In midst of skid, Marlins don't appear at event

MIAMI -- Marlins players were not exactly in a festive mood on Thursday, hours after bowing to Arizona and extending their skid to seven games.

No players appeared at the annual Fish 'N' Chips Casino Party, a $100 per person ($175 couples) fundraiser benefiting the Marlins Reviving Inner Cities Program (RBI), a youth program designed to promote interest in baseball, academic achievement and social responsibility in underserved and disadvantaged areas of South Florida.

Marlins president David Samson voiced his displeasure prior to Friday's game.

"From my standpoint, when you have a commitment with the community, you've got to do it," Samson said. "Guess what, you've got to continue on with what your job is. And the job doesn't end with the 27th out."

Samson said he that while he understands frustrations that come from poor performance on the field, it still doesn't excuse the postgame snub.

"I get it, because I'm grumpy also," Samson said. "That benefit was to raise money, and sometimes I think we lose perspective."

However, the team president dismissed the idea that the events were in any way a reflection of player frustration with the recent dismissal of manager Mike Redmond and hiring of general manager Dan Jennings to the managerial post.

Video: Samson shares his thoughts on dismissing Redmond

"Absolutely not," Samson said. "I think it's solely related [to the fact] that we've lost seven in a row and we're playing terribly."

Mixed with his disappointment, Samson also pointed out the generosity both with time and pocketbook of some of the players. Reliever Steve Cishek called it "bad timing."

"You've got to realize that we're here all day every day and we're exhausted," Cishek said. "You look at Dee Gordon, he's stumbling around the locker room. ... It's just tough to explain. The way things are going right now, our guys have taken it to heart."

Jennings added, "You wish that when this schedule was made, we would have been in the middle of a seven-game winning streak. You've got a lot of men here that do great things in this community. For me, this is one of these things where, as aggravated as we all are, I hope our fans are more aggravated at the 0-7 vs. missing the event.

"We got through at 3 o'clock, and that's a long time after losing a game that we felt like we could have won. So I hope that our fans will be mindful of that and cut these guys some slack on this event."