MIAMI — Miami second baseman Dee Gordon took New York Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon deep on Monday in the Marlins' first game since the death of Jose Fernandez.
On Sunday, Fernandez died in a boating accident off the coast of Florida.
The left-handed Gordon, who was one of Fernandez’s closest friends, paid tribute to the ace pitcher by taking Colon's first pitch as a righty. Gordon then switched back to his left side before knocking Colon's third pitch out of the park for his first homer of the season. The crowd went into hysterics as Gordon, visibly emotional, rounded the bases. He burst into tears once he reached the dugout.
"It seemed like it took forever," Gordon told The Associated Press. "I was trying to get back to my teammates as fast as possible. I was just wondering why Jose wasn't there standing on the top step cheering for me."
Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton called the moment "pure emotion."
"There's no other way it could be scripted, unless you're in a movie rewriting everything that just happened," Stanton said.
– The Cox Media Group National Content Desk contributed to this report.
Cox Media Group
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