MIAMI -- The Miami Marlins' ballpark sat mostly empty Monday, which will likely be the case all year, and team owner Jeffrey Loria leaned his back against the bar in a hospitality area, sipping water in circumstances that warranted stronger stuff.

Happy hour, it was not. As part of a three-day public relations blitz, Loria met with a dozen writers and tried to put a positive spin on his widely mocked offseason decisions.

After the Marlins' dismal first season in their new home, Loria said, the roster dismantling he ordered was the right move because they were headed in the wrong direction. He said a return to payroll austerity was needed because the Marlins lost tens of millions of dollars in 2012 after an unprecedented spending spree.

The Marlins will eventually spend again, and they want to sign precocious slugger Giancarlo Stanton to a multiyear contract, Loria said. He said he understands why fans are upset but hopes they will embrace this year's young, unproven team, which many expect to lose 100 games.

"We had to turn back the clock for the moment and push the restart button," Loria said, "and get these young players in here and get them together and look where we are in another year or so."

His 30-minute session Monday with reporters was part of an effort to rehabilitate the reputation of the Marlins and their owner. Loria conducted another interview session Tuesday that included several testy exchanges before the owner cut it short after reiterating his previous comments.

Angry fans have complained they expected the new ballpark to mean competitive payrolls for more than just one season. Instead they endured the latest in a series of payroll purges, which made the franchise the butt of jokes around the country.

Loria is widely viewed as the culprit.

"It's a constant, sometimes personal pounding," Marlins president David Samson said after Loria had left the room. "It's hard for anyone. On top of that, you're writing checks. It's hard. But I understand every side."

Loria remained silent through the offseason but hired a national public relations firm, and his attempt at damage control began Sunday with an open letter to fans published in several media outlets. He plans to make his spring-training debut Tuesday and face TV cameras, hoping to change the subject.

"Maybe we could take a little timeout here," he said, a PR aide at his side.

Loria expressed sympathy for fans and his departed players, and saved his harshest words for the Miami Dolphins, who are seeking tax money to help upgrade their football stadium. The Dolphins have stressed that their plan is much different from the widely criticized financing agreement for the Marlins' ballpark, built mostly with public money.