Oscar Taveras, St. Louis Cardinals' Top Prospect, Dead in Car Crash at Age 22

He had been called the best hitting prospect in the St. Louis organization since Albert Pujols before his call-up this year, though he had struggled in his first action in the majors, with a .239 batting average and only 3 home runs in the regular season.

“I think he can be a star,” Matheny said. “And I think he showed things all season long that showed that. He stepped into some big situations, a different role. He was very much into the competition and trying to figure out how he could help us. Yes, he wanted to play. Yes, he wanted to be the guy out there every day. He realizes he has some things to do to help make that happen.”

UPDATE: According to Dionisio Soldevila, Taveras’ girlfriend, 18 year old Edilio Arvelo, also died in the car accident.