January 23rd, 2017 at 10:00 am 
by Evan Bladh The news that Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura and KBO standout and former MLB infielder Andy Marte were both killed in separate vehicular accidents in the Dominican Republic on Sunday – although horribly tragic – shouldn’t come as a complete surprise.
Please understand that in no way is this meant to be disrespectful towards the families, friends and teammates of Ventura and Marte but it’s a painfully cold hard fact.
One thing about the Dominican Republic and ball players is certain: the mixture of dangerous two lane roads with little enforcement or regard for safety laws coupled with young, rich ball players in fast cars is a recipe for disaster. This is something that MLB should address immediately in an awareness and safety campaign for players from the island nation.
“The Dominican Republic is the most dangerous place to drive in the Western Hemisphere.” – World Health Organization
According to global statistics compiled by road safety reports provided by the World Health Organization, the D.R. is the most dangerous place to drive in the Western Hemisphere. That’s saying a lot because I have traversed the entire region and experienced some harrowing experiences in some countries. I find it hard to believe that things are more dangerous there than such countries as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Nicaragua, Mexico, Peru and El Salvador. But the stats tell us that the DR is worse than them all.
Making matters worse, the Dominican Republic has more motorcycles per capita than any other nation in the Americas, (1.7 million cycles in a nation of 10 million people), with very few complying with motor vehicle laws and helmet requirements.
Traffic accidents are among the leading cause of death in the Dominican Republic.
(Photo courtesy of theguardian.com)
Then there is the problem of drunk driving – something that is at the level of epic proportions in this country and abroad. St. Louis Cardinal standout Oscar Tavares was intoxicated at a level five times over the legal limit when he killed himself and his girlfriend on a wet and slippery Dominican road shortly after the season ended in October of 2014. Additionally, Rufino Linares, Andujar Cedeño, Jose Uribe and Jose Oliva, all former MLB players, also succumbed to vehicular deaths in the Dominican Republic over the past several years.
I understand that some may claim that my observations may be seen as uncaring and perhaps even racist. The truth of the matter is the opposite. These guys need to be educated and informed. The stats can’t be ignored. The deaths continue to pile up and something needs to be done.
The Dominican Republic is not uncommon to other Latin American countries, with numerous unsafe vehicles on the road, non-functioning lights, dilapidated trucks, bumperless and doorless vehicles lacking in safety features often on unlit and unkept highways. Young kids and fast cars are a recipe for disaster no matter where they are in the world, but this place is much more dangerous than most. As much as the Dodgers invest in teaching young up-and-coming Dominican ball players of cultural adjustments to living in the United States, why not provide some basic traffic safety and awareness courses to boot?
These ball players are young, many from impoverished areas, who have suddenly become millionaires. They return home with their money, purchase flashy cars and the stage is now set for disaster and tragedy.
The deaths of Ventura and Marte should serve as a wake-up call to MLB that this problem needs to be addressed. Let their deaths not be in vain.
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I don’t think you come across as uncaring or racist at all. I think it would uncaring to ignore it. There is an obvious problem, but the solution is not as clear or obvious. I do not know what MLB can do, but they have found ways to invest millions in facilities. At the very least, MLB should insist that organizations educate their players about the problems. And maybe they do and we just do not know about it. Maybe Manfred’s office can get with the Secretary of State’s office to open a dialogue with the Dominican government to determine if there is something that might be done where MLB can participate. There is no easy quick-fix, but I wholeheartedly agree that it cannot be ignored, and it should at least be openly discussed so that tragedies like this can be mitigated. Too many lives are lost (players and non-players), and as you surmise, if any good can come out of these deaths, please let it happen.
Excellent piece, Evan. It’s tough to talk about such things when the memory is so painfully fresh but this is something too serious to ignore.
I agree with AC that perhaps the MLB (or MiLB) may already be doing something like you suggest. If not, shame on them.
It has to be done at the minor league level as players reaching MLB at ages 22-24 have already had several years of driving.
I think the Dodgers may be active at the minor league level in a number of ways – eating better, drug and alcohol education, learning to live with some celebrity and the hazards associated with it, financial planning, etc. That is, helping young men become better men. I don’t know if that includes the hazards of driving in Latin America.
I am not sure what help can be given to those driving in Latin American countries as the hazards of the driving conditions you describe will still be there. On the personal level, the enticement of speed in high powered cars, especially the first one, will be a difficult mindset to overcome. In the final analysis, drug and alcohol consumption by players in the DR and elsewhere – while driving – become a personal responsibility.
It is a difficult one as there is a separation from the long baseball season and young players then set free for a period of time in a carefree environment, especially those who make a lot of money.
Try to educate, bring in speakers who have been there in accidents, family members who have lost young players, etc., but the players can’t be kept in a bubble. Inoculate and hope it takes.
I am in the DR currently and I can tell you that driving here is very precarious. I have lived in Mexico for many years and I am very comfortable driving anywhere in Mexico but this is something totally different. I decided a long time ago that I would not be driving here. Almost no one follows anything close to standard driving rules. My business partner, who is from the DR, does all of the driving but it is very hectic and dangerous. You need to keep eyes open at all times not just for the mopeds and motorcycles that follow absolutely no rules of the road but the expensive sports cars that zip by you at well over 120-150 mph. Yesterday on our way to an MLB team academy a Ferrari zipped by us at a ridiculous speed. It is a miracle that this sort of thing doesn’t happen more often. All of the stars (and even ones who are not stars) purchase very expensive sports cars to show to their prosperity. There is little or no police presence on the highways. If you add alcohol into the mix it is a recipe for disaster. There is not much that the MLB can do to control this. If the DR doesn’t invest in enforcing its own traffic laws, this sort of thing will continue to happen as it does in the DR to people who are not famous everyday.
I have to admit, Robb, that while editing Evan’s outstanding piece, I couldn’t wait to hear what your take was, knowing that you are currently in the DR.
Perhaps you can enlighten us – is there any type of education in this regard for young baseball players?