Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Teammates honor Fernandez during globetrotting vacation.
MIAMI — The emotional wounds were still fresh when Giancarlo Stanton and A.J. Ramos set off in October on their annual offseason mission to see the world.
A trip to Brazil put much needed distance from the tragic conclusion of the Marlins season with the death of Jose Fernandez. Finding a graffiti artist to create a tribute to their fallen teammate in Rio de Janeiro was an important first step in the process of grieving and healing.
“That was just fun trying to enjoy and celebrate his life and get a part of him in the world on our vacation. It was a good experience for us,” Stanton said at the Marlins’ media luncheon Friday, showcasing a jersey with a patch bearing Fernandez’s number on a black background that the team will wear this season.
Even when the patch is gone, the pitcher’s memory will remain indelible, Ramos said. That was the message conveyed by the art on the wall and in other tributes during their extensive travels.
“I said it from the start: ‘Wherever we are, you are.’ I carry him in my heart,” said Ramos, the Marlins’ closer. “He’s somebody you can never forget.”
A photo posted on Instagram showed Stanton, Ramos and former Marlin Ricky Nolasco seated atop the wall above the artwork, which featured the word “Niño,” Stanton’s affectionate reference to Fernandez. A bat with the word “saudades” (Portuguese for “miss you”) served as a title. The players each added their signatures to the wall.
Stanton said being able to get away from baseball and South Florida was an important first step for Marlins players in processing their loss.
“Everyone is saying, was it the hardest offseason? Actually, it was one of the most refreshing and peaceful,” he said. “Because if you can imagine one of your best friends dying, and every move since the moment you wake up it’s just a camera and a reaction ... you don’t get any chance to mourn that.”
Ahead of next week’s opening of spring training in Jupiter, players gathered Friday to take part in the Marlins Day of Impact, making 40 stops at community outreach activities throughout South Florida.
Stanton said he was eager to get back to baseball and prepare to bounce back from what was his most trying season on the field. He struggled through the prolonged slump during the first half, then missed nearly a month in the second half with a hamstring injury.
The three-time All-Star, whose season highlight was a record-breaking performance in the Home Run Derby, ended with career lows in several significant statistical categories, including a .240 batting average and on-base plus slugging percentage of .815.
“Definitely you learn the hard way with some things,” he said. “Just, when you’re in that deep of a hole, find different ways to get out of it. I felt like I kept a good mindset in general, but you’ve got to get out of it a lot faster than that.”
A normal offseason training regimen has Stanton fit and optimistic about staying healthy through the upcoming season and regaining status as a premier run producer.
Six weeks of travels with Ramos enabled the two to broaden horizons and also adjust to the reality of Fernandez’s death. They posed for touristy photos at the pyramids in Egypt, though Stanton found it more enlightening to see the third-world conditions on the way there.
Ramos was most moved by the historical sites around Jerusalem, and fascinated by a visit to the Dead Sea.
Everywhere they went, Fernandez was never far from their thoughts. There was another tribute at a music festival in Amsterdam, where DJ friends played a Dutch song “This is What it Feels Like” while images of the late pitcher flashed on a giant screen.
“We paid tribute to him as many ways as we could without overdoing it,” Ramos said. “But somebody like him, I don’t think there’s any way you can overdo it because he was an over-the-top guy and he will be missed.”
That sentiment will be felt by every Marlin beginning next week at spring training. Ramos is already feeling the void in the clubhouse.
“Every time I go in I say hello [to Fernandez]. Even though it’s just his locker, it’s like he’s still there because he’s still in our hearts,” Ramos said.