Former Marlins Owner Still Very Mad Derek Jeter Removed Ugly Fish Sculpture From

It’s been six years since Jeffery Loria sold the Miami Marlins for $1.2 billion to a New York-based ownership group that included Derek Jeter. It seems he has regrets beyond how much more he could’ve made by sitting on the franchise for another five years.

In an interview with the Miami Herald, Loria slammed Jeter for what he did to LoanDepot Park, home of the Marlins, when the longtime New York Yankees shortstop was still CEO. It seems his biggest beef was Jeter removing the massive, colorful, fish-adorned, ugly home run sculpture that used to decorate center field.

In case you need a refresher:

And here’s what Loria said, per USA Today:

“Jeter came in and destroyed the ballpark,” Loria said in an interview with the Miami Herald that published Monday, before adding that “destroying public art was a horrible thing to do.”

Jeter’s ownership group was able to relocate the sculpture outside of the stadium, in a plaza on the grounds.

“Now it will rot outside where it is, condemned to neglect and outdoor decay,” Loria told the Herald.

Loria had further complaints about the new ownership taking all the fun coloring he imported from Europe out of the stadium, essentially claiming they were robbing the park of the culture of Miami in the process. And, to an extent, he might have a point.

But the sculpture … well, it’s a lot of things. It doesn’t feel very Miami, though. It feels like a very much like a wealthy person’s idea of Miami. And I, for one, am glad it is gone.