Name on the Back

With not much going on in the hockey world today, I figured I would take a break from my normal style of blog, in favor of something somewhat related that has been on my mind lately.

For those people that know me, it is understood that the Florida Panthers are one of the only home town teams I support. I also love my Florida Atlantic University Owls, but that is pretty much where the South Florida love ends. However it wasn't always like that.

I was as big a Florida Marlins fan as there was. I won't repeat the entire story because it is one I've told far too many times, but I stopped being a Marlins fan sometime in the 2006 offseason, when fan favorites Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis were abruptly traded for kids. After seeing all my favorite players being sold to the highest bidder for the umpteenth time, I ended my fanhood of the Florida Marlins. I felt betrayed by the orgnaization, and refused to support a franchise that did not support me.

Ever since, I have been heckled by the Marlins faithful for failing to root simply for the logo on the front. To them, the name on the back means little, and who can blame the poor folks who have seen every player they have ever known and loved traded to another team. They claim that their owners are the best and smartest in the business because they can get the best lineup for the cheapest amount of money. They get great young talent in trades for their stars, but as soon as those young guns turn into stars themselves, they are gone as well. The long term signing of Hanley Ramirez was an acception, not the rule, for the most frugal franchise in the history of professional sports.

My purpose for writing this blog is not to deny that one should root for the logo on the front. I am a Panthers fan for life, assuming Jeffery Loria and Larry Beinfest (Marlins owner and GM) don't take over the team. I am nothing if not a true fan. I did not cry foul when captain Olli Jokinen, arguably the team's best player in some aspects, was traded this past offseason, because I knew the team was improving itself. We didn't receive young kids to eventually be traded as well. We got many important pieces, including a franchise defenseman, one who will be here for at least the next six years.

Keith Ballard, Nathan Horton, Stephen Weiss, and Rostislav Olesz, are under contract until 2013. Bryan Allen and Michael Frolik are under contract until 2012. Cory Stillman, Tomas Vokoun, and Bryan McCabe are under contract until 2011. I'm not saying that a player or two may not make it with the team for that long, but the fact is I know who is on my team, and I know who is going to be on my team next year. Can any Marlin fan honestly say they know anybody but Ramirez will be with the team past this season? If you can, you're fooling yourself. Everybody is up for grabs. Anybody worthwhile that is.

My favorite Florida Panther is Keith Ballard. I have his jersey, I have met him, talked to him, and have my jersey personally signed to me. My next favorite is Michael Frolik -- I have his autograph, met him and talked with him, and the background on my cell phone is a picture of me and him. I am currently drafting a get well letter to injured defenseman Bryan Allen. I even have had Panthers radio play by play man Randy Moller on my radio show, and I keep in contact with him through email. A true fan, in my opinion, isn't just a fan of the team's name. They love the players that make up the team as well. When the Panthers battle, I'm proud of them as a team, and on personal levels. When a player takes a cheap shot, I feel it personally. This is my team, but it is also a family of sorts, and I look forward to developing even stronger relationships with them as the years go on.

I don't consider my ex-relationship with the Marlins as my fault. The organization pushed it, and pushed it, and finally they allienated this fan enough to stop caring. Maybe that contributes to the days where barely a few thousand people make it to the game.

I am quite content in my decision, and I do not question anybody who did things the same as me, or differently. Those who remained Marlins fans, that is their choice and that's great. I cannot stand for it, and I don't blame anybody else who can't either.

So as the Panthers finally make a strong push for the playoffs, for the first time in so many years, I will be at every home game, despite the hour drive each way, screaming my lungs out and cheering every good play with pride. See, I know the names on the back without seeing anything but a silhouette or a hair style. It comes with the territory of continuity, something my Marlins friends know little about.