Derek Jeter already getting booed by Miami sports fans

It didn’t take long for the court of public opinion to decide it didn’t like Derek Jeter. After only a few short weeks in office, Miami Marlins fans are booing him.

The Miami Marlins new owner was going to be greeted with fanfare. After years of toiling to root for a team under the oppressive rule of Jeffery Loria, it was hard to imagine his successor being anything but revered.

When that replacement became Derek Jeter, it was the kind of slam-dunk hiring Miami fans could have only dreamed of. Considered the anti-Loria by many, winning baseball in South Florida never seemed so real.

It took all of a few weeks to decide Derek Jeter is a bad guy.

Jeter was in attendance at the American Airlines Arena on Sunday night. The Miami Heat were facing the defending champion Golden State Warriors. Sometime around the third quarter, Derek Jeter came up on the jumbotron in the arena. He was booed.

Miami sports fans booed him. Not all of them, but enough to hear them on television. It was funny, in a sad kind of way.

Why the harsh attitude?

Jeter has drawn a lot of criticism in the early stages of his ownership. Giancarlo Stanton won’t be a Miami Marlin next season, which doesn’t sit well with the fanbase. Add the clumsy dismissal of Jack McKeon, Jeff Conine, Rich Waltz, and Preston Wilson on top of that.

Reports suggest Jeter is a heartless business-of-baseball machine.

Mr. November was none too popular after he reportedly let go of a scout in the midst of dealing with serious medical issues.

Miami Marlins GM simulation: Second trade in (fake) hot stoveIt didn’t take long for the tide to turn on Jeter. But the criticism is blown out of proportion. While not totally without reason, it says more about the Miami fanbase than anything else.

Miami Marlins fans are a damaged ex-boyfriend/girlfriend

Marlins fans have had a textbook unhealthy throughout their history. They’ve suffered through years of torment and abuse, punctuated a couple of times by extreme moments of joy.

Marlins fans are always looking for a reason to be upset, and if they get one, they won’t let it go. Jeter has given people enough a reason to be upset, even if what he is doing is necessary.

Never mind the fact that anyone who came in as owner would have to do the same thing. The team is looking to build organization depth, and that means some unpopular decisions.

Marlins fans will still come around if the team starts winning. But for now, they’re going to boo Jeter when they see him, because it’s what they’ve always done; boo the owner of the team. It’s sad, and it should stop, but it won’t.