The medical examiner’s report showed evidence of alcohol and cocaine.
I’ll tell you right now, the following story about Jose Fernandez is not one I want to write.
I’m doing so not only because of its significance within the sports world, but also because it’s important for everyone to be reminded that horrific things can happen when you make the wrong choices.
Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez had it made. At 24-years-old, Fernandez was one of the most talented pitchers in the world and one of the most likable people in his clubhouse.
He was gifted, rich and ultimately oblivious to the dangers around him.
When news of the tragic boating accident broke on September 25th, the entire baseball community mourned the passing of one of it’s brightest young stars.
We’d found out that Fernandez and two of his friends, Jesus Macias, and Eduardo Rivero were killed in the early morning hours when the boat they were in ran into the rocks at a high speed.
No alcohol or drug paraphernalia was found at the scene. Maybe there was a degree of recklessness on their part, but at is’s core, it was just terrible luck.
Maybe there was a degree of recklessness on their part, but at is’s core, it was just terrible luck that took the lives of these three young men.
Today the story changed.
The medical examiner’s report indicated that not only was Fernandez alcohol content .147 (nearly twice the legal limit of .08 for operating a boat), but Fernandez also had cocaine in his system.
Suddenly, the what was once a tragedy morphs into a travesty.
It’s one thing to cope with a tragic turn of fate, but another completely to wrap your head around something like this needless loss of life.
Jose Fernandez should have pitched in the majors for another 15 years before retiring and being enshrined into baseball’s Hall of Fame.
But life is little more than the sum total of the decisions we make.
I feel for Fernandez’s family, teammate’s, and all the Marlins fans today.
This should have never happened. Let’s just hope that Fernandez’s death serves as a cautionary tale and stops this from happening to someone else in the future.
