Derek Jeter Might’ve Been a Better Executive Than We All Thought

In 2017, Derek Jeter secured a four percent stake in the Miami Marlins franchise and was ultimately named the team CEO. This meant that controlling owner Bruce Sherman would entrust Jeter to oversee the day-to-day operations of the team. During his five seasons as CEO, Jeter’s Marlins only appeared in the postseason once during the COVID shortened 2020 season. The Marlins also finished fourth or fifth in four of those seasons. However, this year’s much improved Marlins team has Jeter’s fingerprints all over it. I believe Derek Jeter was a much better executive than we all initially thought.

Prior to Jeter’s arrival, the Miami Marlins were a team that was directionless under owner Jeffrey Loria and team president David Samson. The farm system was one of baseball’s worst, Miami hadn’t had a winning season since 2009, they hadn’t been to the postseason since 2003, Miami had ten different managers in 14 seasons, most of the payroll was tied up in Giancarlo Stanton’s contract, and worst of all the city had been alienated for years by Loria and Samson. Jeter was inheriting a mess that would take years to fully clean up and big changes would be needed.

Yet Another Fire Sale but Some Future Core Players Were Acquired

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In 2018, Jeter emptied out just about everyone from the Loria ownership including team president David Samson. It should be noted that Samson still seems bitter about this on his podcast despite saying otherwise. He after all occasionally still takes shots at Jeter for how he ran the Marlins. I can confidently say that the Marlins are in a much better place after Jeter fired Samson.

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Later in 2018, Jeter then initiated the fourth fire sale in franchise history. He proceeded to trade away stars Giancarlo Stanton, Dee Gordon, Marcell Ozuna, and Christian Yelich. As expected, Miami went from a sub-.500 team to a perennial last-place team. In Jeter’s first season, the Marlins finished in last place in the NL East with 98 losses. While not all the trades he made that season worked out, he was able to net future Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara and current starting first baseman Garrett Cooper.

More Trades in 2019 and More Core Players Acquired

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In 2019, Jeter continued flipping the franchise by trading away star catcher J.T. Realmuto. He would also trade away then-prospect Zac Gallen for another cornerstone in Jazz Chisholm. The Marlins ended up being progressively worse that season. They would go on to lose 105 games, their most since the 108-loss disaster in 1998. While there were fewer trades made, Jeter did sign international free-agent pitcher Eury Perez. Perez is currently the sixth-ranked player on baseball’s annual Top 100 Prospect list. Perez made his debut this season and has started seven games going 4-1 with an ERA of 1.80 with 36 strikeouts.

Surprise Playoff Appearance and a Great 2020 Draft

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The Marlins’ rebuild took an odd turn in 2020 due to COVID-19. The MLB season was shortened to 60 games and the minor leagues canceled their year. This meant that all the Marlins prospects’ development would be hindered due to being unable to get game action. However, despite many COVID cases within the team and constant roster shuffling, Miami made the playoffs for the first time since 2003. The Marlins won the Wild Card series against the Cubs before bowing out in the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves.

While no major trades occurred in 2020, Jeter and the Marlins had a fantastic draft. Miami drafted pitchers Max Meyer, Dax Fulton, and Jake Eder. All three of those pitchers are inside the top five on the Marlins prospect list. The only person they trail on the list is Eury Perez. All three of them will more than likely crack MLB’s top 100 prospect list next year.

More Trades and More Core Players Acquired

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The 2021 season saw the Marlins make more big trades. They traded stars, Starling Marte and Adam Duvall. In return, they received another franchise cornerstone Bryan De La Cruz, and also a current starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo. However, one of Derek Jeter’s most important moves in 2021 was hiring Kim Ng to be the Marlins’ new General Manager. This made her the first woman to ever be a general manager in MLB history. Ng has done a great job at continuing to build on the foundation that Jeter has put in place.

He Didn’t Stay Long Enough to See His Vision Unfold

After disputes with team ownership over the direction of the team, Jeter resigned from the team during the 2022 lockout and sold off his ownership stake. Jeter reportedly wanted to sign then free agent outfielder Nick Castellanos but ownership didn’t want to spend the money. It’s unfortunate Jeter didn’t stay long enough to see the talent he acquired fully develop.

Derek Jeter Helped Put the Marlins in a Better Place

Miami never had a winning record in four of the five seasons Jeter ran the team. They made the playoffs in 2020 due to the season being so short. However, the impact that Jeter made can still be seen in the Marlins organization today. He turned the Marlins farm system into one of baseball’s best, gave the team direction, hired the first woman to be a GM, and acquired some of the core players and potential future stars.

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