Marlins Fans Start White House Petition to Force Out Jeffrey Loria
Breaking news: People want Jeffrey Loria to sell the Marlins. So much so, in fact, that someone has started an official White House petition to pass legislation that would force Loria to sell the team and allow him to get right back to selling artwork full time.
The whitehouse.gov petition reads like this:
"We call upon congress to create legislation that requires any major league sports franchise that operates within the United States, who take public tax money to help build a stadium or arena, must maintain a competitive payroll at all times, of at least 90% of the entire leagues average opening day payroll for the previous five years, for the first ten years after taking said money, and the failure to do so would invoke proceedings upon which the governing body of the league, in which the franchise in question resides, would be forced to immediately buy said franchise for fair market value, and the ownership group in question would be forced to sell it to them without dispute."
We the people would also like to invite Jeffrey Loria to a dick-on-pumpernickel sandwich.
The petition requires 100,000 signatures by May 8 to receive an official response from the White House. In true Marlins-fan-protest fashion, a grand total of 25 people have signed the petition thus far, although the team might tell you it's 34,000-plus
The Marlins, whose attendance ranks last in the National League five weeks into the season, have decided to close the upper bowl at Marlins Park for at least some weeknight games – an approach the team used at times at Sun Life Stadium.
The upper bowl will be closed for six dates in the team’s nine-game homestand that begins next Tuesday. Fans can sit only in the lower bowl for games May 14-16 against Cincinnati and May 20-22 against Philadelphia. The upper bowl will remain open for May 17-19 games against Arizona.
Marlins representative P.J. Loyello said the team has not decided whether to close the upper bowl for all Monday through Thursday home games, and decisions will be made before each home stand.
Less than 500 people own season tickets in the upper bowl, and those fans are being moved --- with no additional charge -- to seats in the lower bowl for all Monday through Thursday games.
Upper bowl tickets to weeknight games will continue be sold on Marlins.com. Fans who buy single-game upper deck tickets will be moved to the lower bowl if the Marlins decide to close the upper bowl on those particular nights.
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