Hypervenom Phantom FG this wasn’t him going

I know, fans are deservedly happy. I know, everyone is shocked and dizzy the Marlins, of all teams, gave Giancarlo Stanton a 13-year, $325 million contract –

the richest in U.S. sports history.

But the question remains:

And?

Because unless you want to mindlessly wave Marlins pom-poms over this deal you need some proper answers about what’s coming next or this is just the latest

and far riskiest headline the Marlins have bought.

You can appreciate that Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria, known for hoarding money, turned over the piggy bank and kept a rare talent and rising face of baseball

like Stanton. That’s deserved.

You can love that a Stanton won’t be lost to another team in another city like so many Marlins stars have been. That’s good news for this franchise and the

business of baseball.

But step back a moment. Step back past the shock and the smiles and the falling confetti. Let’s see how this contract is Mercurial Superfly IV FG structured. Let’s see how much money

is guaranteed before Stanton has an opt-out clause after the sixth year.

Let’s see if this newest business model of the Marlins – their third in four years – can support this historic contract and a winning roster in the coming

years, too. That’s the big question, isn’t it?

For years, the Marlins have echoed what every mid-sized baseball franchise has loudly and sensibly said. One player earning a disproportionate amount of

money can’t work for a mid-level payroll team.

That’s how St. Louis, Atlanta and Oakland – teams that consistently field winning teams – have done business. Marlins President David Samson loudly called

out Seattle for signing Ichiro Suzuki to a $20-million-a-year deal in 2007.

What the Marlins need is a sustainable business model to build around. Does Stanton fit in that? Everyone who loves baseball in South Florida hopes so. He

can be the centerpiece of a team. But this isn’t basketball. He can’t be the team.

It was just two years ago the Marlins’ baseball people figured a $70-80 million payroll was sustainable with a new, Nike Mercurial Superfly CR7 publicly-funded stadium in this market.

Loria decided otherwise. It was his team and, therefore, his right.

He negotiated deals and signed players and, before anyone knew it, had a $112 million payroll. It would have been more if a $200 million deal to Albert

Pujols hadn’t been fortunately trumped by Anaheim. Remember?

And remember how excited everyone was? Remember the same words about a franchise showing “credibility” and Messi Soccer Cleats Loria repairing his “legacy” were bandied about

then as they are now?

That lasted half of a season. The attendance wasn’t what the Marlins hoped. The team’s record wasn’t, either. So they traded off players, went back to being

the low-payroll Marlins, developed talent and found a gem or two – “The Marlins Way,” then-general manager Larry Beinfest called it.

Now, That Marlins Way is out.

This Marlins Way is in.

Spending big. Making headlines. Declaring this is the way of the future again. It’s not that it can’t be. It’s the wide fluctuations in the business model

that make you wonder who’s running the show now.

Loria is front and center in talking about the deal. And there’s no problem with that. Again, it’s his team and his money. But you’d feel a little better to

know Hypervenom Phantom FG this wasn’t him going rogue on his baseball people again.

It’s one thing for the Yankees or Dodgers to sign a player to big money. They can eat their mistakes. They can build expensive teams. No one thinks Stanton,

at 25, will be a mistake. But do the Marlins have enough money to keep a good team around him for the years ahead?

That’s the risk here. The Marlins guaranteed more money to Stanton with this deal than they have spent on their entire payroll for the last five years

combined ($313 million).

It’s fun to shake the pom-poms and declare this is great for the Marlins. It’s interesting. It’s fascinating. It’s captured a sporting nation’s attention.

Loria deserves all that.

But all that leaves a biggest question out there.

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