The Marlins say they are “devastated by the tragic loss of José Fernández. At this hard time, our prayers are with his mother, grandmother, family and friends”. That start, along with many other great ones, helped Fernandez win the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
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“He was one of our game’s great young stars who made a dramatic impact on and off the field since his debut in 2013”.
Beyond the impressive numbers he compiled in his brief career, Fernandez brought excitement to the Marlins’ new ballpark that opened in 2012 in Little Havana, where the ball club has struggled to rebuild a fan base after years of controversy and disappointment. He posted a 12-6 record with a 2.19 ERA on a Marlins team that lost 100 games that season.
Born in Santa Clara, Cuba, Fernandez became a United States citizen past year. “I’m ready for where this journey is gonna take us together”.
“I feel like he’s up there in heaven teaching all the other kids and players to show what he experienced and that he had his dream come true”, Llanes said.
An official from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission told reporters that Fernandez was with two friends when the 32-foot SeaVee that they were traveling in hit rocks and capsized during a boating trip.
“I’ve never met anyone who extracted more joy, more passion out of what he did than Jose Fernandez”, baseball analyst Buster Olney said on ESPN.
The Marlins canceled their Sunday game against the Atlanta Braves in order to help Fernandez’s teammates begin to cope with the loss.
“The first thing I thought of when I got to the locker room and saw it on TV was that he’s my age”, linebacker Jelani Jenkins said.
The game Monday will be played as scheduled, the Marlins said.
At least two fellow Cuban-born baseball players, Yasiel Puig of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Yoenis Cespedes of the New York Mets, paid tribute to Fernandez by hanging his team jersey in their dugouts before Sunday games.
“Deep in our hearts there is a lot of pain”, Miami third baseman Martin Prado said.
Felipe Zwanzger, 18, of Doral, was carrying a cutout of Fernandez and a signed baseball.
At Marlins Park, a graphic featuring Fernandez’s No. 16 overtook every screen.
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The contingent of Cuban players in the majors is a tight-knit group, and they often share their own personal struggles of growing up under a dictatorship.
