Derek Jeter could end up running the Miami Marlins if the future Hall of Famer could team up with a mystery bidder for the franchise, Fox Business reported Thursday.
Jeter had expressed interest in bidding on the club but admitted to Fox Business that he was well short of the raising enough money for his $1.3 billion bid. The former New York Yankee has said he was willing to put in $20 million of his own money in the effort.
The mystery bidder was brought up during a meeting between the Marlins and Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred. Another bidder, hedge fund investor Tagg Romney, the son of 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, is struggling to come up with bid money as well, Fox Business said.
"Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria has great affection for Jeter and would be very receptive to selling him the team if Jeter can get his finances in order, but also hasn't ruled out selling the team to a group led by Massachusetts' businessman Tagg Romney," noted Miami Herald reporter Barry Jackson.
"Asked why Romney didn't get a Manhattan meeting with the Marlins and Manfred, one MLB source said Jeter is further along in the process," Jackson continued.
Fox Business wrote that the mystery bidder has been depicted as a South Florida businessman who has the assets to meet requirements from Major League Baseball and could purchase the club without incurring much debt.
The unnamed bidder has talked about purchasing the team for $900 million to $1 billion, which is less than bids from Jeter and Romney, noted Fox Business. Manfred said, according to Fox Business, that the bidder could buy the franchise and team up with Jeter, who would run it.
Jeter had originally teamed with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush to purchase the Marlins, but Bush dropped out of the process last month, according to Forbes.
"The question is now what will Jeter do? It was clear when he joined together with Bush that the requisite amount of cash needed to finalize the deal was not available to him," noted Forbes contributor Maury Brown. "Due to MLB’s debt rules, the amount of cash in the deal could be 50 percent or a staggering $650 million."