Loria: Marlins planning 'wonderful' memorial for Fernandez

Jose Fernandez, the 24-year-old right-hander who died in a September boating accident, will forever have a presence at Miami Marlins games, as the club plans to build a permanent memorial to the late Cuban outside Marlins Park, people close to the team told Jon Heyman of Today's Knuckleball.

Jeffrey Loria, the bereaved Marlins owner, didn't offer details about the memorial, but noted that it will be "something wonderful."

Related: 'Still so hard' for grieving Marlins GM to get back to business

A fixture in the Miami community, Fernandez's tragic death rocked south Florida, and the makeshift memorial on the plaza outside Marlins Park has been visited by thousands of fans over the past few weeks.

At this week's general manager meetings, Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill admitted it's "still so hard" for him to focus on his work, and Loria recently echoed his sentiment.

"I'm having a rough time getting through this," Loria said.