Logan Morrison will have a new look this season. Nope, not just the new logo and uniforms, but also the number on his back.
Morrison broke the news via his Twitter account earlier this afternoon that he’ll switch to No. 5 this season after wearing No. 20 in his previous two seasons in the major leagues.
This is significant because no Marlin has ever worn No. 5. The number was retired at the Marlins’ first game on April 5, 1993 to honor of the team’s first president Carl Barger, who died of an aneurysm while attending baseball’s winter meetings in December of 1992. No. 5 was chosen because Barger’s favorite player was Joe DiMaggio.
Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports that the Marlins plan to commemorate Barger’s memory with a plaque in the new ballpark. Jackie Robinson’s No. 42 is now the lone number out of circulation for the franchise.
The relationship between the Marlins and Morrison appeared strained, at least to the outsider’s eye, following the controversy over the 24-year-old’s surprising demotion last season, but this is a significant and unexpected sign of commitment on behalf of the organization.
