Future CEO had sights on Marlins for a while
MIAMI — The seeds for Derek Jeter to become at the forefront of the ownership group to succeed Jeffrey Loria with the Miami Marlins were sown within a couple of months of the end of his brilliant playing career.
That was when the newly retired shortstop took a behind-thescenes tour of Marlins Park and met with Loria in early December 2014. Jeter was described as being in South Florida on personal business, but the visit sparked the inevitable rumors that he was interested in buying the team.
As Jeter revealed at Tuesday’s introductory news conference, that was precisely what he had in mind.
“To be honest with you, I had my mind set on this for years,” said Jeter, who is CEO and has a small ownership stake. “I first had a conversation with Jeffrey years ago and he mentioned this might be an organization that comes up for sale. So I set my sights on it, this is what we targeted. We believe in this market.”
Although he revealed little about his plans for running the Marlins, perhaps most insightful was that he intends to be visible and much involved in the day-today operation.
“The vast majority of my time and effort will be here working for the Marlins,” said Jeter, who thanked his family for giving him the blessing for the time-consuming undertaking. “I think you have to be present, you have to be involved. People won’t respect you, I don’t think, if I wasn’t here.”
Jeter had let it be known as his playing career with the New York Yankees was winding down that he aspired to become involved in ownership. He said he began the learning process before hanging up his spikes.
“I live in Tampa. I’ve been at that [Yankees] minor league complex learning as much as I could,” Jeter said, adding that he couldn’t simply retire to a life of golf and leisure. “I don’t miss playing the game, but I miss being part of a team. … We have an opportunity to help grow this game. That’s what I wanted to do.”
Before getting the tour in 2014, Jeter’s only experience at Marlins Park was when the Yankees played two exhibitions there just before the ballpark’s inaugural season in 2012.
Sunday he watched the season finale from a luxury suite along with new chairman Bruce Sherman and others in the investor group.
Men behind the money
Sherman, 69, a retired money manager who lives in Naples, revealed little about his motivation in becoming the principal owner but repeatedly expressed enthusiasm for the challenge of turning around the fortunes of the franchise.
“I just saw that Jeffrey was selling the team and I made a call. I met Derek right away. It’s been a long journey, four or five months,” Sherman said. “Now the fun aspects of the baseball will start. We have a lot of work to do.”
While Sherman reportedly contributed at least $400 million to the purchase, he offered little about others involved in the $1.2 billion transaction. He did say the group include individuals from Latin America.
“None of them really seek celebrity or seek being in the newspaper,” Sherman said. “It’s a good group – 10, 12, 14 is not totally relevant. What’s important is their energy levels and their commitment. Almost all of them were at the game on Sunday.”
Few details
Jeter said it was too soon to say whether there will be changes made to the branding of the franchise, including logo and uniforms, or any significant alterations to the ballpark.
He did say that reports he wanted to remove the kitschy home run sculpture were false.
Gonzalez gets interview
Third-base coach Fredi Gonzalez will interview for the vacant manager’s job with the Detroit Tigers, a source confirmed to the Sun Sentinel. Gonzalez has 10 years of managing experience with the Marlins and Braves.
Race may return
Negotiations are progressing to bring the Race of Champions back to Marlins Park in December 2018, according to Claude Delorme, Marlins vice president of operations and events.
The ROC featured 20 top drivers from various motor racing circuits competing on a temporary track inside the ballpark this past January. The unique event received favorable reviews but attendance was spotty, drawing 28,618 over two days.