Miami Marlins

The recent trend of people spending tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars on a wide range of sports-memorabilia items continued Saturday when Darren Rovell of The Action Network reported a bidder paid $36,000 for a baseball signed by an eight-year-old Derek Jeter, who would grow up and become the New York Yankees shortstop for 20 years.

The baseball is also signed by some of Jeter's former Little League teammates.

As Rovell noted, a recent "memorabilia bump" has taken place. That bump is perhaps best characterized by someone paying $922,500 for a rookie card of Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout, per Daniel Roberts of Yahoo Finance.

Goldin Auctions CEO Ken Goldin provided a theory as to why the card and memorabilia markets have "increased exponentially since the lockdown," in his words to Roberts.

"Because a lot of wealthy people don't have anything to spend their money on. A lot of them pulled their money out of the stock market and they want hard assets... It's been on an upward trajectory for the past several years—the modern card market started taking off with six-figure numbers in 2015—but the past six months have been unbelievable. And the past three months have just been shocking."

The memorabilia boom extends past cards and typical items: Per Rovell, someone just paid $19,500 for a $15,000 wire slip that Michael Jordan signed in 1998, made out to Trump Indiana, Inc. to acquire some money to gamble at Donald Trump's old casino in Gary, Indiana.

As for Jeter, the shortstop won five World Series and was a first-ballot Hall of Famer as part of the class of 2019. He is the Miami Marlins' CEO these days, in addition to being a part-owner of the franchise.

The ex-Bronx Bomber played Little League ball in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where he grew up and graduated high school. The Yankees took him with the sixth overall pick in the 1992 MLB draft. He had a cup of coffee in the big leagues in 1995 before becoming the Yanks' full-time starting shortstop in 1996.

The 14-time All-Star finished his career with 3,465 hits, which ranks sixth all-time.

The Miami Marlins plan to furlough about 40 percent of their baseball operations department amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal.

The furloughs will likely total between 90 and 100 employees and begin June 1. Rosenthal added that more MLB teams are expected to furlough employees.

Rosenthal first reported April 19 that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred was suspending Uniform Employee Contracts starting May 1 with the 2020 season on hold. That allowed teams to cut employee pay or initiate any furloughs.

The decision is at the discretion of individual franchises, so teams have taken a variety of steps in response to the pandemic.

The Athletic's Dennis Lin reported the San Diego Padres were cutting the pay for their baseball operations department to proactively avoid any furloughs or layoffs. Corey Brock of The Athletic reported the Seattle Mariners made a similar move.

The Philadelphia Phillies and Detroit Tigers have signaled to their employees as well they weren't expecting to make any reductions to their staff.

MLB has yet to finalize a date by which it will start the regular season.

USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported team owners approved a plan and forwarded it to the MLB Players Association. Under the proposal, players would begin training in early June ahead of a possible July 1 Opening Day.

However, the owners are seeking a 50-50 revenue split with players rather than paying them prorated salaries, which is shaping up to be a difficult hurdle to overcome.

Before he was reportedly interested in the process of buying the New York Mets, former Major League Baseball player Alex Rodriguez apparently attempted to buy the Miami Marlins. 

According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, Rodriguez "made a mostly under the radar try to buy his hometown Marlins" around the same time an ownership group that included his former teammate Derek Jeter landed the team.

Rodriguez partnered with New York businessman Wayne Rothbaum of Quogue Capital at the time, and Heyman said it is unknown if Rothbaum is interested in the Mets.

Heyman also noted Miami businessman Jorge Mas declined an offer from Rodriguez to partner in an effort to land the Mets.

This comes after Scott Soshnick of Variety reported Rodriguez and fiancee Jennifer Lopez "retained JPMorgan Chase to raise capital for a possible bid" for the National League East team.

Soshnick explained the potential opportunity for Rodriguez and others arose after the Wilpon family's attempts to sell up to 80 percent of the team to Steve Cohen fell apart when the family wanted to maintain control of the Mets for five years.

In February, Thornton McEnery of the New York Post reported Rodriguez was "the newest name to emerge as a potential suitor to buy the Mets."

As for Jeter, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported in 2017 the New York Yankees legend contributed $25 million to the efforts of the ownership group led by New York businessman Bruce Sherman that bought the Marlins.

According to Spotrac, Rodriguez made an estimated earnings in salary of more than $424 million during his playing career on the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and Yankees.

The next ownership group will be tasked with turning around the franchise that has made the playoffs just five times since 1988.

Miami Marlins CEO Derek Jeter is forgoing his salary and continuing to pay his baseball operations staff their full salaries through May 31 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Craig Mish of SportsGrid and Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald.  

Per McPherson, "Jeter has been in constant communication with his executive team and all members of the Marlins organization since MLB put its season on an indefinite hold. 'This is unprecedented times,' Jeter said on the Marlins' Beyond the Bases podcast on April 8. 'It's better to overcommunicate.'"

As for other measures the Marlins are taking in the community, they also set aside $1 million for various employees at Marlins Park who would have been working in March and April. 

And they started the Home Plate Relief Fund to aid in food distribution throughout Liberty City and Little Havana and donated over a thousand articles of clothing to World Red Eye, which is using the materials to produce masks during the coronavirus pandemic.

Jeter released a statement regarding those initiatives:

"This is the community's team. In times of need, we want to be there for our community. We're trying to do that to the best of our abilities and we'll continue to try to do that. We want to be there for our community. We need to abide by the guidelines. No group gatherings. Stay inside. Wash your hands. We'll continue to do our part, and we look forward to seeing everyone at the park sooner rather than later."

Jeter is also a minority owner of the organization. Alongside his $5 million salary as the CEO, Jeter has an incentive in his contract that kicks in every year he makes the Marlins profitable. 

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported in 2018 the bonus would pay Jeter "$2 million in 2018, $1.7 million in 2019, $1.1 million in 2020, $2 million in 2021 and $2 million in 2022."

The Miami Marlins have added pressure to entertain their fans at Marlins Park now that the stadium's left-field Clevelander nightclub, complete with a swimming pool, DJs and dancers, has closed. 

"We are excited about the future use and potential of the field-level space as a fan destination within Marlins Park for a wide variety of audiences," Adam Jones, Miami's chief revenue officer, said about the decision in a statement released Thursday.

This is the newest change for Marlins Park since Derek Jeter took over as the franchise's chief executive officer. In October 2018, it was announced that the seven-story "Homer" sculpture would be relocated from center field to outside of the ballpark. 

"Public art is protected in the county, and the Marlins argued that the sculpture can be enjoyed more in a public place, rather than only by ticket-buying fans," MLB.com's Chad Thornburg explained at the time.

The Marlins should be more concerned about how many fans come out to Marlins Park for home games rather than what amenities they have to choose from. Miami ranked last in attendance last season at 10,016 fans per game.

The Marlins' 2020 regular-season campaign will open March 26 when the Philadelphia Phillies visit Marlins Park.

The Miami Marlins have added some experience to the lineup with the reported signing of catcher Francisco Cervelli, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

The one-year deal will reportedly be worth $2 million.  

The 33-year-old has spent parts of 12 years in the majors, splitting last season between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. He also played seven years with the New York Yankees to begin his career.

Though Cervelli made a minimal offensive impact this past year with Pittsburgh with a .193 batting average and .526 OPS in 34 games before being released, he came up big for Atlanta during its run up to the playoffs.

In 14 appearances, the veteran came through with .281 average and 1.066 OPS, including five doubles and two home runs.

It's a small sample size, but he has shown he can get hot at the plate.

Meanwhile, Cervelli is best known as a quality defensive catcher who was worth two defensive runs saved in limited playing time last season, per Fangraphs. He has saved 15 runs behind the plate during his career. 

Marlins starting catcher Jorge Alfaro was responsible for negative-four runs saved, per Fangraphs. 

Alfaro will still likely get the majority of starts as the better hitter with 18 home runs last year, but Cervelli provides the team with a reliable backup behind the plate and a veteran presence for an otherwise young team.

The Miami Marlins are reportedly looking to add a veteran catcher to their lineup heading into the 2020 season.

According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, the National League East team is "working to try to sign" Francisco Cervelli, who used to play with part-owner Derek Jeter on the New York Yankees.  

Heyman suggested Cervelli "should be a terrific influence for the young team assuming they get it done."

While Miami traded J.T. Realmuto to the Philadelphia Phillies prior to the 2019 campaign, Jorge Alfaro was solid behind the plate last season with a .262 batting average, 18 home runs and 57 RBI. The 26-year-old is likely the best long-term option on the team, but Cervelli is familiar with Jeter and would provide a playoff-tested presence to the clubhouse.

He would be a step down from Alfaro offensively, though, considering he slashed .213/.302/.348 with three home runs and 12 RBI over 48 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves in 2019. 

Cervelli has played more than 104 games just once in his 12-season career and would surely be a rotational player at best for the Marlins.

Considering Miami hasn't made the playoffs since the 2003 season, they could use more talented role players as they look to compete in the NL East.

The Miami Marlins have reportedly agreed to a deal with three-time All-Star Matt Kemp, adding depth to their outfield mix.

Per USA Today's Bob Nightengale, Kemp received a minor league contract from the Marlins that includes an invitation to spring training with the MLB club.

The Marlins have been searching the free-agent market for outfielders who can help them.

MLB Network's Jon Heyman reported last week that Miami was looking for an "impact bat" and met with Yasiel Puig during the winter meetings, as well as agents for Avisail Garcia and Corey Dickerson.

Garcia has since signed a two-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers. Puig and Kemp were logical targets for the Marlins given their history with Miami manager Don Mattingly, who managed both with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Kemp, 35, is attempting to rebuild his value coming off a disappointing 2019 season. He hit .200/.210/.283 in 20 games with the Cincinnati Reds before being released May 4. The 2011 National League MVP runner-up signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets on May 24 but was released July 12 without being called up.

If Kemp makes the 25-man roster out of spring training, the Marlins will hope he returns to his 2018 form when he had an .818 OPS in 146 games. Their outfield hit a collective .231/.293/.360 with 43 homers last season.

The Miami Marlins reportedly met with free-agent outfielder Yasiel Puig this week during the 2019 Baseball Winter Meetings in San Diego. 

Jon Heyman of the MLB Network reported the update Friday and noted the Marlins also held discussions with representatives for fellow outfielders Avisail Garcia and Corey Dickerson.

Puig played three seasons under Miami manager Don Mattingly while both were with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2013 through 2015. His best statistical season came as a rookie in 2013 when he posted a .925 OPS with 19 home runs and 11 stolen bases in just 104 appearances.

The 29-year-old Cuba native split the 2019 season between the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians, who acquired him ahead of the trade deadline in July. He compiled a .267/.327/.458 triple-slash line with 24 homers and 19 steals in 149 games.

He thanked Cleveland for the opportunity after the regular season ended in September:

Although Puig has started to garner a reputation as a hothead for his involvement in on-field fights, which has led to seven games worth of suspensions and nearly $290,000 in fines (via Spotrac), he's bounced back from a 2015-16 lull to provide his clubs with an offensive boost.

In all, the 2014 All-Star ranks 21st among qualified MLB outfielders in WAR (18.0) since making his debut in 2013, per FanGraphs.

That type of production would be a welcome sight for a Marlins offense that finished 29th in runs scored (615) and last in team OPS (.673) in 2019.

Both Dickerson (.906 OPS last season) and Garcia (.796) would also help a Miami club that's lagging behind in the ultra-competitive NL East.

The Miami Marlins acquired Jonathan Villar from the Baltimore Orioles for minor league pitcher Easton Lucas, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro.

Coming off a 108-loss season and with little reason to expect significant improvement in 2020, the Orioles placed Villar on waivers last week.

Villar is the second notable addition for Miami, as the team added veteran first baseman Jesus Aguilar, who had been placed on waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Marlins received criticism when the first piece of business from their new ownership group was tearing down a roster that included Giancarlo Stanton, Dee Gordon, Marcell Ozuna and Christian Yelich.

Although these moves don't radically transform the roster, they point to a willingness from Miami to start investing back in the team.

Villar enjoyed a career year in 2019, hitting 24 home runs and finishing with a .274/.339/.453 slash line. He finished 18th in the American League in WAR (4.0), per FanGraphs.

The 28-year-old provides the Marlins with some defensive flexibility as well since he can play second base or shortstop and has some experience at third.

Following a breakout 2018 in which he made the National League All-Star team, Aguilar fell back to earth this past year. He slugged .389 between his time with the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay, which was down from .539 from the season prior.

The Marlins are obviously counting on a return to form for Aguilar.

Miami went 57-105, so it will need to do a lot more in order to mount a playoff challenge in 2020. The front office probably isn't counting on Villar and Aguilar to put the team in position for the postseason.

If everything works out, the Marlins will have two valuable trade chips, which would net them a valuable prospect or two as they continue their rebuild.