Revealed: rookie ace pitcher Jose Fernandez had been previously married before his death at 24. Ex-wife Alejandra Marichal is shown
Jose Fernandez, the Miami Marlins pitcher whose death at the end of last season in a speedboat crash shocked the baseball world, has revealed a touching bit of personal history from beyond the grave.
The death certificate of the Marlins star reveals that the ballplayer, who died at 24, had previously married and divorced his high school sweetheart, according to TMZ.
Fernandez married Alejandra Baleato Marichal in December of 2012, when both young newlyweds were just 20 years old.
The wedding was in Tampa, the marriage certificate shows.
Fernandez, a Cuban native, met Marichal, born in Uruguay, for the first time at the movies, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
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Fernandez had been earmarked as a rising star of baseball thanks to a 100mph fast ball
Alejandra Baleato Marichal (pictured) met Fernandez in high school. The pair married at age 20, but divorced about 18 months later, in 2014
Fernandez was expecting a child with a new girlfriend when he died, but he was not widely known to have been previously married.
The tip came from his death certificate, which listed his marital status as 'divorced.'
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ShareThe document also revealed the beloved pitching star was cremated, and that his body was found at 3.15am after the crash on September 25, 2016.
The pitcher had alcohol and cocaine in his system at the time of his death, according to the autopsy, but his lawyer has insisted that he was not at the controls of the boat.
Fernandez and two of his friends were killed when the boat crashed on September 25, 2016. Investigators are seen looking at the crashed vessel
After his previously unreported marriage to Marichal ended, Fernandez began seeing Maria Arias, 24 (pictured left and right, with Fernandez)
As a teenager, Fernandez escaped Cuba by boat on his fourth attempt. During the crossing his mother fell into the ocean and he jumped in to save her life.
The 24-year-old had been earmarked as a rising star of baseball thanks to a 100mph fast ball.
It was a stunning debut year: He made it as an All Star, was in the game's top ten pitchers and was picked as Rookie of the Year.
He was the first pitcher in the modern era to win his first 17 career home decisions, and went 24-1 in his first 25 home decisions.
He also made his second All Star appearance in the 2016 rankings, and went 38-17 in over the course of his four seasons with the Marlins.
Last week, he was posthumously named Sporting News' National League Comeback Player of the Year.
Fernandez's girlfriend Maria Arias, 24, was pregnant with his child when he died, with a due date in February.
Fernandez's girlfriend Maria Arias, 24, was pregnant with his child when he died, with a due date in February
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