BY: JORDAN KAPLAN
As a long time Florida Marlins fan, I had a lot of
anticipation for the opening of Miami Marlins Park. It was years in the making
and the hype began last year with the team doing a countdown to this Opening
Day during home games. The night was magical, but also a little underwhelming
for the build-up.
The
celebration began with a girl running a marlins flag into the park amongst a
shower of sparks. The raising of the Marlins’ two World Series flags followed. Jeff Conine,
“Mr. Marlin,” himself raised the 1997 flag and Mike Lowell
raised the 2003 flag. There was some song and dance going on when finally the
roof was ceremoniously opened for the first time. Almost immediately you could
feel the hot air from outside rush in through the sliver that was now open.
Once the roof and the side panels, which allow for a great view of Downtown
Miami, were all the way open, the view was amazing. The temperature was nice,
giving the feeling that you were at an outdoor ballgame, while still being able
to feel a gust of cold air from the A/C every now and then. It was a great
night for baseball. The players were eventually announced from each team and
then the first pitch was to be “thrown” out. The Miami Marlins were very tight
lipped about whom this would be.
Suddenly
emerging from midfield was a golf cart. There he was in all his glory, the
greatest of all time, Muhammad Ali.
As someone who has always loved and admired Ali this was very exciting for me.
But then the camera cut to the golf cart and you could see Ali and Marlins
owner Jeffrey Loria. Ali looked a lot worse than the last time I had seen him
and Loria was holding him to prevent his severe shaking due to Parkinson’s Disease.
It was really a sad and disappointing sight for me as such a huge Ali fan. Chants
emanated from the crowd: A-LI, A-LI, A-LI!! He was driven on the cart to the
mound where Hanley
Ramirez handed him a ball and that was the first pitch. Kind of
disappointing after all the hype around the opening day of the stadium. I would
have at least liked to see Ali throw the ball, even if it was only 5 feet. Even
though it was somewhat of a letdown, it was still great to see Ali, and have
him “throw” the first pitch.
Jose Feliciano would sing the National
Anthem in a unique way, which I actually really liked, and then it was PLAY
BALL!! I wish I could stop the story here because this is the part where the
night gets forgettable. The Cardinals would get hits from Carlos Beltran,
Lance Berkman,
and of course World Series MVP David Freese
woul pick up right where he left off. Ultimately the Cards would score 3 runs
off of Marlins ace Josh Johnson in
the first inning and JJ would go on to give up 10 hits in the game. Not only
would that spoil the night, but Cardinals pitcher Kyle Lohse took
a no-hit bid into the 7th inning.
When it was
all said and done the Marlins would lose the game 4-1. A win would have sent a
great vibe throughout Miami for the night (especially with the Miami Heat
beating the OKC Thunder a few miles away) and carried some momentum for the
team going forward. Despite the loss, the night was still electrifying and
Marlins fans could not be more excited. The stadium is literally a work of art
and the team on paper is solid. They have strong batting and fielding (although
Hanley to 3rd Base will definitely be a transition), a greatly
improved pitching rotation, and a bullpen that only got better after being the
7th best in the MLB last season. The Marlins have a recipe for
success with their team and facility upgrades, but the question is can they
turn that recipe into a fabulous feast of success.
