NEW YORK -- Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez, who died in a boating accident in September, was voted the NL comeback player of the year by his peers in the annual Players Choice Awards of the Major League Baseball Players Association.
Fernandez was the 2013 NL Rookie of the Year, had Tommy John surgery the following year, returned in July 2015 and was 16-8 with a 2.86 ERA this season, earning his second All-Star selection.
He died at age 24 on Sept. 25, and autopsy reports released by the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner's Office said he had cocaine and alcohol in his system when his boat crashed into a Miami Beach jetty.