In a heartfelt and emotionally raw statement before Tuesday night’s game, Miami Marlins star Jazz Chisholm Jr. revealed that he is mourning the unexpected loss of his beloved grandmother — the woman he credits for igniting his love of baseball.
“She was my first fan, my biggest cheerleader, and the reason I ever picked up a bat,” Chisholm said, his voice trembling. “This isn’t just about baseball tonight. This is about honoring someone who gave me everything when I had nothing.”
According to sources close to the family, Jazz’s grandmother had been battling an undisclosed illness in the Bahamas — a struggle Chisholm had kept private as he continued to play with his trademark energy and smile. But behind that signature swag was a grandson quietly carrying the weight of a looming goodbye.
The loss has clearly shaken the 26-year-old star, who took to Instagram just hours after his announcement, posting an old photo of him as a child in his grandmother’s arms. The caption read simply:
“I made it, Grandma. I just wish you were here to see it. I’ll play every inning for you now.”
Fans, fellow players, and coaches flooded the post with messages of love and support. Even rival teams held a moment of silence in tribute, a rare but meaningful gesture across the league.
Chisholm still suited up for the game that night, hitting a double in his first at-bat and pointing toward the sky as he stood on second base. There were no bat flips, no dances — just a man playing with purpose.
“Grief doesn’t always wait for the offseason,” one Marlins staffer said. “But Jazz — he’s showing all of us what it means to turn pain into passion.”
Raised in Nassau, Bahamas, Jazz Chisholm often speaks of his grandmother, Patricia Coakley, as the heart of his childhood. A former national softball player herself, she taught Jazz the fundamentals of the game and the resilience that now defines his style.
“She always told me, ‘Play loud, play proud, and play like you belong,’” Chisholm once said in an interview. “Even when no one believed in me, she did.”
Though the game will go on, Jazz Chisholm’s season now carries deeper meaning. Each stolen base, each smile, and each swing will be a silent tribute to the woman who first handed him a glove.
Because in the end — “family is everything.”