Reinhart delivers strike, Marlins hear 'We want 10' chants on Panthers Night at the ballpark
Reinhart delivers strike, Marlins hear 'We want 10' chants on Panthers Night at the ballpark
Several of South Florida's coolest cats converged on the big ballpark in Little Havana on Wednesday night.
That's because the Miami Marlins hosted Florida Panthers Night at loanDepot park to celebrate the team's 30th anniversary season.
Panthers players Sam Reinhart, Anton Lundell and Spencer Knight were on the field before the game, along with mascots Stanley C. Panther and Viktor E. Ratt.
When it came time for the ceremonial first pitch, Reinhart trotted out to the pitcher's mound and delivered a strike to the Marlins' Jon Berti, who was behind the plate.
Panthers fans in attendance surely got a kick out of chanting "We want 10" when the Marlins put up a 9-run fifth inning.
Later in the game when the Marlins held their nightly rooster race, both Stanley and Viktor took part, though a menacing peacock may impeded their ultimate ability to compete.
The night was ultimately a rousing success as Miami defeated the Dodgers 11-4 to win their sixth consecutive game and remain in possession of one of the National League's Wild Card playoff spots.
Perhaps the Marlins will follow in the footsteps of their hockey playing neighbors to the north and go on a remarkable playoff run of their own.
Did somebody say World Series?
REINHART TALKS CONTRACT
Before the game, Reinhart spoke to members of the Marlins and Panthers media.
Naturally, the 28-year-old was asked about his contract status, as he is entering the final year of the 3-year deal he signed after being acquired by Florida during the summer of 2021.
“Billy (Zito) give me the longest deal I've had in this league,” Reinhart said in audio obtained by THN. “It's nothing new. It's not something I stress over or lose sleep over too much. They know I want to be here. I know they want to be here. So we've got no problems kind of waiting it out. I'm just looking forward to the season being here."
Reinhart would be a highly coveted free agent should he hit the open market next summer.
He's coming off consecutive 30-goal seasons and did so despite seeing the majority of his 5-on-5 time on Florida's third line.
One thing Reinhart has done during his time with the Panthers is prove to be a lethal force on the power play.
He's scored 16 power play goals in each of the past two seasons.
Based of his comments, it sounds like he and the Panthers are on their way toward working out an extension.
"We've we both expressed our interests and our desire for me to be here, and that's exciting," he said. "So my focus is solely on the start camp and getting ready for the season."
Staying in Florida for another few years is an appealing idea to Reinhart.
Over the summer he married his longtime girlfriend Jessica and the two are looking forward to starting the next phase of their lives.
Reinhart has grown deep roots during his time with the Panthers and has said how much he'd like to remain in South Florida.
"Every year that passes you get more and more comfortable, and it's our first year actually being in our home to start the season, so it's just little things like that that make you more comfortable," he said.
