MIAMI -- Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria reportedly has reached an agreement to sell the club to a group led by former Yankees great Derek Jeter and Bruce Sherman, a New York-based financier, according to a report from MLB Network insider Ken Rosenthal. The Miami Herald first reported the deal.
The sale would reportedly be for $1.2 billion, and under new ownership, Sherman would be the "control person," with Jeter becoming CEO. Michael Jordan is also a member of the purchasing group, according to the Herald's report. 
The Marlins have not confirmed the reports.
Sherman grew up in Queens, N.Y., and was the co-founder of Private Capital Management, based in Naples, Fla. He has long been a fan of the Marlins. Jeter is reportedly contributing $25 million to the purchase.
Before Miami faced the Rockies on Friday night at Marlins Park, manager Don Mattingly spoke generally of Jeter, the person, the player and potential leader of a franchise.
"I can always talk about Derek," said Mattingly, who played his entire career for the Yankees. "Derek is easy to talk about. He's someone I've known since he first stepped onto a Major League Spring Training. Derek has been successful in everything he's tried to do.
"What Derek has been able to do in his career, who he is as a person, there's nothing in it that leads you to believe he's not going to be successful, as far as really anything he wants to do."
Video: COL@MIA: Jeter group close to purchasing the Marlins
The Marlins announced at the start of Spring Training that Loria was open to selling the team he has owned since 2002.
In recent months, several groups have been connected to purchasing the club, including South Florida billionaire Jorge Mas; Tagg Romney, son of Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and 2012 Republican Party presidential hopeful; and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush. At one point, Bush and Jeter joined forces.
Sources have told MLB.com that Loria's preference from the start of the process was to sell to a group that included Jeter.
The franchise won its second World Series title in 2003, beating Jeter and the Yankees in six games. The Marlins have not been to the playoffs since that season, and the organization has not had a winning year since '09.
The foremost challenge for the next ownership group would be determining which direction the franchise should head. One key question would be whether to rebuild or to try to build around a talented core that includes Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna, Christian Yelich and J.T. Realmuto.