S. Fla. Victory Bash For Marlins
Thousands of fans swarmed downtown Miami on Tuesday, cheering one last time for their surprising World Series champion Florida Marlins.
Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria held aloft the World Series trophy in a caravan of convertibles that ferried Marlins players and cigar-chomping manager Jack McKeon through streaming ticker tape and the screams of adoring fans.
"We shocked the world, baby! We did it!" outfielder Juan Pierre told WSVN-TV as his convertible slowly crept along Flagler Street, the city's main artery through downtown.
Three parades and two rallies were scheduled in Miami and Fort Lauderdale to celebrate the Marlins, who beat the New York Yankees 2-0 on Saturday night to win the title. Delirious fans at the downtown Miami celebration arrived early to grab free towels and T-shirts with the Marlins logo.
"I asked for the day off, but my daughter called in sick to school," said Nancy Cuellar of Miami, who was pressed against metal barricades near the end of the parade route. "It's kind of crazy. I've been a Marlins fan a long time and I came to support them for winning."
City workers shredded two tons of paper to serve as ticker tape while banners and balloons streamed off downtown office buildings along the parade route festooned with freshly painted team and World Series logos.
Fans began lining the downtown Miami parade path hours before the festivities began. A noontime rally was scheduled, followed by another victory drive through the city's Little Havana neighborhood and then a boat parade and second rally in Fort Lauderdale later in the day.
Officials estimated at least 100,000 people would attend the daylong celebration but police officers said the numbers could swell beyond initial projections.
The Marlins' victory ended a postseason run that had fans clamoring for team merchandise, paying brokers hundreds of dollars for tickets and crowding around televisions, cheering with every pitch.
"I thought everybody would be at the parade," said Gloria Shote of Miami, who waited to buy team merchandise for her grandchildren on a line that stretched out the door of Marlins en Miami, the team's souvenir shop near Little Havana.
The championship may not have been the team's most-significant accomplishment. Their improbable run from a last-place team in June to baseball's best four months later sparked a renewal of vows between the franchise and its fans, many of whom had largely ignored the team for several seasons.
When Florida won the title in 1997, the championship celebration was a bit tempered as fans braced themselves for a cost-slashing roster gutting by then-owner H. Wayne Huizenga. The result was a last-place finish in 1998 and a steady decline in attendance.
Annette Massey of Davie said her family would consider buying season tickets for 2004. Massey owned seats through the 1997 season, but dropped them because the team went from unbeatable to unwatchable in just one year.
"My husband is a pilot for Delta and he was in Madrid on Saturday night," Massey said. "And he had to listen to the last three innings of them winning by cell phone. It's going to be expensive, but worth it."