Jose Fernandez rumors: Marlins players denying wanting Fernandez to lose

The Miami Marlins and Jose Fernandez have reportedly been at odds this offseason, as rumors swirl about the odds of the ace being potentially traded from the team. Fernandez himself has had no comment on his potential trade issues, and rightfully so; there is no benefit to either side for Fernandez to make comments on this. However, that has not stepped a number of former and current Marlins from chiming in to support Fernandez. Scott Miller of Bleacher Report discussed this in a recent article.

In this winter's avalanche of rumors surrounding Fernandez's attitude and desire to be traded from the Marlins, retired pitcher Dan Haren, who started last season in Miami's rotation before being dealt to the Cubs at midseason, finds at least that last part impossible to believe.

"No way," Haren told Bleacher Report. "No way. A lot of those things in [Slater's] article were actually right. But at least from a pitcher's standpoint, there's no way anybody was on the bench rooting for Jose to get hit."

Haren said a lot of points in that original Slater article were right, but that Fernandez's teammates were always in support of him when he was on the mound. Similarly, current Marlins starter Tom Koehler hand encouraging words to say on Fernandez.

"That's ridiculous," Koehler told Bleacher Report. "Why would you want your teammate to do poorly? It reflects on everybody. You play to win. If you root for your best pitcher to lose? It doesn't make sense."

Again, this seems to note that Marlins teammates are in full support of Fernandez while he is on the mound. However, it does little to detract the possibility that Fernandez is being more difficult to deal with in the clubhouse. Miller's article sites Marlins sources saying that Fernandez is being more blunt with the front office and speaking out against superiors in the organization.

All of this is to say that Fernandez has his issues, and they seem to have grown over the last few months with a front office that wants to keep him. It is hard to blame Fernandez, who is probably upset that the Marlins are worrying about potentially trading him (mostly due to their own stubborn misplay of promoting him too early in 2013). At the same time, if Fernandez has been more brazen with management, you can understand the Marlins' concern as well, above and beyond the team's desire to save money and extract value when they can with Fernandez.

Ultimately, this saga with Fernandez will be determined within the coming year, and like the situation with Giancarlo Stanton before him, it will depend on whether he is willing to stay long term with the team. Remember, Stanton was outspoken about the Marlins' situation as well, and he may have inadvertently played a role in getting former manager Mike Redmond fired with his commentary to the media. However, he also wanted to stay in Miami and was willing to play ball with the team, and that earned him a mammoth contract that could set him for life or yield even greater value in the future. The team ultimately was happy to sign Giancarlo Stanton to a long-term deal.

The same will have to occur with Fernandez. Even if he were the most outstanding teammate on the planet, he and Scott Boras would have to be willing to stay for the Marlins to avoid an eventual trade. Similarly, he could be among the rudest or most difficult clubhouse folks, but if he wants to stay in Miami, the Marlins will do it for the right price. It will ultimately come down to price, and given that Scott Boras is on Fernandez's side, Marlins fans should prepare for eventually seeing him leave.