Skip to content

Some notable deaths of active pro baseball players

A look at some of the notable deaths of active pro baseball players in recent years:

- Jan. 22, 2017: Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura, 25, was killed in a car crash in his native Dominican Republic. He went 14-10 with a 3.20 ERA in 2014, his first full season in the big leagues, and helped Kansas City reach the World Series for the first time since 1985. The right-hander went 11-12 with a 4.45 ERA last season.

- Jan. 22, 2017: Andy Marte, 33, died in a separate car crash in his native Dominican Republic. Marte played in the majors from 2005-2010 with Atlanta and Cleveland, and returned in 2014 with Arizona. The infielder hit .218 with 21 home runs and 99 RBIs in the big leagues. He spent the past two seasons in South Korea, where he hit 22 homers last year.

- Sept. 25, 2016: Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez, 24, was killed in a boating accident. It's not clear who was driving, but the ace right-hander had cocaine and alcohol in his system when his boat crashed into a Miami Beach jetty, according to toxicology reports. Fernandez had a blood-alcohol content level of 0.147, well above Florida's legal limit of 0.08, according to autopsy reports.

- Oct. 26, 2014: Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras was killed in a car crash in his native Dominican Republic, along with his girlfriend. Earlier in the month, Taveras had homered in the NL playoffs. Dominican officials said Taveras, 22, was legally intoxicated when his car ran into a tree.

- April 9, 2009: Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart, 22, was killed in a car crash hours after pitching six shutout innings in Anaheim against the Athletics. Two of Adenhart's friends also were killed. A man who was on probation for felony drunken driving was sentenced to 51 years to life in prison. Prosecutors said the driver's blood-alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit when he ran a red light and hit the car carrying Adenhart and three friends.

- April 29, 2007: Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock, a 29-year-old reliever, was killed when his SUV hit the back of a tow truck parked on a highway to help a driver from another accident. Authorities determined Hancock's blood-alcohol level was nearly twice Missouri's legal limit and that he was going 68 mph in a 55 mph zone and talking on his cellphone when the crash occurred.

- Oct. 11, 2006: Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle was killed when his small plane crashed into a Manhattan high-rise apartment building. The accident came four days after New York lost in the AL playoffs. The 34-year-old Lidle had gotten his pilot's license earlier in the year. His flight instructor also was killed in the crash, and the National Transportation Safety Board said it couldn't be determined who was at the controls at the time.

- Feb. 17, 2003: Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler, 23, died a day after collapsing during a spring training workout in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A medical examiner said the diet supplement ephedra was partly to blame for Bechler's death.

- June 22, 2002: Cardinals pitcher Darryl Kile died in his hotel room in Chicago from a blockage of the arteries supplying the heart. The 33-year-old's body was found after he wasn't at Wrigley Field for a game.

- March 1993: Indians pitchers Steve Olin, 27, and Tim Crews, 31, were killed when their power boat hit a dock at night on Little Lake Nellie, near Cleveland's spring training camp in central Florida. Pitcher Bob Ojeda was injured in the crash. Investigators determined that Crews, who was driving the boat, had a blood-alcohol level over the state's legal limit.

- Aug. 2, 1979: Yankees catcher Thurman Munson was killed when the plane he was piloting crashed near Ohio's Akron-Canton Airport. The 32-year-old team captain had gone home for a day and was practicing landings and takeoffs. Two passengers in the plane survived.

- Sept. 23, 1978: Angels outfielder Lyman Bostock, 27, had gone to visit relatives in Gary, Indiana, after a game in Chicago and was riding in a car when he was killed by a shotgun blast intended for someone else in the vehicle.

- Dec. 31, 1972: Pirates outfielder Roberto Clemente, 38, was killed when a plane carrying relief supplies for earthquake victims in Nicaragua crashed on its way from Puerto Rico. Clemente had gotten his 3,000th and final hit in his last at-bat of the regular season. He was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1973 in a special election.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox