The silliest feud of the World Series isn't taking place on the field, but in the seats behind home plate. That's where Marlins Man, super fan Laurence Leavy, sits. But is he even a Marlins fan, and did the Royals resort to bribing to get him to move?
After Marlins Man's garish orange jersey received a lot of screen time during game one, he was approached by a Royals official. Leavy claims the Royals were angry, and offered him a suite to vacate his prized seats. But Royals public affairs VP Toby Cook denied those charges, saying they simply had a "friendly conversation," and then offered Leavy a free Royals jersey. But Cook went on:
"[Leavy] said, 'No, no, this is my M.O. I wear this orange jersey and I get on TV all the time,'" Cook said. "We asked if he's a big Marlins fan and he said, 'God, no, I hate those guys — I just wear this to get on TV.'"
Are we all being had? Is this whole "Marlins Man" thing a weird ruse? Is this how millionaires troll? Not so says Marlins Man:
"I hate the Marlins?" Leavy said. "I have a Marlins car and the largest collection of Marlins memorabilia probably in the United States."
Leavy has been a Marlins season-ticket holder since their first year in 1993.
He took to Twitter this morning to further bolster those claims:
Marlins Man took up his usual seats during last night's game three, but his presence was less noticeable among the sea of Giants fans in orange and black. But ever the headline maker, for the final few innings of the game, Leavy gave his seat up to to the Navy petty officer who sang God Bless America.
[AP]
Photo via Charlie Riedel/AP