MIAMI -- Not a day goes by when Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria doesn't think about Jose Fernandez. And with the MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard taking place at Marlins Park, Loria spoke of what might have been.
After Fernandez, who was killed in a boating accident last September, pitched in the 2016 All-Star Game, many began speculating that the energetic right-hander would start for the National League in this year's Midsummer Classic.
"No doubt that he would have been an All-Star," Loria told a group of reporters on Tuesday afternoon. "He would have found a way to be the starter. The last five starts would have probably been one-hit. He would have forced the issue."
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Asked how often he thinks about Fernandez, Loria said, "Every day. Every single day."
Fernandez's locker has been preserved in the corner of the Marlins' clubhouse, which was the home clubhouse for the National League on Tuesday. Carlos Martinez of the Cardinals had his locker next to Fernandez's, and across the way was Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw.
Loria spoke a few minutes with the media, and did not offer comment on the potential sale of the Marlins.
"I don't have any comment about that," he said, adding no deal has been reached. "No comment. I don't even think about it."
Asked if he intends to sell the club, he added, "At some point, maybe. Everybody sells something, maybe."
Loria, who has owned the Marlins since 2002, said that bringing the All-Star Game to Miami had long been his goal.
"The All-Star Game was an important thing for me because of the credibility for the city," he said. "The city has always been No. 1 on my mind."
The Marlins were well represented at the All-Star Game, with Marcell Ozuna voted by the fans to start in the outfield. Giancarlo Stanton was selected as a reserve, and started as the designated hitter.
Stanton and Justin Bour participated in Monday's T-Mobile Home Run Derby, won by Aaron Judge of the Yankees.
"I think we're represented very well," Loria said. "I would have liked to see [catcher J.T. Realmuto] be added to the roster, but I don't make those decisions. Stanton certainly belongs, Ozuna belongs. Bour, I guess now everybody in America knows who he is. Very charismatic guy."