MIAMI – A new era in Miami Marlins history began Tuesday as soon-to-be Hall of Famer Derek Jeter and businessman Bruce Sherman were introduced as the team's new owners.
The new ownership group officially took over the reins from Jeffrey Loria, who owned the team since 2002, on Monday after completing the sale for just over $1 billion.
In his opening comments, Jeter didn't mince words about South Florida being the place he wanted to call home.
"To Miami, you know, we believe in this market," Jeter said. "We believe in the fan base. We are focused on brining the fans back. We want to build an organization that's sustainable over time."
Jeter said the fans are the team's No. 1 priority.
But now the hard work begins as Jeter and Sherman must reverse years of mismanagement and fan apathy.
"We know we have a lot of work ahead of us," Sherman said.
Despite his heroics as the captain of the New York Yankees, Jeter said he always wanted to be a baseball owner and is ready to dive into the job and be a hands-on owner.
"This is a whole other beast," the 14-time Major League Baseball All-Star said. "It's going to take some time to learn."
The new owners have already made their presence felt, letting go of many on the team's baseball operations staff, as well as fan favorites such as "Mr. Marlin," Jeff Conine.
As far as the Marlins manager, Jeter said he spoke with his old Yankees teammate Don Mattingly, but told him to enjoy the offseason with his family.
Jeter would not go much further in revealing his exact plans to resuscitate the moribund franchise, but promises there will be no fire sale.
"Every decision that we make is for the betterment of this organization," Jeter said. "So we have that in mind, but the word 'tear down' or 'rebuild,' yeah, we are rebuilding a franchise, but I think a lot of times people associate those words with losing. … We're rebuilding it."
Of course, tough decisions will undoubtedly need to made need during the rebuild, which may include the future of Marlins All-Star Giancarlo Stanton in South Florida.
Jeter said the slugger had an "unbelievable season" in 2017 when he hit 59 home runs, but that he doesn't know Stanton very well.
A baseball icon for over decade, Jeter said retirement from the game and walking into the sunset was not what he had in mind.
"I like competing. Competition is key," Jeter said. "I like to be a part of teams. … I don't miss playing the game, but I miss being part of the team."
Short of details, perhaps the most important statement made by Jeter and Sherman was something the Loria organization always shunned.
"I come from an organization that does a very good job of taking care of their players, and I think that's important," Jeter said. "You know, we want this to be an organization where the players want to come play, employees want to come work here and, more importantly, fans want to come watch games here. So I think you take care of your players and you take care of your fans."