MIAMI -- Because they happened to be in Miami the day after Marlins pitcher José Fernández died in a boating accident, the Mets became intertwined with much of the week's sadness. They were the opponents for the Marlins' first game after Fernandez's death, taking part in a pregame ceremony and watching Dee Gordon's emotional home run.
Two days later, manager Terry Collins led a group of Mets into a memorial service at Marlins Park, the starting point of Fernandez's motorcade.
"I thought it was important to be there to honor Jose," Collins said. "But I think it was important for us to have our people out there, which we did. We had several guys out there today. You know, this is a very large fraternity, and it's an exclusive fraternity. It's hard to get in. So when you lose somebody, I just think you need the representation of everybody else to be out there. And we were represented very well today. So I was very proud of that."
Following Monday's game, Gordon and Marlins manager Don Mattingly lauded the Mets for their "first-class" role in helping the grieving process. In addition to taking part in the ceremony, the Mets printed and signed a Fernandez jersey, which they later presented to the Marlins as a gift.