Former Miami Marlins president David Samson went scorched earth Wednesday on team star Jazz Chisholm Jr. after he made harsh comments about a former teammate.
Chisholm, a 2022 All-Star, recently appeared on The Pivot podcast Tuesday and addressed his role with the team when he first arrived in 2020. He didn’t mention any names, but his remarks were clearly aimed at Miguel Rojas, who played eight seasons for the Marlins before being traded to the Dodgers in 2023.
“You can’t be a team leader when you’ve got guys that’s been in the clubhouse that’s been in there nine or 10 years even though they suck,” Chisholm said. “They’ve been there for nine or 10 years and the team calls them the team captain. But they’re not a good captain, they’re not a good person, you’re not even a good athlete at this point. You’re just here and you’re bringing down the young guys that are supposed to be good.”
Nasty stuff, to be sure. Samson, who is now a regular guest on the Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz Show, absolutely shredded Chisholm on Wednesday’s broadcast.
“In the hundreds if not thousands of players that I’ve had in my career, Miguel Rojas is one of the best people that I’ve come across,” Samson said. “So for him to say that Miguel Rojas is a bad person is incredibly disingenuous.
“What have you done, Jazz? Nothing. You’re not a team leader. You didn’t walk in there as a team leader. The only thing that didn’t happen to you is you’re lucky that (Jeff) Conine and (Mike) Lowell and some of the other players weren’t there when you got there, because they would have kicked your ***, and that would have been the end of you.” (Conine and Lowell were two stars on Samson’s 2003 Marlins team that won the World Series.)
“For him to say that Miguel Rojas is a bad person is incredibly disingenuous…What have you done Jazz? Nothing…
…they would’ve kicked your ass and that would have been the end of you…”
– @DavidPSamson has strong words for Marlins Second Baseman/Centerfielder, Jazz Chisholm… pic.twitter.com/POfOY5ZcH8
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) March 20, 2024
Samson, who served as Marlins president from 2002 until September 2017, was just getting warmed up.
“It is so unbelievable that he did this,” Samson said. “And there will be ramifications. He’s not going to walk in Spring Training today and everyone’s going to be all jolly. That is divisive, it’s wrong. Regardless of your view of Miguel Rojas and his talent on the field, he was named the captain because of the respect that the team has for him, and that the league has for him.
“Jazz, you’ve never even played 100 games except for once. … I’m embarrassed for the Marlins right now.”
Samson even said that the decision to put Chisholm on the cover of MLB: The Show 2023 came as a favor to “Uncle Derek,” former Marlins CEO Derek Jeter.
Even seven years after his ouster in Miami, Samson remains a divisive figure among many baseball fans, for his ongoing vendetta against Jeter and too many other reasons to recap here. He’s even got a bad reputation with other fan bases. Last year, he referred to Philadelphia Phillies fans as a “bunch of frontrunners.”
Many of these fans stood up for Chisholm and ripped Samson for a bad take. But a few admitted Samson did the right thing in this case.
I can’t believe I’m about to say this but…. I agree with Samson https://t.co/tzt0VB8bXt
— Mikey Fajardo (@mikey_fajardo) March 20, 2024
[Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz; Photo Credit: Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz]
