Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

“I can drive.”

How many times have you heard people say that, even though they have had too much to drink? It is an all too common occurrence in America.

Too many people think they are capable of driving, ignoring the fact that they are impaired. You may have driven home drunk before and not been caught.

You may have not endangered your life or the life of another. On Thursday morning, April 9, 2009, drunk driving claimed another life, Nick Adenhart's.

Just last night, 22-year-old Nick Adenhart pitched a gem for the Angels against the Oakland Athletics.

In six innings, Adenhart gave up seven hits and three walks, holding the A's scoreless through those six innings. The rookie also struck out five batters.

Although the Angels eventually lost that game, Adenhart handed over the lead to the bullpen, who eventually blew the game.

Just this morning, the Angels up-and-coming pitcher died.

Adenhart, a passenger in a silver Mitsubishi Eclipse, was killed as a result of a hit-and-run car accident.

Following the tragic death of Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart in a hit-and-run accident early Thursday morning in Fullerton, the Angels and Athletics have postponed tonight’s scheduled finale of the team’s four-game series.

Adenhart and two others were killed when their silver Mitsubishi Eclipse was struck by a minivan at the intersection of Orangethorpe Avenue and Lemon Street at about 12:30 a.m.

Being a lifelong fan of the California Angels baseball team [now known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim] has never been easy.

For most of my childhood, the team was a struggling second division team. With the exception of 1967, when they somehow managed to win 84 games, seasons above the .500 mark were few and far between.

And then, in 2002, they managed to pull off the miracle: The Angels were crowned World Champions. It was as if they had finally buried a curse that seemed to plague their very existence, both on and off the field.

Last night I watched the A's against the Angels. The Angels pitcher, Nick Adenhart, was great. He didn't allow the A's a run in six innings of work (although the A's came back and won).

This morning I turned to one of my favorite sports websites to find that the Adenhart and two others in the car were killed last night when a minivan ran a red light and killed him instantly.

Nick Adenhart, pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels, was killed in a tragic three-car crash in California early Thursday morning. 

The driver of the vehicle that caused the crash has been arrested and will face charges of manslaughter, felony driving under the influence, and hit-and-run.

Only hours before the tragic incident, Adenhart made his first start of the season for the Angels.  He pitched six scoreless innings.

The 2009 MLB season has a few games under it's belt. Some pretty exciting things have happened already, such as the Braves hitting eight home runs in three games, and the New York Yankees starting out 0-2. However, today the season turned sad.

Nick Adenhart, 22, a rookie Angels pitcher, died in a car accident early this morning.

Three people—including Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart—were killed and another person was seriously injured at an intersection in Fullerton, Calif., early this morning in a three-vehicle crash that authorities said was caused by a motorist who ran a red light.

Forget baseball.
Forget Pro Sports.
Forget anything and everything that doesn't matter.

Tragic News from Anaheim this morning. Nick Adenhart was pronounced dead after a hit and run following the game last night.

He was driving home with three others in his Mitsubishi when a driver in a white van ran a red light and struck Adenhart's vehicle, causing it to slam into a light pole. Two of the passengers died instantly while the other died in the hospital.

The driver of the van fled the scene but it has been reported that the driver was apprehended by police this morning.