On Sunday when the baseball world was rocked by the news of the death of Miami Marlins ace pitcher Jose Fernandez in a boating accident, Martin was crushed. He and Fernandez grew up in the same town in Cuba and knew each other as children.

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HOUSTON — Leonys Martin’s voice was just above a whisper.

“I just want to say one more thing,” he said as he struggled with his emotions and words. “Today, I played one of my best games of the year and I want to dedicate it to my boy, Jose.”

On Sunday when the baseball world was rocked by the news of the death of Miami Marlins ace pitcher Jose Fernandez in a boating accident, Martin was crushed.

He and Fernandez grew up in the same town in Cuba and knew each other as children, attending some of the same baseball camps and sandlot games.

While their path to the big leagues varied, they were both defectors who risked everything to come to the United States to play baseball. They had remained close. Martin and Fernandez had texted a few weeks ago, talking about meeting up in the offseason for dinner and fun.

Even worse, Martin knew the spot where Fernandez’s boat had crashed early Sunday morning, killing all three passengers.

“I ride my jet ski by there all the time,” Martin said. “I know exactly where that is.”

It’s been a brutal few days for the emotionally-charged Martin. His constant and high-pitched, screeching voice had been noticeably absent before games.

“Martin never stops talking,” said Robinson Cano.

And yet for three days, he’d been largely silent, spending most of his time staring at his phone or into his locker.

He was grieving.

The game on Sunday in Minnesota was a blur for Martin. He started and played all nine innings because that’s what you do as a player. But postgame, sitting at his locker, he broke down in tears. Multiple teammates tried to console him.

“I tried to keep it together,” he said.

The next few days he tried to cope with and understand the fragility of life. He watched Dee Gordon hit the homer in the Marlins’ first game back. He saw the player crying and soon he was crying too.

“I’m going to visit his family after the season,” he said.

On Wednesday, Martin played a brilliant game, going 3 for 4 with three runs scored, two stolen bases and forcing a throwing error as well. He appeared to have nailed Jake Marisnick trying to score from second at the plate with a gorgeous throw that showed off his arm strength, but the out call was overturned after a replay.

He’s solidified the Mariners’ outfield defense and been better than expected on offense. And he does more than that for the team.

“He has been our vocal leader in the dugout and jumping around and what not,” manager Scott Servais said. “With everything that happened in Miami a few days ago (it) was really hard on him. It’s taken a while for him to work through it. I think you’ve seen a number of guys that have responded in a very positive way in their performance. It was great to see for Leonys.”

Notes

• Cano’s three-run homer extended his hitting streak to 13 games at Minute Maid Park. This season he’s hitting .476 (20 for 42) with a 1.119 slugging percentage, including six doubles, seven homers and 11 RBI.

“I love it with the way I swing here,” he said.