Miami Marlins pitcher José Fernández has been killed in a boating accident, the team and U.S. Coast Guard said. He was just 24.
The Coast Guard said Fernández was one of three men killed when a boat overturned off Miami Beach. The Coast Guard found the 32-foot vessel capsized on a jetty with two bodies underneath it and one body in the water, said Lorenzo Veloz of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation during a Sunday morning news conference.
The other two people killed have not been identified, but Veloz said the victims were between the ages of 24 and 27.
"The Miami Marlins organization is devastated by the tragic loss of José Fernández. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this very difficult time," the team said in a statement posted on Twitter on Sunday morning.
Fernandez was drafted in 2011 by the Marlins and was in the Majors by 2013, at which point he won the National League's Rookie of the Year award. By his fourth season, the two-time All Star was already a young ace right-hander for the Marlins, with a career earned run average (ERA) of 2.58 and a win-loss record of 38-17.
The Santa Clara, Cuba, native became an American citizen last year. He had tried to defect from Cuba three times, which landed him in jail once, according to The Associated Press. He eventually arrived in the U.S. and attended high school in Tampa, Florida.
The Marlins said that their Sunday afternoon game against the Atlanta Braves had been canceled. The Braves sent their condolences to the Fernández family and the Marlins.
The Miami Dolphins said they would have a moment of silence in honor of Fernández during their afternoon game in Miami Gardens.
MLB said in a tweet that the organization was "stunned and devastated" at the news of Fernández's death. "He was one of our game's great young stars who made a dramatic impact on and off the field," said MLB Commissioner Robert D. Manfred Jr.
The Major League Baseball Players Association also sent condolences to "José's family, friends, teammates, Miami Marlins organization and legions of fans in the United States and Latin America."
"José was a remarkable young man and tremendously gifted athlete, who, at just 24, established himself as one of the game's biggest and brightest stars," said Executive Major League Baseball Players Association Director Tony Clark.
Fernández is survived by his mother, grandmother and girlfriend, according to NBC Miami. He had posted a photo of his girlfriend on Instagram five days before his death, in what appeared to be an announcement that she is pregnant.
"I'm so glad you cameinto my life" Fernández wrote "I'm ready for where this journey is gonna take us together"
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