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1 posts from January 2016

January 18, 2016

Longtime sportswriter Juan C. Rodriguez passes away after three-year battle with brain cancer

            Juan Rodriguez, the Miami Marlins beat writer for the Sun Sentinel and a former Miami Herald sportswriter, passed away Monday after a three-year long battle with brain cancer.

            Rodriguez worked for The Herald and the Florida Today in Melbourne before joining the Sun Sentinel in July 2002.

Marlins President David Samson took a moment during Monday’s press conference to announce Dee Gordon’s contract extension to express the team’s condolences to Rodriguez’s family.

            “I’d be remiss if we didn’t mention today that we’re here with heavy hearts as we remember Juan Rodriguez,” Samson said. “He was a great man. We are thinking about his wife, Tiffany, his kids, Laura and Ryan. I just wanted to say that I hope Juan is in a better place now and our thoughts are with his wife and his family.”

            Rodriguez collapsed while covering the MLB Winter Meetings in Nashville in December of 2012 and was later diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. Rodriguez underwent several months of chemotherapy and eventually a number of surgeries to eradicate the original and additional tumors that developed following his original diagnosis.

            Born in Madrid, Spain, Rodriguez grew up in New York City and McAllen, Texas before his family moved to Miami in 1985. He graduated from the University of Minnesota.

Rodriguez is survived by his wife, Tiffany, and their two young children Laura and Ryan.

            A fundraiser was set up to help Rodriguez’s family help cover their medical expenses during Rodriguez’s fight with cancer.

If you would like to contribute, here’s the link to donate:

https://www.youcaring.com/juan-rodriguez-and-family-429305#.Vp1Pwsgv-2Q.twitter