It’s not a secret that the Miami Marlins have pretty much been up for sale for some time now. It was reported back in December that owner Jeffrey Loria would be willing to sell the franchise for a cool $1.7 billion (more on that here).
This price tag itself seemed exceptionally high considering the very same report indicated that the Marlins’ franchise worth stood at just $675 million.
Despite this, the Marlins now claim that they have a handshake deal to sell the squad for $1.6 billion, about 10 times what Loria paid for it back in 2002.
“Two sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that Miami Marlins president David Samson has said that there is a $1.6 billion ‘handshake agreement’for the MLB team,” Mike Ozanian of Forbes reported on Thursday. “Jeffrey Loria paid $158 million for the baseball team in 2002.”
Miami has not necessarily been the best-run organization in baseball since Loria took over 15-plus years ago. Sure the team won the World Series in his second year in charge of it. Outside of that, the Marlins have failed to make the playoffs in each of the past 13 seasons.
There’s also the whole stadium situation. While Loria and his group did well to get a new venue erected in Miami, it has not necessarily been met with applause. This has an already staggering franchise on its heels in an ever-competitive MLB market that simply hasn’t played too well in Miami.
If Loria can get a cool $1.6 billion for the team, good for him. Maybe this will end up working out well for all sides involved.