SP Mark "The Bird" Fidrych dies in an accident

[missionhockey21]

Horrible news. Fidrych was a lot of fun both on the mound and when I saw him on MLB Network. He was quite a character and 54 is way too young to leave us.

Baseball seems to always have bad news come in bunches.

RIP Mark.

BOSTON (AP) -- Former All-Star pitcher Mark "The Bird" Fidrych has been found dead in an apparent accident at his farm in Northborough, Massachusetts. He was 54.

Worcester County district attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. says a family friend found Fidrych about 2:30 p.m. Monday beneath a pickup truck. He appeared to be working on the truck, Early said.

The colorful right-hander was the American League rookie of the year in 1976 when he went 19-9 with a 2.34 earned run average. He spent all five of his major league seasons with the Detroit Tigers, compiling a 29-19 record and a 3.10 ERA.

His career was cut short by injuries.

Former pitcher Mark Fidrych found dead at his home - MLB - SI.com

[love_that_reefer]

Baseball has lost three men in less than a week! Terrible, terrible opening week of baseball.

[catman]

Bad things come in threes, so hopefully, this is the end of baseball's tragedies.
Mark Fidrych was one of the most popular players ever in the game. His stuff was electric and his antics were very entertaining. Baseball purists came to watch him make hitters look bad and casual fans came to see what he was going to do next. Injuries ended his career too soon.
Later in life, he was satisfied with where he was. No "what if" questions.
Rest in peace, Mark.

[missionhockey21]

Its really a shame too, he could have been a great addition to MLB Network as I don't think a lot of younger fans know too much about him, or how good his stuff was, since his career was so relatively short.

[love_that_reefer]

I remember watching one of those sports bloopers shows as a kid, maybe 8 or 9, and he cracked me up and it just showed his joy for the game and the joy others had from watching him. That was my first memory of seeing him pitch and hearing his story.

[rockin500]

Its really a shame too, he could have been a great addition to MLB Network as I don't think a lot of younger fans know too much about him, or how good his stuff was, since his career was so relatively short.

it really is too bad he got injured as a result of overwork. i think everyone knows my opinion on pitch counts and innings and that its somewhat overrated. But he was an extreme case. 24 complete games out of 29 started? at 21 years of age? nuts