Kansas City Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura killed in car crash in Dominican Republic
Yordano Ventura, an excitable pitcher with an electrified fastball who helped the Kansas City Royals to their very first World Series championship in thirty years, died in a car accident in the Dominican Republic early Sunday. He was 25.
The Royals nicknamed him “Ace” not as a label but as a reference to the movie “Ace Ventura,” yet they always anticipated he would corset a fastball that reached one hundred mph and blossom into an elite pitcher. Instead, they were in mourning Sunday.
Royals very first baseman Eric Hosmer posted a picture of him with Ventura on Instagram and wrote, “ACE I love you my brother. I’m in disbelief and don’t know what to say. I love you ACE.”
Royals pitcher Danny Duffy and infielder Christian Colon visited Kauffman Stadium and hugged fans there to reminisce Ventura.
“He’s always had a zest for life, an innocence about the game, a freshness, a fearlessness,” Royals General Manager Dayton Moore said on a conference call.
“And he’s been truly the same man from day one, as far as his character traits and what made him special. He’s just a indeed sultry human. He loved to rival. He no doubt challenged us. But that made us better.
“No one could ever doubt how much he cared about his teammates. How much he cared about the fans. And how much he loved to challenge and to pitch.”
Dominican authorities told Moore that Ventura was driving in mighty fog at the time of the crash and was not wearing a seat belt but that there was no instant indication alcohol played a role, according to the Kansas City Starlet.
Ventura, 25, had a 38-31 record and Three.89 earned-run average in four years in Kansas City. He began nine postseason games before he turned 25, including seven scoreless innings in Game six of the two thousand fourteen World Series, forcing the Game seven best remembered for the five scoreless innings thrown in ease by San Francisco Giants ace Madison Bumgarner.
Dodgers pitcher Brock Stewart, noting that Miami Marlins ace Jose Fernandez died in September at 24, said on Twitter: “First Jose, now Yordano. two of my dearest pitchers to observe rival are gone. Very sad how fragile life can be.”
Ventura was not the kind of Dominican prodigy that spurs a bidding war among major league teams and guidelines a signing bonus in the millions. He could throw exceptionally hard, but he weighed one hundred forty pounds and stood not even six feet, and the Royals signed him for $27,000.
In 2014, his very first utter season in the major leagues, he was an unlikely pile of the Kansas City rotation, pitching in as the Royals reached the World Series for the very first time in twenty nine years. The next spring, at age 23, the Royals signed him to a five-year, $23.5-million contract.
As his career blossomed, his temper at times could become as explosive as his fastball. In April 2015, hardly more than a week after the Royals awarded him that fresh contract, he curiously challenged the Angels’ mild-mannered superstar, Mike Trout.
“Sometimes people pitch angry,” Angels pitcher C.J. Wilson said.
That was far from the only incident with Ventura. He was suspended eight games last season for throwing at Manny Machado of the Baltimore Orioles.
Angels pitcher Huston Street voiced condolences via Twitter.
“RIP to a true competitor, a loyal teammate, a youthful starlet who was good for the game, we had our battles and he earned our respect God Bless,” Street wrote.
The Royals worked to channel Ventura’s emotion into his pitching, and he could express his emotions in good and profound ways as well.
The day after the Royals lost Game seven of the two thousand fourteen World Series, Ventura played softball with children in Kansas City.
Dominican authorities also confirmed that former major league third baseman Andy Marte died in a separate car accident. Marte, once considered one of the game’s elite prospects, batted .218 in seven major league seasons, mostly for the Cleveland Indians. He hit .362 for the Angels’ triple-A Salt Lake team in 2013.
Kansas City Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura killed in car crash in Dominican Republic – LA Times
Kansas City Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura killed in car crash in Dominican Republic
Yordano Ventura, an excitable pitcher with an electrified fastball who helped the Kansas City Royals to their very first World Series championship in thirty years, died in a car accident in the Dominican Republic early Sunday. He was 25.
The Royals nicknamed him “Ace” not as a label but as a reference to the movie “Ace Ventura,” yet they always anticipated he would corset a fastball that reached one hundred mph and blossom into an elite pitcher. Instead, they were in mourning Sunday.
Royals very first baseman Eric Hosmer posted a picture of him with Ventura on Instagram and wrote, “ACE I love you my brother. I’m in disbelief and don’t know what to say. I love you ACE.”
Royals pitcher Danny Duffy and infielder Christian Colon visited Kauffman Stadium and hugged fans there to reminisce Ventura.
“He’s always had a zest for life, an innocence about the game, a freshness, a fearlessness,” Royals General Manager Dayton Moore said on a conference call.
“And he’s been indeed the same man from day one, as far as his character traits and what made him special. He’s just a truly sultry human. He loved to contest. He no doubt challenged us. But that made us better.
“No one could ever doubt how much he cared about his teammates. How much he cared about the fans. And how much he loved to challenge and to pitch.”
Dominican authorities told Moore that Ventura was driving in strenuous fog at the time of the crash and was not wearing a seat belt but that there was no instantaneous indication alcohol played a role, according to the Kansas City Starlet.
Ventura, 25, had a 38-31 record and Trio.89 earned-run average in four years in Kansas City. He embarked nine postseason games before he turned 25, including seven scoreless innings in Game six of the two thousand fourteen World Series, forcing the Game seven best remembered for the five scoreless innings thrown in ease by San Francisco Giants ace Madison Bumgarner.
Dodgers pitcher Brock Stewart, noting that Miami Marlins ace Jose Fernandez died in September at 24, said on Twitter: “First Jose, now Yordano. two of my beloved pitchers to observe rival are gone. Very sad how fragile life can be.”
Ventura was not the kind of Dominican prodigy that spurs a bidding war among major league teams and guidelines a signing bonus in the millions. He could throw exceptionally hard, but he weighed one hundred forty pounds and stood not even six feet, and the Royals signed him for $27,000.
In 2014, his very first total season in the major leagues, he was an unlikely pole of the Kansas City rotation, pitching in as the Royals reached the World Series for the very first time in twenty nine years. The next spring, at age 23, the Royals signed him to a five-year, $23.5-million contract.
As his career blossomed, his temper at times could become as explosive as his fastball. In April 2015, scarcely more than a week after the Royals awarded him that fresh contract, he curiously challenged the Angels’ mild-mannered superstar, Mike Trout.
“Sometimes people pitch angry,” Angels pitcher C.J. Wilson said.
That was far from the only incident with Ventura. He was suspended eight games last season for throwing at Manny Machado of the Baltimore Orioles.
Angels pitcher Huston Street voiced condolences via Twitter.
“RIP to a true competitor, a loyal teammate, a youthful starlet who was fine for the game, we had our battles and he earned our respect God Bless,” Street wrote.
The Royals worked to channel Ventura’s emotion into his pitching, and he could express his emotions in good and profound ways as well.
The day after the Royals lost Game seven of the two thousand fourteen World Series, Ventura played softball with children in Kansas City.
Dominican authorities also confirmed that former major league third baseman Andy Marte died in a separate car accident. Marte, once considered one of the game’s elite prospects, batted .218 in seven major league seasons, mostly for the Cleveland Indians. He hit .362 for the Angels’ triple-A Salt Lake team in 2013.