Marlins plan to honor Jose Fernandez with permanent memorial

Jose Fernandez’s Marlins teammates paid tribute by leaving their hats on the pitching mound after the game against the Mets at Marlins Park on Sept. 26. (Getty Images)

In the weeks since Jose Fernandez tragically died in a boating accident, many tributes and memorials have been held in his honor. Now comes word that the Miami Marlins are planning to build a permanent memorial outside Marlins Park that will serve to capture his life and his legacy with the team and in the community.

According to FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman, it’s not yet certain whether the memorial will include a statue or some other symbolic landmark such as a pitcher’s mound. He did confirm that owner Jeffrey Loria and other team officials are heavily involved in the process and are aiming to create something special.

Loria confirmed the plans are in the works but declined to get into any of the details until a later date, only saying that it will be “something wonderful.”

The Marlins currently have a large makeshift memorial on their plaza, which has been visited by tens of thousands. The team has handled the tragic situation with great sensitivity, and reportedly paid for the funeral, at St. Brendan in west Miami.

The team had already announced plans to retire Fernandez’s No. 16 jersey. They’re sticking to that plan and moving forward with the memorial despite some public concerns stemming from Fernandez’s toxicology report, which indicated he was legally drunk and had cocaine in his system when he, along with 27-year-old Emilio Jesus Macias and 25-year-old Eduardo Rivero, were killed on the morning of Sept. 25.

Loria, like many others, is standing by his belief that those results are not reflective of the Jose Fernandez he knew.

“I don’t believe that,” Loria said of the report. “I knew this kid.”

Circumstances being what they are, it doesn’t change the impact Fernandez made on his family, friends, peers and community. He was a cornerstone in so many lives, which only adds to the sadness that continues to be felt. That Loria and the Marlins are committed to honoring that legacy may not sit well with everyone, but it will be appreciated by Fernandez’s family and those whose lives he touched.