I realize that each year, sports figures die and this year is no different. The strange thing about the last two months is that it seems that most lead a long life, died at an early age, or died under some weird circumstance. The latter was the case of Geremi Gonzalez. Gonzalez had pitched for the Chicago Cubs, Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers. He appeared in a total of 131 games before pitching his final MLB game in 2006. He was killed last Monday on a beach in his native Venezuela when he was struck by lightening. Struck by lightening? How many people get killed by lightening strikes each year? Actually, quite a few (in the U.S. alone, an average of 67 people are killed each year by lightening), but how many former major leaguers are killed by lightening?
Just in the last two months alone, I counted at least eleven sports figures that have died. Curtis Whitley played center for the San Diego Chargers, Carolina Panthers, and Oakland Raiders in NFL. He was found dead in his trailer on May 11th at the age of 33. The cause of his death is still unknown. On May 1, Buzzie Bavasi died. He was an influential MLB executive who was also partially responsible for the integration of baseball. They say only the good die young, but Bavasi must have been repaid for his good deeds – he lived to the ripe old age of 93.
Another sports figure who lived a long life was Will Robinson. Robinson was the first black coach of a Division I program (Illinois State University) and a well-known Detroit Pistons scout. He died on April 28 at the age of 95. John H. McConnell, a steel mogul who was the majority owner of the Columbus Blue Jackets, passed away on April 25th. He died less than a month short of his 85th birthday. Tommy Holmes, who hit safely in 37 straight games in the major leagues, died of natural causes at the age of 91.
Then there was the death of 19-year-old Deshean Porchea. Sadly, the young Alabama State basketball player passed out after playing a game on April 23 and never regained consciousness. Another young athlete, Georgia Tech pitcher Michael Hutts, was found dead at the age of 21 on April 11th of an accidental overdose. Twenty seven year old extreme skier John Nicoletta fell to his death while trying to ski off rocks at the Subaru Freeskiing World Championships on April 11th. NASCAR inspector Brienne Davis, age 28, died on April 8th in a car accident. And, while former MLB catcher and radio host John Marzano, his was a odd death. The 45-year-old died after falling down a flight of stairs.