Pedro Portal/Miami Herald/TNS via Getty Images(MIAMI) — Miami Marlins’ Jose Fernandez, widely considered to be among the best pitchers in Major League Baseball, was killed when a boat that had apparently been speeding crashed into a jetty outside Miami Harbor, authorities said.
Fernandez was one of three males killed, authorities said. Two were found in the 32-foot boat and one in the water, Miami-Dade County Sheriff Lorenzo Velos said at a press conference Sunday morning. None of the three were wearing life vests, Velos said.
The other victims appear to be friends of the pitcher and were not teammates, the sheriff said, adding that Fernandez was not the boat’s owner and had not been driving it. He said the boat’s owner has been stopped before for safety violations.
The sheriff said there was no obvious indication that alcohol or drugs were involved in the accident but that autopsies could help to determine that.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Capt. Meagan Dean said the wrecked boat was discovered early morning Sunday on a routine search of the area.
The Marlins announced that Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Braves has been canceled as a result of the sudden death of one of the team’s stars.
Fernandez, just 24 years old at the time of his death, amassed several eye-popping seasons in his short career on the professional baseball diamond, winning the National League Rookie of the Year award in 2013.
He had a career earned-run average of just 2.58 over four seasons. He led baseball this season in strikeouts per nine innings with 12.49 among starting pitchers.
He was particularly dominant while playing at home in Miami’s Marlins Park, becoming the first pitcher in the modern era to win his first 17 career home decisions. He eventually went on to go 24-1 in his first 25 home decisions.
Born in Santa Clara, Cuba, Fernandez defected to America in 2008 and became one of the most prominent faces among a wave of Cuban stars breaking into professional baseball at that time.
Fernandez posted a photo on Instagram of his girlfriend, Carla Mendoza, appearing to be pregnant last week. It is unclear at this time whether she was with him in the boat when he was killed.
The Miami Marlins released a statement about Fernandez’ death saying that they are “devastated by the tragic loss of Jose Fernandez.”
“Our thoughts and prayer are with his family at this very difficult time,” the statement read.
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