Jose Fernandez

At 24 years old, Jose Fernandez has this physical status:

José Delfn Fernández Gómez (July 31, 1992 – September 25, 2016) was a Cuban-born professional baseball pitcher.

During his playing career, he stood 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) tall and weighed 243 pounds (110 kg).

He was affectionately referred to by his teammates and followers as "Nio" because of the youthful enthusiasm with which he competed.

He competed for the Miami Marlins in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2013 to 2016. Fernández was born in Santa Clara, Cuba.

Until he finally succeeded in 2008, he made three unsuccessful attempts at defecting to the United States.

He enrolled at Braulio High School in Tampa, Florida, and was drafted by the Marlins in the first round of the 2011 MLB draft.

Fernández made his MLB debut with the Marlins on April 7, 2013.

He was chosen to the 2013 National League All-Star Team and received the National League Rookie of the Month Award in July and August.

He received the NL Rookie of the Year Award and finished third in Cy Young Award polling after the season.

He underwent Tommy John surgery in the 2014 season and was named to his second All-Star Game in 2016. When Fernández and two other men were killed in a pre-dawn boating crash into a jetty off the coast of Miami Beach, Florida, on September 25, 2016, he was the pilot.

Early life

Fernández grew up in Santa Clara, Cuba, where he played on the same street with his friend and future Major League baseball (MLB) shortstop Aledmys D'az. They both played for the same youth baseball team, and Delia and his uncle begged Fernández's mother to bring him to the ballpark. Fernández said he pursued a career in baseball because his uncle, Dáz, had been a figure in his life.

Ramón Jiménez, Fernández's stepfather, escaped from Cuba in 2005 and settled in Tampa, Florida. José unsuccessfully attempted to leave on three occasions; each failed defection attempt was followed by a prison term. José survived on his fourth attempt in 2007 with his mother and sister at the age of 15. José's mother was overboard when the boat sank into tumultuous waters, and he didve into the sea to save her life. In 2008, the couple arrived in Mexico and then moved to Tampa.

Orlando Chinea, a coach who lived in the Tampa area, was a mentor to the Ramon. Before heading to Tampa, Chinea had worked with some of Cuba's best pitchers. In China, Ramon had José train. He attended Braulio Alonso High School in Tampa, Florida. José was a member of the Florida Class 6A state champions in his sophomore and senior seasons while playing on the high school baseball team. Fernández was ineligible until his ninth grade in 2006, and had therefore lost his status before his senior year in 2011. Fernández, the Cincinnati Reds, was ready to give him a $1.3 million signing bonus. Fernández obtained an appeal and was declared eligible for his senior year, putting an end to Cincinnati's hopes. Fernández, a senior, slugged out a 13–1 win-loss record with a 2.35 earned run average (ERA) and 134 strikeouts. He also threw two no-hitters. He had been accepted to play baseball at the University of South Florida.

Personal life

Fernández regarded Olga, his grandmother, as the "love of his life." Olga and José were reunited in Miami in 2013 after six years apart. Alejandra Baleato Marichal, his high school sweetheart, was married in Tampa, Florida, in December 2012. In 2014, the couple divorced. He became a citizen of the United States on April 24, 2015.

Fernández's wife Maria Arias was pregnant with their child five days before his death on September 20, 2016. Fernández's daughter was born in February 2017.

Fernández was a good friend with teammate Dee Strange-Gordon. On the day after his death, Strange-Gordon paid tribute to him by wearing Fernández's batting helmet and standing in the right-hand batter's box for the Mets' first pitch. He then shifted sides and scored his first home run of the year. Strange-Gordon wept as he pointed to the sky in honor of his deceased buddy after rounding the bases.

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Professional baseball career

In the first round of the 2011 MLB draft, the Florida Marlins selected Fernández 14th overall. Fernández has signed with the Marlins, earning a $2 million signing bonus. After signing with the Marlins, he made one start for the Gulf Coast Marlins of the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League and one start for the Jamestown Jammers of the Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League.

Fernández threw the first six innings of a combined no-hitter for the Greensboro Grasshoppers of the Class A South Atlantic League (SAL) in 2012. He was twice named the week's SAL pitcher of the week. Fernández was selected to play in the 2012 All-Star Futures Game. The Marlins promoted Fernández to the Jupiter Hammerheads of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League after pitching to a 7–0 win-loss record and a 1.59 ERA in 14 games for Greensboro. He finished the 2012 season with a 14–1 win-loss record, a 1.75 ERA, and 158 strikeouts in 134 innings pitched at Greensboro and Jupiter. He was named the Marlins' Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

Baseball America rated Fernández as the Marlins' best prospect and fifth best prospect in all baseball prior to the 2013 season. Fernández was welcomed to spring training by the Marlins but he was sent to minor league camp before the season began. However, they opted to include Fernández to their 25-man Opening Day roster due in part to Nathan Eovaldi and Henderson lvarez's injury. Also, Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria hoped that promoting Fernández would give him goodwill with the fans following a fire sale in the previous offseason. In order to shield his growth, he was predicted to be limited to 150 to 170 innings during the 2013 season. He was the second youngest National League player of the season, older than Nationals' Bryce Harper.

Fernández made his major league debut against the New York Mets at Citi Field on April 7. He pitched five innings, allowing one run on three hits with eight strikeouts. He was the first pitcher since 1916 under the age of 21 who had at least eight strikeouts in his MLB debut. On May 27, Fernández suffered a rough outing against the Tampa Bay Rays. "José Fernández could be the best young pitcher I've ever seen," Rays' boss Joe Maddon said on Twitter soon after watching Fernández pitch. "I'm positive he'll go far."

Fernández was selected to represent the Marlins in the National League All-Star team on July 6, 2013. In the 2013 All-Star Game in which he struck out Dustin Pedroia, caused Miguel Cabrera to pop out, and struck out Chris Davis, he pitched a perfect 6th inning. Fernández is one of only three pitchers in the history of the All-Star Game to beat out two batters prior to their 21st birthday for their All-Star debut, the other two being Dwight Gooden and Bob Feller.

Fernández defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 3–2 in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 28. He struck out 13 batters out of 13 batters. Fernández's 14-strikeout win over the Cleveland Indians on August 3, 2013, he was just the sixth pitcher to strike out 13 or more batters in consecutive games since 2000. He set the Marlins' rookie record for most strikeouts in a single game. Fernández was named Rookie of the Month for the National League in July 2013, leading all qualified rookie pitchers in ERA. He followed up his July by compiling a 1.15 ERA in 39 innings pitched in August, earning him his second consecutive Rookie of the Month Award.

Fernández's rookie season was deemed a success by his 4.2 wins above replacement, placing him in the top ten player seasons among those under the age of 21 years old since 1900. Fernández's adjusted ERA+ of 174 on the season also ranked him in the top ten all-time for pitchers under the age of 21, making him the fourth pitcher to reach this milestone in the last century. His strikeout rate is his highest in his league, leading the National League at 9.81 strikeouts per nine innings.

Fernández was in the top ten innings of the National League for the first time, including sixth in strikeouts per nine innings (9.75), second in adjusted ERA+ (176), and third in WAR (6.3). Fernández was named Rookie of the Year Award and the National League Rookie of the Year Award. He came in third place in the Cy Young Award voting behind Adam Wainwright and champion Clayton Kershaw.

Fernández's sophomore season with the Marlins as the youngest Opening Day starter since Dwight Gooden in 1986. Fernández was one of nine strikeouts while walking none, and he joined Bob Gibson, Steve Carlton, Ferguson Jenkins, Walter Johnson, and Cy Young as the only pitchers to do so on Opening Day. Fernández was put on the 15-day disabled list on May 12 due to a right elbow sprain. An MRI revealed that the elbow had a torn ulnar collateral ligament ligament injury, which had prematurely ended Fernández's 2014 season. On May 16, he underwent Tommy John surgery. In 2014, he made eight starts, going 4–2 with a 2.44 ERA and 70 strikeouts.

Fernández started the 2015 season on the 15-day disabled list, but later was promoted to the 60-day disabled list to continue recovering from Tommy John surgery. On June 15, the Marlins announced that he would make his season debut on July 2nd. Fernández's debut in six innings saw six strikeouts. He also hit a home run. Fernández's pitching arm led him to the disabled list in August. With his seventh victory on the 25th of the month, he returned to the field in September and tied a major league record for consecutive victories at home for a single pitcher.

Fernández cut back on the use of his fastball during spring training in 2016 and began working on his secondary pitches to aid his recovery from Tommy John surgery. Fernández doubled in two runs against the Atlanta Braves in 12th inning on July 1, bringing the Marlins closer to 7–5, the final score. Following Dennis Cook's appearance on August 1, 1997, he became Marlins' second pitcher to produce a game-winning hit. Fernández appeared in the 2016 MLB All-Star Game.

Fernández played his last game on September 20. In a 1–0 win over the division-leading Nationals, he threw out 12 batters and left only three out with no walks. Martn Prado, a Marlins infielder, told a colleague that Fernández's "best game he's ever pitched" after a match.

He finished 2016 with an MLB-leading 12.49 strikeouts per nine innings and a new Marlins' season record of 253 strikeouts in 182+11 innings. He won 16 games, the highest of his four-year career, but he lost eight with a 2.86 ERA. He had the highest line drive percentage allowed (28.0%) of all major league pitchers. He had the lowest percentage of balls pulled against him (33.3%) among major league pitchers, and he led major league pitchers in lowest contact percentage (67.5%). He had a 38–17 win-loss record and a 2.58 ERA for his career.

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