Moving On
How the city of Miami and the players try to pick up the pieces and move on to 2017
It’s mid afternoon here in South Florida on Opening Day eve. It’s gloomy outside with the sun trying to force its way to shine light on the day, which is a great metaphor for the upcoming Marlins season.
The sun will rise tomorrow and there will be baseball for the Miami Marlins. Opening Day always brings joy out of everyone, kids staying home from school to go to the ballpark and players having butterflies in their stomachs like they are kids getting ready for the first day of school. But for the Marlins, as they open a new book for their continues tales of ups and mainly downs of the franchise, there is a huge dark cloud of sadness that follows the team.
The morning of September 28th will be in the head of the organization and for South Florida forever. That was the morning where the South Florida was shocked with the news that their star pitcher and local hero to some, Jose Fernandez was killed in a boating accident. Jose was a one of a kind player and person.
The Marlins did their best to try to replace him on the field, but Edison Volquez and Dan Strailey is not enough.
The incident is a constant reminder of how life is a crazy ride that can end at any minute. A big part of the gloominess that will shadow the Marlins this year is the other heartbreaking side to the tragedy, we had discovered thanks to the toxicology report that Jose Fernandez was under the influence of alcohol and cocaine at the time of the accident but just a couple weeks ago, we found out that Jose was in control of the boat.
Yes, Jose Fernandez made a terrible mistake to operate a boat under the influence that led to the death of him and his two friends. That shouldn’t be ignored.
With that being said, it should not define him. What he did for the community and what he meant for the Cuban people who shared his dream of American freedom will never be forgotten.
The Marlins will have to find a way to move on but Jose will always be in their hearts. Literally. The Marlins will wear “16” patches over their hearts every game.
For the fans, every time we pile into Marlins Park to watch the team, we will remember him with every pitch thrown and every Cuban sandwich we bite into.
The sun comes out for the Marlins with every jaw dropping, 600 foot “dong” Giancarlo Stanton will hit this year or when Christian Yelich continues his surge to become baseball’s next best superstar. We will also have a blast when our city and park will be displayed for the world at the All-Star game, but every time the sun comes up, we know it must come down. So Marlins fans, enjoy the ride in which this seasons will be, because there will be happy days, even with that dark cloud above you.
