PALM BEACH, Fla. _ Remembering Jose Fernandez will be a theme of the Miami Marlins' 2017 season, especially for the milestones he won't be there for: the first day of spring training, Opening Day, the All-Star Game at Marlins Park and so on.
The Marlins will put a subtle yet tangible twist on those remembrances with a "No. 16" uniform patch like what the team wore the final week of last season. The black and white patch will be on every jersey for every game, home and away, but on the chest instead of the sleeve.
"There's a lot of things happening that are going to bring this back to the forefront," team president David Samson said. "And I think that's how it should be. That's how you keep memories alive for people. There are constantly things that will surround us that will continue to remind us of the importance he had."
Samson spoke Thursday afternoon in the lobby of The Breakers, the luxurious beachfront resort that is hosting this week's MLB owners meetings, a quarterly gathering of club owners and presidents. Between committee meetings, Samson _ who is part of the competition committee and sits in on the international committee _ explained the balance and tone the Marlins are trying to strike in honoring their late ace.
"The balance is you want to remember, but you don't want a black cloud over your franchise forever," Samson said. "That's just not reality. ... Our job, we have to keep going. Our players want that. I know the fans do. But you do it in a way where he's still a part of you."
There has been talk since Fernandez's death late last season of other, grander ways to celebrating him _ some sort of permanent memorial at or near the ballpark, for example _ and Samson said those are in the works.
Team owner Jeffrey Loria declared in September that no Marlin will ever again wear Fernandez's No. 16. While that is as simple as abstaining from assigning the number to another player, Samson said Thursday a more formal number retirement ceremony will happen at some point.
"There will be a moment when that comes," Samson said. "It's not scheduled right now."
Fernandez and two friends, Emilio Jesus Macias and Eduardo Rivero, died in an early-morning boat crash off Miami Beach on Sept. 25. The crash is still under investigation by Florida Fish and Wildlife.
