Remembering Jose Fernandez

Baseball lost one of its brightest young stars this morning. Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez has died today at the age of 24. His death was caused by a boating accident that not only claimed his life, but two others as well. This is by far the most devastating news in quite some time to come out of baseball and frankly, just in sports in general.

Jose was on a boat with two friends off of the Miami coast in the early morning on Sunday, September 25th, 2016. It has been reported that there was no alcohol or drugs involved and high speed was what claimed the lives of these 3 young men. Their boat hit a jetty and flipped, with all 3 on board perishing before there was even a chance to save any of their lives.

When Fernandez was just 15 years of age, he successfully defected from his hometown of Santa Clara, Cuba. This was his fourth attempt to get out of his oppressive country and into the United States. The 3 previous times he had been caught and even imprisoned for doing so. On the successful voyage, a woman had fallen overboard into the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Fernandez immediately jumped in to save the woman’s life. That woman just happened to be Fernandez’s mother. At the time, Jose did not know it was his mother that had fallen in. As a 15 year old boy, Fernandez risked his life for someone with no regard to who it was. This event truly exemplifies what kind of person Fernandez was; selfless.

He was also known for being one of the happiest guys to ever walk the planet earth. According to many of his teammates and coaches, Fernandez was constantly filled with joy and one of the best guys to be around. He always had a smile on his face and always knew how to put one on yours. The definition of a contagious smile.

Not only was Fernandez a terrific person, but he was almost as terrific at the game of baseball. After getting to the U.S. from Cuba, Fernandez attended Braulio Alonso High School in Tampa Bay, Florida. He played baseball there his Junior and Senior years and was drafted 14th overall by the Miami Marlins. He quickly made his way to the majors by the age of 20 and won NL Rookie of the Year in 2013. He received a $20,000 bonus for winning the award and immediately donated it to charity. Fernandez made only 76 starts in his abbreviated career, but boy were they good. He finished his career with a record of 38-17 and an unbelievable ERA of 2.58.

He was a strikeout machine, racking up 11.25 strikeouts per nine innings. Jose was widely regarded as the future of baseball and in my opinion, he still is. Will he physically be on the field with us anymore? No. But his charming personality, competitiveness, and outstanding disposition will be with us forever. Not only does a player not come around like this very often, but a person like this doesn’t come around very often.

An event like this should help us all realize how precious life can be and how it can be so cruel and taken away from the best of people in an instant. Jose Fernandez was taken from us far too soon, just like many people are every single day. We should all take a second and think. By no means did Jose have an easy life. He lived under a dictatorship in Cuba for crying out loud. But he didn’t let that stop him from being the best version of himself each and every day. Hopefully baseball players and people all over the world can be just a bit like Jose Fernandez. Just that would make the world a better place. Rest In Peace Jose Fernandez. Strike ‘em out in heaven young man. Strike ‘em out in heaven.