Venezuelan-born manager of the Miami Marlins Ozzie Guiilen has created so much awesome.
The fracas started over the weekend, when Time magazine published an interview on its website in which the Marlins skipper said he “loved” Castro. “I respect Fidel Castro. You know why? A lot of people have wanted to kill Fidel Castro for the last 60 years, but that [expletive] is still here.”
The comments might not have caused too much of a stir in many other cities. But Guillen coaches a team with a pricey new ballpark in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, densely populated by Cuban-Americans who fervently dislike Fidel Castro. What’s worse, he’s the face of a massive rebranding effort by the club, which hoped to use him as a tool to attract a potentially sizable Hispanic fan base.
The Marlins quickly distanced themselves from Guillen’s remarks, releasing a statement saying, “There is nothing to respect about Fidel Castro. He is a brutal dictator who caused unthinkable pain for more than 50 years. We live in a community filled with victims of his dictatorship and the people in Cuba continue to suffer today.”
Those potential fans are now loudly calling for him to be fired.
But the Marlins know that they can’t fire the guy for saying he loves and respects Fidel Castro. So, they suspended him for five games and made him do one of those shamed press conferences usually reserved for athletes and entertainers caught on tape talking about kikes and coons.
“This is the biggest mistake so far in my life,” said a tired-looking, slightly perturbed Guillen, who conducted the hour-long press conference mostly in Spanish. “If I don’t learn from this, then I will call myself dumb.”
Set aside for a moment the bliss you feel watching this crappy baseball franchise shit the bed. Ozzie Guillen is Venezuelan. His country has very close cordial relations with Cuba. The leaders of both countries have been the targets of coup d’etat attempts at the hands of our intelligence agencies. And this franchise just suspended their manager for stating his true opinion about those facts.
I guess he was suspended for offending the sensibilities of the Marlins’ core customers and community. He certainly did do that. I guess that’s what happens when the management of a baseball team hires a Latino manager on the assumption that they all think alike and the Cubans will flock to watch the Venezuelan manage.
The Marlins have a new name, new uniforms, a new stadium, a new manager…and a giant problem. I’m laughing my ass off.
And, no, I do not love or respect Fidel Castro. I just think we acted like imbeciles when he took over, and we haven’t improved any in the intervening 63 years. Oh, and anyone who is sentimental for Fulgencio Batista? They deserve at least a five game suspension.
