305LaTiNo

If I was GM, I'd pass on Cantu (1B is is only positon now), Trade Uggla, and Maybe keep Hermida for one more year or trade him dependign on how our OF Prospects develop/Contriubute this september. Move Coghlan to 3B, Bonifacio to 2B, Call up Morrison for LF, and Slot Gaby Sanchez at 3B. Lineup Without Herm 1.Maybin CF 2.Coghlan 3B 3.Ramirez SS 4.Gaby Sanchez 1B 5.Logan Morrison LF(Might be pushing it) 6.John Baker C 7.Cody Ross RF 8.Bonifacio 2B 9. Pitcher this sounds most reasonable

more signs that construction has begun....(taken this morning)

The conclusion of this article sounds a lot more optimistic! The commission debated from about 7 to 9 p.m. and then what was meant to be a 45-minute break stretched on for three and a half hours. The commission finally returned at 12:30 a.m. Wednesday and voted 9-3 for changes that will allow the deal to move forward. Commissioners approved three items, including agreeing to a higher interest rate on the some of the bonds and adjusting the county's commitment to the project to $341 million down from $347 million. well, there it is then. we got our stadium.

looks like construction has begun....(taken at 12:40 PM, marlins ballpark webcam)

LOL! Calm down buddy. One of the earlier posts said that the Marlins would sell out every game. That is an absurd statement. My comment about the 40 games was only meant to dispute the claim made that all games would sell out. it wasn't meant as a jab at the fans for failling to fill a stadium at a 50% rate. Explain to me how the Rays aren't an attractive game when they come into town? Forget about whether or not they draw in their own stadium, (which they do by the way averaging 23K a game, and 29K for weekend games this season). That is as interesting a team as you'll find this year. Great athletes throughout the roster, not to mention they are reigning AL Champs. Look, I live in south florida and the last thing I want is for this community to be painted as a bad baseball town. It would be embarrassing. But at some point you have to stop making lame excuses like "it looks like it was going to rain" or "the team was dismantled" and start facing the fact that maybe a lot of people have a priority list that has things listed above the baseball line. This thread claimed astronomical attendance numbers in a new park, and I disagree. That was my point. Calm down? I'm perfectly calm. Also, this thread is nothing but disputing the fact that we'd sell out all the games, it's a ridiculous notion. Also, the Rays just aren't a good draw. When they came in here they weren't even a .500 team, playing another below .500 team, and they have no outside fanbase to speak off. And yes, they have been drawing at home, but those numbers have started to dip. Do you know what the Marlins were drawing in 2004 at this point in the season? 23,645. But, just as it has started to happen with the Rays, that post-WS love starts to dissipate. There is a reason many teams sell tickets for the Marlins and Rays under a "value package". It's not because either of them are good draws. And the weather isn't an excuse, it's a reason. Now, I happen to be the exception, I was there for 2 of the 4 games against the Giants, I was there last night and will be there the next two night as well. But I did end up getting rained on for both those games against the Giants. It not only discourages the casual fan, I had plenty the "true" fans tell me "Whey did you go to the game with this weather? I was thinking of going, but I wasn't going to get rained on for 2 hours." When you are discouraging your LOYAL fanbase from going to games, something needs to be done. Well I hope you are right because it would be nice to have respectable attendance in the new stadium. I still disagree with you on the Rays thing. They came in at the end of May, which is very very early in the season, and were at .500 at the time. It isn't unfathomable to have good teams playing .500 ball two months in. They had the AL leader in batting average starting at SS (Bartlett), the MLB leader in RBI at the time playing 3B (Longoria), the AL leader in HR at the time starting at 1B (Pena, also a gold glove winner from last year), and the ML leader in SB in left field (Crawford). If you took that roster and stuck them in White Sox, Tigers, or Indians uniforms I don't think you'd be arguing my point. No, they were under .500, making it a matchup between "two loser Florida teams". Our terrible showing in that effort is what made them a .500 team when they left. And yes, if I took that roster and put it in a large market, I wouldn't be arguing that point at all, because they'd be a large market team with a large external fanbase. They aren't. Sorry to beat an old dead horse, but I couldn't resist the comparison. You were arguing that the Rays aren't a sexy draw. This past weekend the same game in St Pete had the follow attendance #s Fri - 20, 972 Sat - 35,790 Those same games in Miami drew Fri - 16,226 Sat - 20,253 So to your point that a weekend series against the Rays isn't a draw, I'd argue that a weekend series against the Marlins is less of a draw to Rays fans, but it outdrew the series in Miami when the rays played the marlins in miami it was poaring for days, nonstop. you should make a comparison how the rays draw with the yankees on a weekend versus how we drew versus the yankees last weekend. i think that will sum it up. also, look at marlins attendance history versus the rays...we havent been drawing well lately, but it always hasnt been that way. we can thank lousey ownership for that.

They had an interview with Samson on Marlins On Deck tonight and he said tomorrow was the big day with the bonds. He said something to the effect of people are working on the bonds as we speak in NY for tomorrow's sale. I'm not exactly sure where to see the results of a bond sale online, but there is a special Miami Dade County commission meeting to give the final go ahead tomorrow at 10am. So I'm sure the results will be known then. Perhaps someone with a better grasp of how this works can answer this...I would assume that a bond sale of this large amount is likely bought by financial institutions. I would also assume that when you have a bond offering this large, buyers are lined up in advance of the sale. Am I correct? well yeah...wachovia was lined up 100 million. though i wonder, "what if" we dont sell all of the bonds? how does that work according to the agreement? anyways, i'm sure they will sell them. i took a look yesturday at the new marlins stadium webcam at about 4:30 pm and there were people out there in white trucks. im sure construction will begin right on scehdule. im not too concerned.

http://cbs4.com/loca....2.1051967.html Excellent news. Now on to the bond sale on the 29th and 30th. yeehhawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

The general fund is listed as a secondary pledge. What that basically means is that if the tourist taxes haven't generated enough revenue to pay off the bond, they could be paid by the general fund. Apparently, listing the general fund as a backup is standard practice. It strengthens the bonds and makes it more attractive to investors. That doesn't mean it will ever be touched to pay off the stadium, it merely makes the bonds eaiser to sell. I see. I wonder if the rating agencies asked this same question. I'm surprised the opponents haven't made more of this promise that they would use those to secure a better rating. I guess it's one of those things where you say "sure we'll back these bonds with other money", but they know they won't have to sort of thing. It was a big deal during the past county and city meetings...and yes, the ratings agencies do factor in that the general fund is a secondary pledge. It's something that the stadium opponents on the city and county commissions bring up constantly. But, apparently, it is a pretty common thing to do in this type of bond issue. i dont think we have much to worry about regarding the sale of bonds. i mean isnt wachovia in to by 100 million of these bonds? afterall, i assume that is what this while thing was about today. im sure they have buyers lined up. the bonds will sell.

anything about the court case?

You can e-mail them if you want, but the only thing that matters is what the Judge decides. These are just bitter people who are upset that they have failed at every attempt to stop this good deal. According to the latest Herald article, the judge could make his ruling as early as tomorrow. I still stand by my original statement that these people are crazy if they think they know more about the legal aspects of this deal then the lawyers for the Marlins, City, and County that negotiated it. If anything in it was illegal, it wouldn't have made it this far. Braman tried the same arguement with better(i.e. more expensive) lawyers and failed on all counts. Hopefully this too goes the Marlins way and quickly. fauowls44, anything new on todays big day? Everything passed in the county, now just need to wait for the court case to be dismissed... wow! excellent!!!!

You can e-mail them if you want, but the only thing that matters is what the Judge decides. These are just bitter people who are upset that they have failed at every attempt to stop this good deal. According to the latest Herald article, the judge could make his ruling as early as tomorrow. I still stand by my original statement that these people are crazy if they think they know more about the legal aspects of this deal then the lawyers for the Marlins, City, and County that negotiated it. If anything in it was illegal, it wouldn't have made it this far. Braman tried the same arguement with better(i.e. more expensive) lawyers and failed on all counts. Hopefully this too goes the Marlins way and quickly. fauowls44, anything new on todays big day?

Grace Solares and Elvis Cruz, who filed suit in February, are behind that effort. The motion for injunction alleges the county is exceeding its constitutional tax and spending powers by issuing bonds tied to the professional sports tax/tourist development tax. The plaintiffs contend that the county is inappropriately using the current bond to repay a prior bond issued in 1992. Grace Solares, Miami Roads Neiborhood Civic Assoc., grace@miamiroads.org here you go guys. have a ball.

The city just voted and passed the amendment 3-2. Next up is the court hearing at 1pm today and the County vote tomorrow. Hopefully the Judge throws out this "emergency injunction" and we can get back on track. fauowls44, keep us posted. ill check back in a little later.

Bank's demand forces extra vote on stadium BY MATTHEW HAGGMAN mhaggman@MiamiHerald.com Miami-Dade County Manager George Burgess told commissioners Monday that he needs more time -- and another vote by the commission -- before funding for a new Florida Marlins ballpark in Little Havana is finalized. Burgess wrote county commissioners that the changes were purely technical -- linked to a demand by Wachovia Bank to be paid fees up front for a letter of credit -- and don't change the cost structure for building the new stadium. But the financing wrinkle instantly raised questions in some quarters. The reason: The alteration will require commissioners to vote to amend a provision of the long-argued stadium deal and to change its termination date -- after which neither the county, city of Miami nor Florida Marlins can back out -- from July 1 to July 15. ''I thought we were done voting on the stadium,'' said Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez, who voted against the deal in March. Though commissioners will revisit this issue, they will not take up the larger ballpark agreement, county officials said. That is already approved. The move comes in the same week county officials are set to sell $405 million in bonds to both refinance previous county debt obligations and raise money toward building the $515 million stadium. Successfully selling the bonds -- which are backed by the promise of repayment from tourist taxes and set for sale Wednesday and Thursday -- is viewed as the last hurdle before construction begins on the Miami ballpark. Successive Marlins owners have sought a ballpark for more than a decade. In March Miami-Dade and Miami commissioners approved plans for the publicly funded baseball stadium. Construction is slated for this summer so the proposed 37,000-seat ballpark can be ready for opening day in 2012. ''Our confidence in the project and its underlying funding plan has not changed,'' wrote Burgess. In his memo, Burgess asked commissioners to amend the bond ordinance to comply with a requirement by banking giant Wachovia, which is providing a $100 million letter of credit for a portion of the bonds. Namely, that the ordinance be redone so Wachovia is paid its fees first before money goes to other sources like debt service or reserve payments. Under the current ordinance, according to Miami-Dade Finance Director Carter Hammer, administrative expenses, such as letter of credit fees, are last in line after other expenses are paid. 'In order to satisfy requirements of the letter of credit provider (Wachovia), `Administrative Expenses' must be placed first in the . . . flow of funds,'' Hammer wrote in an e-mail to questions from The Miami Herald. That proposed change is set to go before commissioners Friday. But a public hearing and second vote is required, which would not happen until June 30. If approved, it would take effect 10 days later. That delay prompted Burgess to propose pushing the termination date on the deal to July 15. Burgess wrote that the city and Marlins have been made aware of the proposed adjustment and verbally agreed to a later date. Burgess previously assured commissioners that everything would be in order for a July 1 deadline. Miami has scheduled a special session Thursday to vote on the later date. For the Marlins part, team spokesman P.J. Loyello said, ''We are preparing to get on the site July 1 and have an official groundbreaking July 18.'' The team is contributing $120 million toward construction and will repay a $35 million county loan. Under the financing deal, the county plans to seek another $50 million in general obligation bonds in the third quarter this year. The stadium deal is largely financed by bonds that will be repaid by tourist taxes. Critics say assumptions for tourist tax revenues are overly optimistic and worry that the county will ultimately have to dig into the general fund to plug the gap. County leaders have pledged revenues other than property taxes to fill any shortfalls, which resulted in Wall Street credit ratings agencies taking a more favorable view of the bonds. The fact the county is now moving at the last minute to comply with a requirement that Wachovia be paid its fees first is winning a skeptical eye from some. ''Wachovia is sufficiently worried that they want to be paid first,'' said Commissioner Carlos Gimenez, a vocal critic of the ballpark deal. ``The financial markets are telling us something.'' Miami Herald reporter Charles Rabin contributed to this report. http://www.miamihera...ry/1098924.html I couldn't tell from this article. but will the bond sale still be this week? I think this is only a technicality, but I'm sure ballpark opponents will try to make this a problem. another vote??? im really sick of this already. well, at least it looks like the bonds are sold.

Wait what? I thought the stadium was a done deal already!!! WTF There is a chance it still might not happen? its gonna happen. mlb is involved. im sure they already have buyers lined up. its not like they havent been working on these bonds sale for months already.

Let me preface this by saying: I'm sure the Marlins of done their due diligence. Although, I don't see how groundbreaking in July is a good idea. It's a month into Hurricane season and about 6 weeks before peak season. Now, I know you're all gonna say: "but we would deal with this every year of construction anyway." Very true but lets say construction starts Nov.1st that would give the Marlins 7-8 months of clear sailing 9 months before they seriously had to worry. I'd say it's most crucial now being the first year of construction... thoughts? we start in july. delaying it would be unwise...especially since dont know we are actually gonna hit by a hurricane.

He won't improve the team.He will dismantle the team again, lower payroll and get back prospects who don't live up to expectations. i agree with this statement. and i cant believe some people on this board is even considering trading hanley...cmon people, do we really make the same mistake we made with miggy? hanley is one of the top players in the game...trading him would disasterous for the fans and organization. hanley, volstad and j.j. are off limits, anyone else can be traded, no prob.

Yeah that crowds are way smaller in comparison to the few games we played in Miami in the beginning of the season, but you can you blame them? I would not pay to watch the team right now. Not because we are losing but the way in which we are losing these games. They are heartbreaking. yup. especially during these tough times where every penny counts. ownership doesnt want to spend their money on a top quality product, this is the result.

What this team needs is good players... agreed. most of these guys should be playing minor league baseball....or atleast they would, in any other organization.

trade Ramirez and Uggla for person(s) and let them get mionr leagur talent and let them grow together. just venting.... just one question...are you f***in insane????????????

I can't wait for them to start construction; I drive by every day just in hope that I get to see something. i passed by the other day and they had some streets closed off plus city of miami surveyers were working around the ob

If by quality stuff you mean a flat fastball and a slider he cant throw effectively...so just a fastball then. Not flat at all. TOO much movement was the problem, he was way too amped, hit 102 mph. Almost glad this happened now. (not really, losing always sucks) wtf!!!!! glad this happened???

i was at the game. dissapointinggggggggggggggggggggg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! send his ass to the minors!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sheffield used to be my favorite player, but as the years have gone by...he's just an asshole. I haven't really liked him for awhile now. same here

Now that things appear to be more official with the official city and county votes of approval, I was wondering if we'll be getting any detailed interior renderings, with--for example--how the place would look if you are standing at home plate. The images they released a few weeks ago were nice, but I want more! lol...me too.