Jeb Bush no longer in running to buy Miami Marlins

The race to buy the Miami Marlins has seen its first dropout, as Jeb Bush has apparently backed away from the table.

Steven Wine of the Associated Press first broke the story, which has since been tackled by the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson. I’m sure there will be something snarky from the national pundits before the close of business.  In any event, when it comes to the business of running the Miami Marlins, rule the former Florida governor out.

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What exactly this means for the overall sale of team going forward is anyone’s guess. Of the two primary groups that have been battling, only the Bush-Jeter group has been reported as giving any indication as to the direction they wanted to go in terms of running the team. That direction seemed to be rebuild, so fans of the current core might find themselves breathing easier this evening. However, it would also appear that it is just Bush that is out, and not the “group” itself. That means the Sixth Borough, as Miami is often tragically called, still could have The Captain running the ship. So if Derek Jeter shared those start from scratch sentiments, this could still be end of team as we know it.

Of course, Team Romney-Glavine could be planning the same approach. The only reason I think they’d be more likely to infuse cash into the Marlins is the presence of former Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart. If he thought giving Zach Grienke $206 million was a good idea, it’s hard to see him having a problem with paying Jake Arrieta this offseason.

At first glance, the defection of Bush could be read as a sign that all talks are crumbling. Perhaps that even no sale at all might ultimately take place. In my opinion though, I’m actually taking the opposite approach. I’d be inclined to read this as a sign that a sale is imminent.

Next: Jeff Locke gets start on Thursday

If we finally hit the point where the powers that be in the MLB were starting to really look closely at the finances, it stands to reason talks have progressed past where they’ve been idling since the season began.