MLB reacts to death of Cardinals' Oscar Taveras

After news broke that St. Louis Cardinals top
prospect Oscar Taveras and his girlfriend were
killed in a car accident in the Dominican
Republic on Sunday, a stunned baseball
community immediately reached out via social
media to pay its respects and express its
sadness.
Among the many were Taveras' Cardinal
teammates, who just 10 days ago were battling
alongside him against the San Francisco Giants
in the National League Championship Series.
So sad to hear about Oscar. My prayers go out
to his family. In complete shock.. So sad.. Life
isn't fair
— Randal Grichuk (@RGrich15) October 27, 2014
Absolute Tragedy.. My prayers go out to Oscar
Taveras family.
— Matt Carpenter (@MattCarp13) October 27,
2014
Wow! My heart truly hurts to hear the passing
of Oscar! I've played with him every year and
we truly lost a great person! #RIPOscarTaveras
— Kolten Wong (@KoltenWong) October 27, 2014
Last 30 minutes I've been sick to my stomach.
Keep thinking about Oscar's big smile in the
dugout whenever we made a big play/got a big
hit
— Pat Neshek (@PatNeshek) October 27, 2014
Oscar was the last teammate I saw in St. L.
— Pat Neshek (@PatNeshek) October 27, 2014
I joked with him since our apartments were
next to each other about how he could fit nearly
12 dozen bats in his car.
— Pat Neshek (@PatNeshek) October 27, 2014
Yahoo baseball reporter Jeff Passan confirmed
the news as Game 5 of the World Series began
in San Francisco. He was able to get a word with
Matt Holliday, who was likely to share outfield
space with Taveras for several years to come.
Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday on the late
Oscar Taveras: “It’s a young man that had a
chance to be a huge, bright star.”
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 27, 2014
Fox viewers were informed in a short message
by Ken Rosenthal before the top of the fourth
inning. It didn't take long for the sad news to
reach the players involved.
Several Giants players have come over to my TV
in dugout when heard news abt Taveras..Juan
Perez in tears in dugout..
— Erin Andrews (@ErinAndrews) October 27,
2014
In the Dominican Republic, rivals Licey and
Aguilas came together on the field to pay tribute
to Taveras.
Cuando la rivalidad se pone a un lado..
Jugadores de Licey y Aguilas se abrazan en
oración por Oscar Taveras pic.twitter.com/
ekm6LpAHUm
— LigaDom.com (@LigaDomcom) October 27,
2014
Taveras had been scheduled to play for Águilas
in this year's winter league. His jersey, bat, and
batting helmet were seen hanging in the dugout.
Cardinals fans have also started a memorial for
Taveras at the foot of Stan Musial's statue
outside Busch Stadium.
People starting to pay respects to Oscar Taveras
at the foot of the Musial statue. Sad day in
#CardinalNation pic.twitter.com/bHvBGHJVKi
— Ashley Green (@ashnicole83) October 27,
2014
"All of us throughout Major League Baseball are
in mourning this evening, shocked by the
heartbreaking news of the accident involving
Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras and his
girlfriend in the Dominican Republic, MLB
Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement on
Sunday night.
“With heavy hearts, tonight we play Game Five
of the 2014 World Series in the memory of
these two young people.”
MLBPA executive director Tony Clark also
released a statement.
"We are very saddened to learned of the news
that a car accident has claimed the life of Oscar
Taveras and his girlfriend in the Dominican
Republic. Oscar had a very promising future, on
and off the field, and this news is heartbreaking
on many levels. It's never easy to lose a
member of our fraternity, and to lose one so
young is devastating news. Our thoughts and
prayers go out to the families and friends of
both, as well as to the St. Louis Cardinals
organization and Oscar's many fans in the
United States and Dominican Republic."
Taveras had already made many fans and many
friends in baseball. It's heartbreaking to think
about the many more he would have made in
the years to come.
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