A Tribute to a Hall of Famer and a Young Rookie Pitcher

The world of Baseball has recently seen two high profile passings...One of that of Hall of Famer George Kell, and the tragic death of 22-year old Nick Adenhart of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

George Kell 1922-2009

George Kell had a brief, but Hall of Fame career with the Detroit Tigers, Philadelphia A's, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, and Baltimore Orioles. Perhaps his greatest achievement as a player was beating out Ted Williams for the batting title by .0002 (Kell, .3429; Williams .3427), in 1949. After his playing days were over, he became an announcer for the Orioles, CBS television, and NBC Radio. In 1959, he joined the Tigers as a play-by-play announcer where he remained until his retirement in 1996. In 1975, another Tigers' great, Al Kaline, joined Kell as his broadcast partner. On a personal note, I grew up watching Kell and Kaline on TV. They were Tiger Baseball on Television as was Ernie Harwell and Paul Carey were to Radio. Kell's slow, down home, friendly style was popular with everyone. He said very few words and let the pictures do the talking. I had followed Kell after his retirement. He had a rough time with a car accident, a fire at his home, and the death of his wife. Through all that, he maintained his love for the Tigers' and watched almost every game. I had the pleasure of seeing him in person at Tiger Stadium at the first game of the last series ever at The Corner. Although he was on the field and I was in the stands, I was able to snap a picture of him. He is one person with whom I would have loved to have met. My dad also held him in very high esteem and would have loved to have had the chance to sit down and talk to him. George Kell will be sorely missed by not only by the Tigers and their fans, but by baseball, and by my dad and I as well...

Nick Adenhart 1986-2009

Nick Adenhart was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the 14th Round of the 2004 draft, right out of High School. He was a projected overall #1 pick until he blew out his elbow that May of the draft and had to have Tommy John Surgery. He was named Baseball America's Youth Player of the Year in 2003. He was named the #1 prospect in the Angels' organization for this upcoming season by Baseball America. After a successful climb through the Minors, he started three games for the Angels last season. Despite giving up 12 runs in 12 innings, he did record his first Major League win. He was disappointed with his Major League debut giving up 5 runs in just 2 innings. Adenhart worked hard over the winter and in Spring Training this year, earning him a spot in the Angels' rotation as their #3 starter (necessary due to injuries to much of the Angels' rotation). In his first start of the year last night, and with his father in the stands, he pitched 6 scoreless innings against the Oakland Athletics, scattering 7 hits, walking 3 and striking out 5. A strong outing for a kid with so much promise...hours later, he would be dead. Adenhart, who was a passenger in a Mitsubishi Eclipse with three other people, was broadsided in an intersection after a mini-van ran a red light at around 12:30am. Two of the passengers in the vehicle were pronounced dead at the scene. Adenhart was pronounced dead later, in surgery, at University of California, Irvine Medical Center. A fourth passenger in the vehicle was expected to recover. The driver of the mini-van, driving with a suspended license for prior DUI arrests, fled the scene after the accident. He was caught by police about 30 minutes later where the driver registered a blood alcohol level over the .08 legal limit in California. He is expected to be charged with Hit-and-Run, DUI, Vehicular Manslaughter, and possibly murder. Needless to say, the Angels, Adenhart's family, and all of baseball are shocked and saddened by this tragedy.



Two separate deaths...Two different ends of the spectrum...One having lived a full life after a brilliant, Hall of Fame career...One having so much life left to live...One sad...One tragic...Both losses for everyone, not only in baseball, but in life...