Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez killed in boating crash

[BeyondGeography]

Last edited Sun Sep 25, 2016, 12:28 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: Miami Herald

Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez was killed early Sunday in a boating crash, according to a baseball source.

Fernandez, 24, was originally scheduled to start Sunday, in what have been his likely final outing of the season.

Fernandez was the team’s first-round draft pick in 2011, was the National League rookie of the year in 2013. He was finishing up on his finest season in the majors.

Edited to add photo of team in mourning at press conference:


Eduardo Perez remembrance:
http://screengrabber.deadspin.com/eduardo-perezs-jose-fernandez-remembrance-was-incredibl-1787056223

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/miami-beach/article104071446.html

[Baclava]

1. "The 30-foot boat they were on overturned after crashing into the rocks off Miami Beach"

Pilot error

RIP

[NightWatcher]

2. FUCK! This hits so hard. He fought so hard just to make it to America

[virgogal]

8. Why did he do that?

[NightWatcher]

9. Why did he defect from Cuba to play baseball in the USA?

[Bluzmann57]

13. because he saw a chance at freedom

And wealth doing something he loved and was good at. R.I.P. I heard he has a kid on the way. Very sad.

[virgogal]

21. They have mucho baseball in Cuba-----I guess he was a capitalist at heart

because of the money he could make here.

[GummyBearz]

25. Professional Cuban baseball fields are about as decent as my little league fields were

I did see one that was as nice as my HS field, with about the same amount of seating. I doubt the entirety of baseball in Cuba is worth what the boston red sox spend in any given season. If you are a top talent in the world at your profession, do you choose to work in a cubical for a jerk of a boss and low pay? Or do you choose to work at a top company, with a corner office that has views, for the pay your skills command?

Its amazing that this seems to be a hard choice for some to make... but then again, anyone choosing capitalism=evil to some

[BeyondGeography]

26. You know nothing about what he was at heart

[True Dough]

3. Tragic.

The kid had real talent on the mound. Could have been a Hall of Famer. And that's just baseball. The loss of life in any accident is sad. RIP.

[TheDebbieDee]

4. OMGosh! So sad! He was such a great hurler...

He was calm, he seemed cool and SO business-like for a young starter and I was developing quite a crush on this young man! RIP Mr. Fernandez...

[Islandurp]

5. Feeling sick to my stomach right now.

Loved watching him down here. RIP

[Sophiegirl]

6. OMG!!!

As an avid baseball fan, this is just devastating. Wonderfully talented young man.

So very sad.

[VMA131Marine]

7. Excessive speed, late at night....

I will be shocked if alcohol is not involved.

[alarimer]

24. In most boating accidents, it is.

It is illegal and there is some enforcement of it, but it still happens.

Boating is incredibly dangerous if you don't know what you are doing. And sometimes if you do. Add excessive speed and/or alcohol and it is a fatal combination. Add to that fact that most people do not wear life jackets, leading to needless, preventable deaths all the time.

It is tragic and it likely was entirely preventable.

[Bleacher Creature]

10. I audibly gasped when I turned on ESPN this morning.

Needless to say, that's not my usual reaction.

RIP

[StevieM]

11. Terrible news. He was so young and amazingly talented. He had a Cy Young or two ahead of him

in all likely hood.

The Marlins were slowly turning a corner and Fernandez was at the center of that comeback, along with Giancarlo Stanton.

Of course, the biggest loss here is the tragic passing of a young man at way too early a stage of his life.

[NightWatcher]

14. Jose tried 3 times unsuccessfully to flee Cuba before he finally made it.

Each time he was returned by the Coast Guard, he was imprisoned in Cuba. These three times happened before he was 16. Each of these times he knew all he had to do was survive to try again. On his last try, a member of his escape party fell overboard. Jose dove into the water and grabbed the person who turned out to be his mother and brought her back into the vessel.

In 2008, at the age of 16 and on his 4th attempt, he made it and soon enrolled in high school in Tampa. In 2011 he was drafted by the Marlins in the first round. In 2013 he was the NL Rookie of The Year and finished 3rd in the NL Cy Young voting. He was an All Star in 2013. He suffered elbow injury and underwent Tommy John surgery in late 2014, causing him to miss most of 2015 as well.

In April 2015 he became a US citizen at Marlins Park.

Six days ago he shared a picture of his pregnant girlfriend, with the quote
"I'm so glad you came into my life. I'm ready for where this journey is gonna take us together."

https://www.instagram.com/p/BKkAGyzAY68/

[Mc Mike]

15. There's big money made in sports betting.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/43026542/familes-of-tim-crews-steve-olin-persevere-20-years-after-tragic-deaths/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cliff_Young_(baseball)

[jmowreader]

16. Running hard without lights, right?

Back in July some idiot was out on Lake Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, running a ski boat wide open at night without lights...fortunately (?) he was running bow-high so when he hit the other boat he was launched into the air over it, so there were three fatalities (everyone in the run-over boat) rather than eight.

Don't boat at night.

[milestogo]

19. Don't boat without following safety rules

like using lights if you have to be out at night, staying sober, and wearing a PFD.

[Scurrilous]

17. Looks like they hit the jetty outside the Miami Beach marina.

[oberliner]

18. Very sad

He seemed like a great guy. Fun to watch, that's for sure.

[eissa]

20. I don't even watch baseball

but this story broke my heart. Seemed like a genuinely good guy with such a promising future. He risked a lot and worked hard and just as things got good professionally and personally, this happens. His poor mom, grandma and girlfriend

[NobodyHere]

22. This was no boating accident...

[Odin2005]

23. Fuck this year so hard, it's cursed!