If you’ve watched any of the biggest sporting events in the past three or four years, you’ve most likely seen him and you most likely hate him. He commonly pops up right behind home plate at the MLB’s biggest playoff games or behind one of the benches of the NBA’s similarly anticipated postseason games.
The only reason you’d recognize him is because of what he wears: a bright orange Marlins jersey with an equally horrific Marlins visor. He stands out like a sore thumb in the middle of your TV screen just for you to see him and think, “Damn, that guy’s got the life.” Because he does have the life, sitting front and center at some of the biggest events in the sports world in bright orange for everyone to see him.
His name is Laurence Leavy, and he finds himself in the premier seats of some of the premier games in the sporting country. He’s able to afford the most expensive tickets at the most high profile games because he is a self-employed lawyer who allows himself to work from home or a hotel room.
He probably would have been doing this long before if not for the common barrier many men find come between them and sports: women. Not many girlfriends or wives would be ok with spending the kind of money on sporting events that Leavy does. He had the desire and money to go to these games, but she was holding him back with her unwillingness to come along for the ride. After a seven-year relationship, Leavy decided to become a free agent so he could journey around the country and attend these coveted events.
Now in the heat of the NBA playoffs when every arena is decked out in one color, that color rarely ever being orange, he is quite easy to pick out. I’ve even witnessed this man sitting across Banker’s Life Fieldhouse from myself at Game 5 of the 2014 Eastern Conference finals between the Pacers and Heat in Indianapolis. Sitting about 10 rows above the scorer’s table in a sea of yellow was none other than super fan Laurence Leavy in his obnoxiously blatant Marlins gear. After being acquired by the Marlins in the 2015 offseason, Mike Morse gave Leavy a hug at a season ticket holder’s event and told him he was the Giants’ “lucky charm” during their World Series run the previous season. So it's not just us lowly fans sitting at home who are starting to recognize him, it’s the whole sports world.
In case you’re wondering, he has been to over 300 MLB playoff games, 200 NBA playoff games, 37 NCAA Championships and 27 Super Bowls. He’s the sports fan we all wish we could be. As he has continually found himself in the center of TV screens across the world, sports fans have begun to recognize him and wonder who the hell he is. Wel,l now YOU know. You’re welcome.
