Baseball. With a cast of colorful characters, the Marlins are sure to bring interest to the series even from casual fans.
In 2011, Showtime followed the World Champion San Fransisco Giants around giving fans worldwide a deeper look at the team on and off the field. The network is given usually restricted access to the team in order to deliver fresh exciting content. With the Giants, Showtime focused mainly on Brian Wilson who was by far the most controversial player on the roster. With the Marlins, there are several players the cameras are sure to take notice of. Names such as Ozzie Guillen and Carlos Zambrano would alone bring enough interest weekly but they are just a piece of the puzzle. The Marlins’ roster brings additional buzz with the likes of Logan Morrison, Hanley Ramirez, and Jose Reyes amongst others.
Long ignored in the national media, the Showtime series is just one of several new developments for the Marlins. ESPN will show the first two games of the Marlins’ season on national TV. The sports network will also host an edition of Baseball Tonight from Roger Dean Stadium where the Marlins train during the Spring. Showtime hasn’t announced an official start day or an episode total but it is expected the series will get underway in July and should feature at least six episodes. Production has already begun and will continue all season long.
About Larry Walansky
