Jose Fernandez killed in boating accident
- Thread starter bosockboy
- Start date
Doesn't seem like it. When the last boating accident during the regular season occurred they released the names in conjunction with one another.
There is an Instagram pic floating around on Twiiter. He posted about his girlfriend being pregnant a few days ago. So sad on so many levels. 24 is far too young.
Edit: Just saw it after I posted. Makes me queasy
Edit: Just saw it after I posted. Makes me queasy
After a terrible accident, those closest will always wonder "what if?" I wonder why his start was moved. If it hadn't been, would he have been out boating the night before? I will miss his presence in my favorite sport.
I'll withhold judgment but having lived and boated in Florida I can say that I avoided boating past sundown because of the massive increase in danger.
Nick Adenhart is another who was said to be a future ace.
Just found a sad story I'd never heard of.
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/flashback-top-qb-in-1977-nfl-draft-died-two-months-before-draft/
Another is what if he had been unloaded in typical Marlin fashion around the deadline.
Just horrific. It's bad enough that Jose's life was just beginning at 24, but he had it all - he was a potential Hall of Fame talent who may well have gone on to set the record for the richest contract ever paid to a pitcher.
I try not to pass judgement in these situations, but seeing that picture of the boat ... somebody was pretty reckless out there and they all paid the price.
I try not to pass judgement in these situations, but seeing that picture of the boat ... somebody was pretty reckless out there and they all paid the price.
Obviously secondary compared to the devastating loss felt by his family and team, but what a nut punch to what's shaping up as one of the best weeks for sports, especially around here.
I'm not picturing how they died though... you think boating accident you think drowning but that doesn't appear to be the case since the three dead were still on the boat. And if they were speeding and just crashed into the land you would think they would have been ejected from the boat.
If you're looking for sad stories, you should google Joe Delaney. A real hero that time's forgotten.
Jose was a Tampa kid, settling in the Cuban community there after defecting at age 15. He did time in a Cuban prison after being caught on previous defection attempts and then eventually took the long way to Mexico to avoid the authorities. Rescued his mother from drowning by diving into angry seas in the middle of the night after she was swept overboard in a storm in the Gulf. Worked his ass off with a local Cuban pitching coach once he got to Tampa, came out of nowhere throwing 94 to make a state powerhouse team at Alonso HS and then led them to 2 state championships. By all accounts a good kid and crazy hard worker. Such a shame.
http://grantland.com/features/marlins-rookie-pitcher-jose-fernandez-journey-cuban-defector-mlb-all-star/
http://grantland.com/features/marlins-rookie-pitcher-jose-fernandez-journey-cuban-defector-mlb-all-star/
This is about a mile and a half from where I live. I'm at South Pointe fairly often. You can google map it. There's a fairly deep channel between South Beach and Fisher Island called Government Cut - the cruise ships use it to go in and out of the port. They could have been heading into Star Island, or just passing by the southernmost part of South Beach. No details on that yet.
It does not sound like anything untoward at this point. If they ran into the jetty at a high rate of speed, imagine standing on the roof of a car that hits a cement wall at 25-35 MPH. That's plenty fast to knock someone out.
Last edited:
I caught the end of this story on the NFL network, back when they played more NFL Films. I never knew his name to look up the full story.
But at least he died a hero
Devastating news. 24 and gone. Enjoyed watching him pitch and his enthusiasm. Was the perfect guy that South Florida and the Marlins could hang their hat on. With Stanton and Fernandez, it was two great pieces. Listening to the Miami sports radio it's beyond sad to listen to them try to keep it together. The stories of him saving his mother from drowning, his grandmother coming from Cuba, and the pregnant girlfriend. Just damn.
Has it been confirmed that his pregnant girlfriend was not among the victims? There's additional reporting of authorities looking for a fourth victim.
Here's a better shot of the pier/jetty to give you some perspective.
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/South+Pointe+Beach,+Miami+Beach,+FL+33139/1519+Drexel+Avenue,+Miami+Beach,+FL/@25.762871,-80.129557,3a,75y/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1s96633610!2e1!3e10!6s//lh5.googleusercontent.com/proxy/ggTONgSEiJC5KmJT8tm9IXpBlWThmdtoLzUhuwcA-FJ76ksfeJtyE6vUHtXYkQmlsr1IyY89YADV8leYlEA9zkkqXjqovQ=w203-h135!7i1600!8i1067!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x88d9b4efee31ae7b:0x35a0f63b66098761!2m2!1d-80.1307997!2d25.7643078!1m5!1m1!1s0x88d9b48ff66ca5a3:0x1ea6e00151e3328b!2m2!1d-80.1327707!2d25.787975
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/South+Pointe+Beach,+Miami+Beach,+FL+33139/1519+Drexel+Avenue,+Miami+Beach,+FL/@25.762871,-80.129557,3a,75y/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1s96633610!2e1!3e10!6s//lh5.googleusercontent.com/proxy/ggTONgSEiJC5KmJT8tm9IXpBlWThmdtoLzUhuwcA-FJ76ksfeJtyE6vUHtXYkQmlsr1IyY89YADV8leYlEA9zkkqXjqovQ=w203-h135!7i1600!8i1067!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x88d9b4efee31ae7b:0x35a0f63b66098761!2m2!1d-80.1307997!2d25.7643078!1m5!1m1!1s0x88d9b48ff66ca5a3:0x1ea6e00151e3328b!2m2!1d-80.1327707!2d25.787975
I didn't realize the Herald had pictures of the boat itself. Looks like they hit the tip of the jetty.
Per press conference: Traveling at a full speed. Drugs and/or alcohol do not appear to have been involved as they weren't found on vessel. Very dark out there. No one had a life vest on.
Sounds like a joy ride and they just didn't see the jetty. Wonder how good the boat's lighting is.
Okay that makes more sense. They probably had no idea that land mass was there. Or maybe it hit a sandbar and flipped over into the rocks. Not sure a life vest would have helped really.
I was in Miami with my family on Patriot's Day and I took my son to watch the Miami-Nats game that night. He was so excited to see Fernandez pitch. He's running around the house playing hide-and-seek with his friend, who slept over. He doesn't know and I really don't want to tell him.
They also said that this particular boat was well known and knew the area. Driver knew the jetty was there and had navigated it many times. Not sure why it crashed except maybe it drifted a little it being so dark out. Had seen Jose and other ball players in the boat many times.
The officer at the press conference said the jetty doesn't have lights. I would think there is likely something at the end but not along the length of it.
Fuck this. One of my favorite non-Sox players and just exactly the type of kid you want to be a face of the game. Just...fuck this.
Probably shouldn't be operating any watercraft without any lights at any sort of speed. If there's no ambient light, it would be pretty easy to miss some of those rocks or a sandbar.