Trip through Thuzio: Marlins edition

The career path of a professional athlete after he/she retires can go into many different and interesting paths. While a majority of the well-known stars stay in the game through broadcasting and coaching, there are still a wide variety of former pros who are still on the lookout for a way to make money after their playing career reaches its twilight.

Thanks in part to former NFL Pro Bowl running back-turned-entrepreneur Tiki Barber, Thuzio is a way for former and current athletes to "connect" with the public through a sea of different areas. From coaching, corporate outings and social get-togethers to fantasy drafts, tailgates and games of flag football or pickup. With the multitude of benefits in mind, being able to land a top-notch athlete might make you take out a second mortgage on your house.

Since this site is solely dedicated to the Miami Marlins, let's take a trip around this site to see what kind of ex-Marlins that you can invite to your next round of golf.

Lenny Harris

While this name isn't quite at the level of Frank Thomas or Roger Clemens (!!!), Lenny Harris is a name that will always have a place in baseball as he currently holds the record for most career pinch hits (212) in MLB history. Since the aforementioned names are probably too expensive for the thrifty fan (seriously, $25,000 for a round of golf with Roger Clemens?) Harris is a pretty cheap option.

As I continue to scroll through Thuzio, one of the more interesting options is having a former player show up to your live fantasy draft. While I definitely don't question the baseball intellect of Lenny Harris (current hitting coach of the GCL Marlins), I honestly don't see the intrigue of paying $500 to have Harris joining your friends during a fantasy draft. With that said, a potential dinner ($500) with Harris could be intriguing for the simple possibility of having an eating contest with the former portly pinch hitter.

Ivan Rodriguez

While Lenny Harris is listed as a "Thuzio bargain", Ivan Rodriguez is definitely a player that you'll have spend upwards of $5,000+ on. Unlike Harris, the options for Rodriguez is extremely limited as you'll only be able to have him make an appearance ($10,000) or a potential dinner/lunch ($5,000) which definitely sounds like a dream experience despite the huge price tag. That in mind, the dinner/lunch option with Rodriguez can extend to a small group of 10 people. Could Fish Stripes start a Kickstarter to help raise to have the talented group of writers have a roundtable dinner with the future Hall of Famer? Who knows.

Carlos Delgado

Similar to "Pudge" Rodriguez, an opportunity to spend time with Carlos Delgado will probably cost as much as your average college tuition. While paying $3,000+ to have lunch or a Q&A with Delgado, there's a small problem. You would have to travel to Puerto Rico to be able to actually be in the presence of Delgado.

Jeff Conine

Last but not certainly not least, former All-Star and current Marlins broadcaster Jeff Conine makes his imprint on the site as another local option for fans who live in the Miami area. While his page is pretty much the norm, I found it pretty interesting that one of the options was centered around attending a game with Jeff Conine. Since the participant would probably be in the Miami area, the game that he would attend would probably be a Marlins game. But there's a simple problem: Conine is the co-host of the pre-game and post-game for Fox Sports Florida's coverage of the Marlins. How could Conine sit in the stands with you when he has to cover the game on TV? I guess that's the $3,500 question that Conine would have to answer himself if you pay that hefty price.