On July 8th 2012, the future stars of Major League Baseball
descended upon Kaufmann stadium in Kansas City. Both rosters were packed full
of big names, bright futures, and dreams of changing some team's fortunes. The
USA roster included the likes of Gerrit Cole (Pirates), Nolan Arenado
(Rockies), Manny Machado (Orioles), Kolten Wong (Cardinals), Wil Myers
(Royals); among many other hopeful names. The World roster consisted of Oscar
Taveras (Cardinals), Yordano Ventura (Royals), Jose Fernandez (Marlins), Xander
Bogaerts (Red Sox), Francisco Lindor (Indians); just to name a few. The final
score was 17-5 in favor of the USA however the score was as relevant as the
storyline of a Jason Statham movie. The main takeaway of the game was the
future of the MLB was extremely bright. Three of those futures were ended much
to soon in three different accidents.
Oscar Taveras was killed at the age of 22
in a car accident in his home country of the Dominican Republic. This accident
also took the life of his girlfriend, Edilia Arvelo. Taveras' blood alcohol
content was five times the legal limit at the time of the accident. Jose
Fernandez was killed at the age of 24 in a boating accident in Florida along
with two of his friends. Fernandez was legally drunk and cocaine was found in
his system at the time of the accident. This past week another tragedy struck
in the Dominican; Yordano Ventura was killed in a car accident at the age of
25.
In the short time these three played in
the Futures Game, you could tell all three had star potential. Yordano was the
starting pitcher for the World Team in what would become his home stadium in
Kansas City. He only pitched one inning but it was a clean inning; he then gave
way for Fernandez to pitch. Jose also only had one inning but got two of his
three outs by way of the strikeout; which would become a major part in his
short pitching career.
After the Futures Game all three players eventually made it up to the
big leagues; Jose and Yordano in 2013, and Oscar in 2014. When Oscar
was called up he was the second ranked prospect in baseball. He played in 80
games for the Cardinals with three homeruns and a .239 average; the numbers
seem pedestrian but there were many flashes of his brilliance. In his first
game Oscar hit a towering home run against the San Francisco Giants. In one of
his final at bats, Taveras hit a game tying home run in the 7th inning of Game
Two of the NLCS, once again against the Giants. When Jose Fernandez was brought
up to the big leagues he immediately dominated batters and made it look easy
while doing it. He was the 2013 Rookie of the Year and made two All-Star Game
appearances in his young career. He was 38-17 in his career with a 2.58 ERA and
that came with two seasons where he made a combined 19 appearances. He was
always smiling, loved the game, and never let a moment pass him by. Yordano
Ventura only made 3 appearances in 2013, however he started leaving his mark on
the league in 2014. He was a starter for the Royals in 2014 and brought his
fiery personality every time he took the mound. His career numbers were 38-31
with a 3.89 ERA but he will be remembered for a few other moments. In only his
second start he threw one of the hardest pitches every recorded for a starting
pitcher when he struck out David Freese with a 102.9 mph fastball. He was the
winning pitcher in Game 6 of the 2014 World Series while honoring Taveras on
his hat and cleats. While the Royals would lose that World Series they would
get another chance in 2015 and Yordano would become a World Champ.
All three of these young players had
extremely bright futures and their lives were tragically cut short. When
something like this happens with athletes or Hollywood stars it brings
awareness around to these issues for a little while. However these tragic
moments should remind all of us just how fragile life is and that these
accidents occur everyday. It should make us take a step back and be sure
everyone is reminded how important life is and that nothing is guaranteed.
These three young men have also shown us to love what you do and to live your
life to the fullest. All three of them showed an inspiring love for the game
and for life. R.I.P Oscar, Jose, and Yordano; thank you for sharing your
passion with us.
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