Royals supported Ventura's fiery personality: 'That's just who he was'

Yordano Ventura's actions on the mound often led to a reputation that the 25-year-old starter didn't respect the game or his opponents.

Members of the Kansas City Royals, however, knew Ventura as a dedicated and passionate young man with a burning desire to get better. His admiration for the game - as well as his determination to improve - resonated throughout the organization during his four years with the club.

"That's just who he was," Royals outfielder Alex Gordon said, according to MLB.com's Jeffrey Flanagan. "He had that fiery personality, and sometimes, it got the best of him. But that was something he needed to be successful. We had his back."

Dave Eiland, the Royals' pitching coach since 2011, was there for all four years of Ventura's career. Eiland was able to see a young pitcher with immense potential grow year by year, and says the hard-throwing right-hander brought a ton of passion with him into the Royals clubhouse.

Related: Duffy: Ventura had an enormous heart and loved his teammates

"I'm always going to remember our talks, not just about baseball but about life," Eiland said. "People just saw the blowups on the mound, but they never saw the great kid inside that he was. That wasn't who he was on the mound. He was a great kid, a fun-loving kid.

"This is all so hard to take. It's so fresh. But my feeling right now is that it's never going to be the same. It's just not going to feel the same. But we have to somehow carry on. We have to fight to carry on. That's what he would have done."

Echoing the same sentiments was former Royal Edinson Volquez, who told MLB.com at the end of the season referring to Ventura's character: "You don't want to take that energy away from him. He's got to have that passion."

The 25-year-old died in a car accident on Sunday in his native of Dominican Republic. The right-hander had a career 38-31 record, including a World Series championship in 2015.