A Marlins memory from this day in 2013.
Former Miami Marlins pitcher José Fernández’s life was tragically cut short by a boating accident in September 2016. During his short life, Fernandez provided smiles and stellar performances on the baseball diamond.
On this day 10 years ago, Fernández picked up his first career win in Miami’s 2-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. He outdueled a two-time reigning All-Star in Cole Hamels.
Unlucky early on in his career, Fernández was near flawless at Citizens Bank Park on May 4, 2013. Over seven shutout innings, Fernández allowed just a hit and a walk while striking out nine.
Freddy Galvis’ one-out single in the first served as the only hit against the 20-year-old right-hander. Fernández responded by striking out Chase Utley and Ryan Howard to end the inning.
Not a single baserunner reached scoring position against Fernández. Galvis walked to open the seventh inning. Fernández again responded in a big way by striking out the side, fanning Utley, Howard, and Delmon Young. Howard struck out three times.
In eight innings, Hamels, Fernández’s counterpart, allowed just four hits. Two of those, however, were solo home runs. After Marcell Ozuna homered in the second inning, Chris Valaika went deep in the third to cap the scoring.
As for the Miami bullpen, Mike Dunn worked a 1-2-3 eighth inning. Steve Cishek used two strikeouts to work around a one-out walk to pitch a scoreless ninth and pick up the save.
Over four seasons with the Marlins, Fernández would go on to make two All-Star Games. He finished with a 38-17 record and 2.58 ERA. His first victory came on this day a decade ago.