Jose Fernandez

A team's fortunes over the course of a six-month season typically hinge on more than one factor, but depending on how critical said factor is, that one wild card can affect things greatly.

It can be a good or bad performance. It can be a health issue, for better or worse. It can be how a player bounces back from an injury or a poor previous season. It can even be how a player produces during the ever-important contract year.

The Miami Marlins are looking to sign their biggest stars long term and have offered yet another young player a long-term deal. This time, it's pitcher Jose Fernandez who was reportedly offered a six-year, $40 million contract.    

MLB's official Twitter account passed along the report:

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Miami Marlins have a 20-18 record, good for third place in the National League East. However, they could be losing one of their biggest stars.

It's already been a bad year for elbows. The Tommy John surgeries have been plentiful, and all have been painful to some degree or another.

But none quite so much as the Tommy John operation that Jose Fernandez might be headed for. It would be a staggering blow felt not just by the Miami Marlins, but Major League Baseball, too.

The Miami Marlins got quite the shock on Monday. Jose Fernandez was sent to Los Angeles for an MRI to check his elbow. According to Ken Rosenthal of MLB Network, the diagnosis was a sprained elbow. That diagnosis specifically points to UCL involvement. The UCL is the ligament replaced in Tommy John surgery.

Updates from Tuesday, May 13

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports provides an update on Jose Fernandez's injury and recovery:

Despite being all of 21 years old with just 35 career starts in the big leagues, Jose Fernandez has a pretty good case for being considered the best pitcher in Major League Baseball right now.

Hey, the Miami Marlins are 1-0 and are in the first place in the National League East.

At this rate, they will go 162-0 and win the World Series.

Too much, too soon?

Let's flashback one year. After only 11 starts in Double-A, the Marlins announce that a 20-year-old named Jose Fernandez will break camp with the big league squad. Most had predicted perhaps a late-season call-up for Fernandez as the extent of his time spent in Miami for the 2013 campaign. 

The MLB Rookie of the Year Award can be a lottery draw or a done deal. Wil Myers of the Tampa Bay Rays and Jose Fernandez of the Miami Marlins might as well start celebrating early because they deserve the coveted honor.