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RIP Yordano Ventura

I don't know how many of you are familiar with Yordano Ventura. But he was a starting pitcher for the Kansas City Royals. Very sadly he was killed late last night in a car accident in his home country of the Dominican Republic.

He was only 25 years old.

He pitched three or four seasons for KC. He had a blazing fastball that often clocked over 100 mph. The Royals organization always thought he was going to be a star. His most memorable performance came in Game 6 of the 2014 World Series with KC trailing San Francisco 3 games to 2 and needing a win. He pitched 7 scoreless innings and forced Game 7 where KC lost 3-2. But of course KC won the World Series in 2015.

If you live in KC or the Dominican Republic, this really hits home.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on January 22, 2017 at 5:12pm

So sad. Seems like we lose one young potential star a year.

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Permalink Reply by James on January 22, 2017 at 5:22pm

Yes, that's true. Earlier this baseball season, Jose Fernandez, the early-20s, pitching star for Miami was killed in a boating accident. Just tragic.

Eerily, when Yordano pitched his incredible Game 6 of the 2014 World Series, pitching seven scoreless innings and only allowing 2 hits, before the game began, he paid honor to a friend.

Just two days before Game 6, his fellow Dominican friend, a young outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, Oscar Taveras, was killed in the Dominican in a car wreck. In his memory, Yordano wrote RIP and his friend's initials and jersey number on his shoes and/or baseball cap. Little did he know the same tragic thing would happen to him.

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Permalink Reply by James on January 22, 2017 at 8:16pm

Here's an interesting tidbit of how sometimes we react after one of our heroes dies. I'm not taking anything away from Darth Vader legend David Prowse. I just looked at these results because I've been shopping around for David Prowse items. Well...today on eBay, zero David Prowse PSA/DNA signed items sold. On the the other hand, 16 Yordano Ventura PSA/DNA signed items have been sold.

And on Amazon, 7 of the top 9 selling trading cards are Yordano Ventura.

Again, I mean no disrespect to Mr. Prowse. It's just an example of how we react sometimes when a star passes away. I can't lie. Ive rushed out to buy something the same way before, and I can't promise that I won't do it again this time. I guess it probably a better idea to buy a piece of our favorite celebs while they're still with us.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on January 22, 2017 at 8:52pm

A comedian did a routine years ago, in 2004 I think, called "Autograph Collector Magazine." He asked the audience, "can you believe a magazine on autographs actually exists?"

He said he was browsing the magazine and came across this article title: John Ritter's Death Reminds Us...Get That Autograph NOW!

I think he made that up, but it would have been a popular article.

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Permalink Reply by James on January 22, 2017 at 9:34pm

That's funny, Steve! Thanks for sharing it. So true. It would have been a popular article. I think it's something we all understand now. We think...I should get her autograph. I really like her. Well...maybe I'll get it later. The budget's a little tight right now. But something terrible happens...and we think...I've just got to have it now! I've been guilty of it, but doing it that way can be costly!