Octavio Dotel, a former pitcher for the Chicago White Sox, was among the victims who died after the roof collapsed at a nightclub in the Dominican Republic early Tuesday morning, according to multiple reports.
He was 51.
Dotel was a White Sox reliever during the 2008 and 2009 seasons as part of his 15-year MLB career.
The New York Mets, which had signed Dotel in 1993, held a moment of silence for Dotel before Tuesday’s game against the Miami Marlins at Citi Field, during which they wrote “In Memoriam” on the scoreboard. The Dominican Republic Professional Baseball League (LIDOM) also paid tribute to Dotel on social media, expressing “grief over (his) death.”
Officials initially said Dotel was rescued from the debris and transported to a hospital, but spokesman Satosky Terrero of LIDOM confirmed to The Associated Press that Dotel died later Tuesday.
“After the authorities saved him alive from the rubble of the nightclub, former MLB player and World Series champion Octavio Dotel has been declared dead at the hospital,” MLB insider Mike Rodriguez wrote on social media.
At least 79 people died and 160 were injured after the collapse at the Jet Set nightclub where a concert was taking place, officials said. Tony Blanco, who played one MLB season and eight years professionally in Japan, also died following the collapse, Terrero said.
At least 58 dead and 160 injured in a roof collapse at a nightclub in the Dominican Republic
The Dominican-born Dotel signed with the Mets as an amateur free agent in 1993 and made his MLB debut with them in 1999. He went 8-3 with a 5.38 ERA in 19 appearances, including 14 starts, in 1999, his lone season with the Mets before they traded him to the Houston Astros.
The right-hander pitched for 13 teams, primarily as reliever, during his 15-year MLB career from 1999-2013 and recorded a 3.78 ERA and 109 saves. He was a member of the St. Louis Cardinals team that won the World Series in 2011.
Dotel signed with the White Sox as a free agent prior to the 2008 season. In two seasons on the South Side, he posted a 3.55 ERA in 129 1/3 innings pitched for a 2.0 bWAR. He then signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates in free agency following the 2009 season. In 2013, he pitched on the Dominican Republic team that won the World Baseball Classic with an 8-0 record.
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Nelsy Cruz, the governor of the Dominican’s Monte Cristi province, was also killed in Tuesday’s tragedy. Her brother, Nelson Cruz, played 19 MLB seasons, most recently in 2023. He is currently an MLB special adviser to baseball operations.
“Major League Baseball is deeply saddened by the passings of Octavio Dotel, Tony Blanco, Nelsy Cruz, and all the victims of last night’s tragedy in Santo Domingo,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “We send our heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of all those who have been affected and to our colleague Nelson and his entire family. The connection between baseball and the Dominican Republic runs deep, and we are thinking of all the Dominican players and fans across the game today.”
MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark said the union stands united with the Dominican community “amid the incomprehensible sadness.”
Before Tuesday’s game, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said he was “thinking about our people in the Dominican Republic.”
“We have a lot of Dominican community in the baseball world, so our prayers to their families,” Mendoza said.
Dotel finished his major league career with 1,143 strikeouts in 951 innings, a magnificent rate of 10.8 per nine innings. He had a career 59-50 record, 109 saves and 3.78 ERA.
In 2019, Dotel and ex-major leaguer Luis Castillo were among 18 people taken into custody during a large U.S. and Dominican law enforcement operation against drug trafficking and money laundering. Dotel and Castillo were released when a Dominican magistrate judge found insufficient evidence to connect them to the operation.
With baiduhai staff, Associated Press and news wire services.