Hours after the devastating news of the death of Jose Fernandez, a bag of signed baseballs was found near the site of his boat crash.
The baseball world is still reeling following Sunday’s tragic death of Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez. The star was killed in an early-morning boating accident off the coast of Miami Beach. Now it appears a bag of signed baseballs has washed onto shore close to where the accident took place.
According to WSVN in Miami, a black bag containing Fernandez’s checkbook and four signed baseballs turned up about a mile from where the boat was discovered Sunday morning. Two other people also died in the wreckage. It’s a bit of an eery discovery, given the accident and the time of the discovery.
The Marlins canceled their game with the Braves on Sunday. Then on Monday, the entire team honored their fallen teammate by wearing his jersey during the night game. In fact, all of Major League Baseball took a moment of silence before each game to remember the two-time All-Star. ESPN analyst Tim Kurkjian offered his sentimemts after hearing the news.
"I think we’re going to remember him one of the great pitchers to come along in quite some time. We’re going to look at him as one of the great success stories, overcoming adversity, and we’re going to look at him as someone that just lit up a ballpark whether he was pitching or not, but especially when he was pitching, that was worth viewing in Miami, because of how great he was and what he brought to the competition every single time he started. This is just inconceivable this could happen."
Perhaps the most touching of tributes was Dee Gordon hitting a leadoff home run, while wearing Fernandez’s batting helmet.
Early reports say that speed was a factor in the boat crashing into a jetty off the coast of Miami Beach. Drugs and alcohol are not being mentioned as cause, however a full investigation is ongoing.
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The 24-year old All-Star was a big favorite in the locker room, and was a friend to practically everyone he met. The owner of the Marlins has already moved to have his jersey number 16 retired. In 2016, Fernandez went 16-8 with a respectable 2.58 ERA. He was 5th in the NL with wins