Aledmys Diaz honored his childhood teammate Jose Fernandez with a grand slam
On Monday morning, Cardinals shortstop
One day later, though, Diaz was back in St. Louis and in the lineup for the Cardinals' game against the Reds.
"I think the best way to honor him," he told MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch, "is to come here every day and play this game 100 percent."
In the fourth inning, he did just that -- in grand style:
"It means a lot for me," Diaz told Langosch after the game. "I did that for his family. I've been through a lot of things the last couple days. This helped a little bit. Right now and going forward, every time I put on a uniform, I want to think of him and the way he played baseball. He gave everything every day. I think that's his legacy."
The first grand slam of Diaz's career helped propel the Cardinals to a 12-5 win, and he dedicated it to just one person:
Diaz spent Monday mourning in Miami and before returning to #STLCards lineup today said, "I only play for [Fernandez's] family right now."
— Jenifer Langosch (@LangoschMLB) September 28, 2016
As the Marlins' Twitter account pointed out later, Jose would definitely approve:
— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) September 28, 2016