Cory Lidle Rumoured to be Dead - Page 4

Raidergoo · 10-11-2006, 06:44 PM

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2621860

Lidle dies as plane crashes into Manhattan high-rise
ESPN.com news services

NEW YORK -- A small plane with New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle aboard crashed into a 50-story condominium tower Wednesday on Manhattan's Upper East Side, raining flaming debris on sidewalks, authorities said.

The New York City medical examiner's office said two people, including Lidle, died in the crash.

Federal Aviation Administration records showed the single-engine plane was registered to Lidle, and FBI reports show that Lidle's passport was found at the scene. A law enforcement official in Washington, speaking on condition on anonymity, said two people were aboard, and Lidle's passport was found at the crash scene. The plane had issued a distress call before the crash, according to the official.

On Sunday, the day after the Yankees were eliminated from the playoffs, Lidle cleaned out his locker at Yankee Stadium and talked about his interest in flying.

He explained to reporters the process of getting a pilot's license and said he intended to fly back to California in several days and planned to make a few stops. Lidle discussed the plane crash of John F. Kennedy Jr. and how he had read the accident report on the National Transportation Safety Board Web site.

Lidle, acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies on July 30, told The New York Times last month that his four-seat Cirrus SR20 plane was safe.

"The whole plane has a parachute [that can be deployed in the event of emergency] on it," Lidle said. "Ninety-nine percent of pilots that go up never have engine failure, and the 1 percent that do usually land it. But if you're up in the air and something goes wrong, you pull that parachute, and the whole plane goes down slowly."

Lidle pitched 1 1/3 innings in the fourth and final game of the AL Division Series against the Detroit Tigers and gave up three earned runs but was not the losing pitcher. He had a 12-10 regular-season record with a 4.85 ERA.

He pitched with the Phillies before coming to the Yankees, who acquired him at the July trade deadline along with outfielder Bobby Abreu. He began his career in 1997 with the Mets. He also pitched for Tampa Bay, Oakland, Toronto and Cincinnati.

Lidle was an outcast among some teammates throughout his career because he became a replacement player in 1995, when major-leaguers were on strike.

For his career, he was 82-72 with two saves and a 4.57 ERA.

"I wish I had the words. I have no words. I just have strong emotions, it's sadder than sad," Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson, who was Lidle's pitching with the A's from 2001-02, told ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. "I wish I had an answer [about how to prepare for a baseball game under these circumstances]. I don't have an answer. You try to deal with the emotions first. It's horrific, it's unbelievable, just a surreal moment. It just shows how insignificant some of the things we think are significant really are."

The twin-engine plane came through a hazy, cloudy sky and hit the 20th floor of The Belaire -- a red-brick tower overlooking the East River, about five miles from the World Trade Center -- with a loud bang, touching off a raging fire that cast a pillar of black smoke over the city and sent flames shooting from four windows on two adjoining floors.

Large crowds gathered in the street in the largely wealthy New York neighborhood, with many people in tears and some trying to reach loved ones by cell phone.

"I was worried the building would explode, so I got out of there fast," said Lori Claymont, who fled an adjoining building in sweatpants.

Young May Cha, a 23-year-old Cornell University medical student, said she was walking back from the grocery store down 72nd Street when she saw an object out of the corner of her eye.

"I just saw something come across the sky and crash into that building," she said. Cha said there appeared to be smoke coming from behind the aircraft, and "it looked like it was flying erraticaly for the short time that I saw it."

"The explosion was very small. I was not threatened for my life," she added.

Richard Drutman, a professional photographer who lives on the 11th floor, said he was talking on the telephone when he felt the building shake.

"There was a huge explosion. I looked out my window and saw what appeared to be pieces of wings, on fire, falling from the sky," Drutman said. He and his girlfriend quickly evacuated the building.

The plane left New Jersey's Teterboro Airport, just across the Hudson River from the city, at 2:30 p.m., about 15 minutes before the crash, according to officials at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport. But they said they did not where the aircraft was headed.

FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said the plane was apparently not in contact with air traffic controllers; pilots flying small planes by sight are not required to be in contact.

The National Transportation Safety Board sent a team to investigate.

Former NTSB director Jim Hall said in a telephone interview he doesn't understand how a plane could get so close to a New York City building after Sept. 11.

"We're under a high alert and you would assume that if something like this happened, people would have known about it before it occurred, not after," Hall said.

Mystery writer Carol Higgins Clark, daughter of author Mary Higgins Clark, lives on the 38th floor and was coming home in a cab when she saw the smoke.

"Thank goodness I wasn't at my apartment writing at the time," she said. She described the building's residents as a mix of actors, doctors, lawyers, writers and people with second homes.

Sgt. Claudette Hutchinson, a spokeswoman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command in Colorado Springs, Colo., said fighter jets "are airborne over numerous U.S. cities and while every indication is that this is an accident, we see this as a prudent measure at this time."

However, all three New York City-area airports continued to operate normally, FAA spokesman Jim Peters said. In Washington, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said neither President Bush nor Vice President Dick Cheney was moved to secure locations.

"All indications are that is an unfortunate accident," said Yolanda Clark, a spokeswoman for Homeland Security's Transportation Security Administration. She said there was "no specific or credible intelligence suggesting an imminent threat to the homeland, at this time."

The crash struck fear in a city devastated by the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Sirens echoed across the neighborhood as about 170 firefighters rushed in along with emergency workers and ambulances. Broken glass and debris were strewn around the neighborhood.

"There's a sense of helplessness," said Sandy Teller, watching from his apartment a block away. "Cots and gurneys, waiting. It's a mess."

The tower was built in the late 1980s and is situated near Sotheby's auction house. It has 183 apartments, many of which sell for more than $1 million.

Several lower floors are occupied by doctors and administrative offices, as well as guest facilities for family members of patients at the Hospital for Special Surgery, hospital spokeswoman Phyllis Fisher said.

No patients were in the high-rise building and operations at the hospital a block away were not affected, Fisher said.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

andymac · 10-11-2006, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sublimity

Or do only famous people and big events get to be remembered reverently?

Why do you feel that now is a good time to be an ass? I have never noticed your being this way before.

Mosey · 10-11-2006, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sublimity

Or do only famous people and big events get to be remembered reverently?

When you affect more people, you get remembered by more people. Makes sense. Famous people automatically affect more people just because the name is familar.

Oh and rich and famous people are better than you.

Kyros · 10-11-2006, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nate7891

hes not rumored to be dead. They said the plane was registered to his name. They dont know if he was the one flying it....idiot

ESPN said he IS dead.....idiot.

abailey3313 · 10-11-2006, 06:50 PM

This is so surreal.

eriqjaffe · 10-11-2006, 06:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kyros

ESPN said he IS dead.....idiot.

Man, the lengths ESPN will go to go keep talking about the Yankees!

Sdpm100 · 10-11-2006, 06:51 PM

Well this thread certainly has polarised opinions.

Anyway, like others have said the shock only came for me when I heard that one of those who had lost their life was someone who I knew of.

The only other sports person I can remember in my life dying in a plane crash was former South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje, who died when a cargo plane crashed.

Best of wishes to all those who have lost a loved one in this crash.

eriqjaffe · 10-11-2006, 06:51 PM

dola,

In all seriousness, this is a terrible shame. RIP Cory. And RIP Flight Instructor.

Sublimity · 10-11-2006, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andymac

Why do you feel that now is a good time to be an ass? I have never noticed your being this way before.

I made a joke, not even saying anything negative or derogatory about Lidle at all, just not making a "I feel so bad for his family; I can't believe this happened" post. Then, as a seeming counter point to my poor taste, we get a link to a picture with the American flag in the background of some shots of some people who have died and WTC buildings on fire. That's the good taste, I suppose.

I'm just not so enamored with the idea that those are the people who need to be commemorated. Everyone remembers those things. I'm sorry Lidle, his flight instructor, and whoever else died, I am. But people die, all the time, every day. Everyone here is blissfully unaware of them for the most part. But people living on their streets, in their neighborhoods, in their hometowns, who they went to school with, they're dying, too. But everyone takes a "don't know, don't care" approach. Why? Because we have to. We can't sit around and the mourn the loss of everyone on Earth. It would be a waste of time and energy, and frankly, our mental capacities can't be strained that far.

So why care about Lidle beyond the "Wow, that sucks" factor or even the "I'm sorry I won't get to see him pitch again" factor? Why not care about any of those other people I listed, which took two seconds to find in a search of Philadelphia obituaries (that's where Moyer's from, right?)?

I've got nothing against Lidle, or Richard Petty, or any other celebrity that dies. But what do they have going for them that the rest of the poor shmucks who die don't? Name recognition? I call that a poor excuse for extra sympathy.

So I dunno. His calling out of my "poor taste" with his selective "good taste" just seemed kind of shallow.

dougfireghost · 10-11-2006, 06:54 PM

First the obligatory bad joke:

If it wasn't for A-Rod choking in the play-offs, the Yankees would be in Oakland right now.

And now my thoughts:

This was absolutely shocking to hear about. It's so weird reading about the deaths of celebrities and sports players because it doesn't seem possible that this kind of stuff could happen to them. R.I.P.

andymac · 10-11-2006, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sublimity

I made a joke, not even saying anything negative or derogatory about Lidle at all, just not making a "I feel so bad for his family; I can't believe this happened" post. Then, as a seeming counter point to my poor taste, we get a link to a picture with the American flag in the background of some shots of some people who have died and WTC buildings on fire. That's the good taste, I suppose.

I'm just not so enamored with the idea that those are the people who need to be commemorated. Everyone remembers those things. I'm sorry Lidle, his flight instructor, and whoever else died, I am. But people die, all the time, every day. Everyone here is blissfully unaware of them for the most part. But people living on their streets, in their neighborhoods, in their hometowns, who they went to school with, they're dying, too. But everyone takes a "don't know, don't care" approach. Why? Because we have to. We can't sit around and the mourn the loss of everyone on Earth. It would be a waste of time and energy, and frankly, our mental capacities can't be strained that far.

So why care about Lidle beyond the "Wow, that sucks" factor or even the "I'm sorry I won't get to see him pitch again" factor? Why not care about any of those other people I listed, which took two seconds to find in a search of Philadelphia obituaries (that's where Moyer's from, right?)?

I've got nothing against Lidle, or Richard Petty, or any other celebrity that dies. But what do they have going for them that the rest of the poor shmucks who die don't? Name recognition? I call that a poor excuse for extra sympathy.

So I dunno. His calling out of my "poor taste" with his selective "good taste" just seemed kind of shallow.

I understand and agree with your point but don't see how that makes it a good idea to make "bad taste" jokes or chastise those who are vocally sympathizing. If you are annoyed with this type of thing it is very easy to not click on the thread.

MorseMoose · 10-11-2006, 07:05 PM

Wow. That is really sad news. RIP Cory Lidle and his flight instructor.

Skipaway · 10-11-2006, 07:06 PM

I don't really know much about Corey Lidle, but I know he refused the 4-man-rotation proposal when he was a Blue Jay.

Scoman · 10-11-2006, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nate7891

Deleted by admin

To bad you cant be banned for being a total idiot.

Sublimity · 10-11-2006, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andymac

I understand and agree with your point but don't see how that makes it a good idea to make "bad taste" jokes or chastise those who are vocally sympathizing. If you are annoyed with this type of thing it is very easy to not click on the thread.

Oh no, it doesn't annoy me. I find the whole thing very interesting.

CTSoxFan · 10-11-2006, 07:20 PM

So sad and shocking, I was watching the coverage on CNN before and when I heard it was Lidle I was even more shocked, I had originally just thought it was strange and a little sad, but after hearing a recognizable name, it put a face on the tragedy.

On Sportscenter Gammons and Steve Phillips are discussing whether or not the game in NY should be played tonight. I say they should play it, Lidle would want it to be played. Honor his memory before the game, it would be much more touching. He would rather the teams play, than cancel games, at least I think.

Sublimity · 10-11-2006, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CTSoxFan

So sad and shocking, I was watching the coverage on CNN before and when I heard it was Lidle I was even more shocked, I had originally just thought it was strange and a little sad, but after hearing a recognizable name, it put a face on the tragedy.

On Sportscenter Gammons and Steve Phillips are discussing whether or not the game in NY should be played tonight. I say they should play it, Lidle would want it to be played. Honor his memory before the game, it would be much more touching. He would rather the teams play, than cancel games, at least I think.

Yeah, it would be different if it were the Yankees or Phils (even if he wasn't on the playoff roster for the Yanks for whatever reason). But I think they should certainly play the game tonight.

AnotherAlias · 10-11-2006, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MuertoDesagradecido

That is so bizarre.

What? The fact that people are making jokes about someone's death, or the fact that people are flaming each other because of the event?

I actually know what you meant UGD...just wanted to point out how glaringly bizzare people get here, too - not you. And I'm not mentioning names either.

Condolences to his family and friends. Fans, too.

Jason · 10-11-2006, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sublimity

But people die, all the time, every day. Everyone here is blissfully unaware of them for the most part. But people living on their streets, in their neighborhoods, in their hometowns, who they went to school with, they're dying, too. But everyone takes a "don't know, don't care" approach. Why? Because we have to. We can't sit around and the mourn the loss of everyone on Earth. It would be a waste of time and energy, and frankly, our mental capacities can't be strained that far.

So why care about Lidle beyond the "Wow, that sucks" factor or even the "I'm sorry I won't get to see him pitch again" factor? Why not care about any of those other people I listed, which took two seconds to find in a search of Philadelphia obituaries (that's where Moyer's from, right?)?

I've got nothing against Lidle, or Richard Petty, or any other celebrity that dies. But what do they have going for them that the rest of the poor shmucks who die don't? Name recognition? I call that a poor excuse for extra sympathy.

So I dunno. His calling out of my "poor taste" with his selective "good taste" just seemed kind of shallow.

OK Subs...I didn't want to clutter up this thread but follow me a second, OK?

About two months ago I was volunteering with a ministry in downtown Springfield where we fed homeless and provided a shelter for them. I watched someone get stabbed to death on the sidewalk about 30 feet from where we were giving bread to people who were starving.

Did I post that here? No. Why? This is a sports board. I guess you could argue I could put it in OT but ultimately this is a board for sports fans and especially baseball fans. Did I post about this on e-mail chains related to helping homeless and combatting violence? Yes. That was the place for it.

In this case, this is a major league baseball pitcher. Many of us saw him play either in person or on TV. It's a shock and talking about it can help ease the shock so we can just move on. The man hasn't even been gone from this earth for six hours yet, Subs. It's a bit too early to say people are going overboard in talking and remembering yet.

Dagrims · 10-11-2006, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dagrims

It would probably be a nice move on your part to edit your first post and remove the "idiot", since you now have more information regarding the story and the accuracy of the initial post in the thread. That would diffuse all this name-calling in a thread that really, really doesn't need it.

Just my opinion, take it or flame me.

Or the mods could do it for you.

10-11-2006, 06:50 PM	#65
abailey3313 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 3,718	This is so surreal. __________________

10-11-2006, 06:51 PM	#68
eriqjaffe Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2003 Location: Under The Christmas Fish Posts: 7,642	dola, In all seriousness, this is a terrible shame. RIP Cory. And RIP Flight Instructor. __________________

10-11-2006, 06:54 PM	#70
dougfireghost Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: houston Posts: 129	First the obligatory bad joke: If it wasn't for A-Rod choking in the play-offs, the Yankees would be in Oakland right now. And now my thoughts: This was absolutely shocking to hear about. It's so weird reading about the deaths of celebrities and sports players because it doesn't seem possible that this kind of stuff could happen to them. R.I.P. __________________ e

10-11-2006, 07:06 PM	#73
Skipaway Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Where you live Posts: 11,017	I don't really know much about Corey Lidle, but I know he refused the 4-man-rotation proposal when he was a Blue Jay. __________________ Jonathan Haidt: Moral reasoning is really just a servant masquerading as a high priest.

10-11-2006, 07:20 PM	#76
CTSoxFan Major Leagues Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 493	So sad and shocking, I was watching the coverage on CNN before and when I heard it was Lidle I was even more shocked, I had originally just thought it was strange and a little sad, but after hearing a recognizable name, it put a face on the tragedy. On Sportscenter Gammons and Steve Phillips are discussing whether or not the game in NY should be played tonight. I say they should play it, Lidle would want it to be played. Honor his memory before the game, it would be much more touching. He would rather the teams play, than cancel games, at least I think. __________________

10-11-2006, 06:44 PM	#61
Raidergoo Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 9,005	http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2621860 Lidle dies as plane crashes into Manhattan high-rise ESPN.com news services NEW YORK -- A small plane with New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle aboard crashed into a 50-story condominium tower Wednesday on Manhattan's Upper East Side, raining flaming debris on sidewalks, authorities said. The New York City medical examiner's office said two people, including Lidle, died in the crash. Federal Aviation Administration records showed the single-engine plane was registered to Lidle, and FBI reports show that Lidle's passport was found at the scene. A law enforcement official in Washington, speaking on condition on anonymity, said two people were aboard, and Lidle's passport was found at the crash scene. The plane had issued a distress call before the crash, according to the official. On Sunday, the day after the Yankees were eliminated from the playoffs, Lidle cleaned out his locker at Yankee Stadium and talked about his interest in flying. He explained to reporters the process of getting a pilot's license and said he intended to fly back to California in several days and planned to make a few stops. Lidle discussed the plane crash of John F. Kennedy Jr. and how he had read the accident report on the National Transportation Safety Board Web site. Lidle, acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies on July 30, told The New York Times last month that his four-seat Cirrus SR20 plane was safe. "The whole plane has a parachute [that can be deployed in the event of emergency] on it," Lidle said. "Ninety-nine percent of pilots that go up never have engine failure, and the 1 percent that do usually land it. But if you're up in the air and something goes wrong, you pull that parachute, and the whole plane goes down slowly." Lidle pitched 1 1/3 innings in the fourth and final game of the AL Division Series against the Detroit Tigers and gave up three earned runs but was not the losing pitcher. He had a 12-10 regular-season record with a 4.85 ERA. He pitched with the Phillies before coming to the Yankees, who acquired him at the July trade deadline along with outfielder Bobby Abreu. He began his career in 1997 with the Mets. He also pitched for Tampa Bay, Oakland, Toronto and Cincinnati. Lidle was an outcast among some teammates throughout his career because he became a replacement player in 1995, when major-leaguers were on strike. For his career, he was 82-72 with two saves and a 4.57 ERA. "I wish I had the words. I have no words. I just have strong emotions, it's sadder than sad," Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson, who was Lidle's pitching with the A's from 2001-02, told ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. "I wish I had an answer [about how to prepare for a baseball game under these circumstances]. I don't have an answer. You try to deal with the emotions first. It's horrific, it's unbelievable, just a surreal moment. It just shows how insignificant some of the things we think are significant really are." The twin-engine plane came through a hazy, cloudy sky and hit the 20th floor of The Belaire -- a red-brick tower overlooking the East River, about five miles from the World Trade Center -- with a loud bang, touching off a raging fire that cast a pillar of black smoke over the city and sent flames shooting from four windows on two adjoining floors. Large crowds gathered in the street in the largely wealthy New York neighborhood, with many people in tears and some trying to reach loved ones by cell phone. "I was worried the building would explode, so I got out of there fast," said Lori Claymont, who fled an adjoining building in sweatpants. Young May Cha, a 23-year-old Cornell University medical student, said she was walking back from the grocery store down 72nd Street when she saw an object out of the corner of her eye. "I just saw something come across the sky and crash into that building," she said. Cha said there appeared to be smoke coming from behind the aircraft, and "it looked like it was flying erraticaly for the short time that I saw it." "The explosion was very small. I was not threatened for my life," she added. Richard Drutman, a professional photographer who lives on the 11th floor, said he was talking on the telephone when he felt the building shake. "There was a huge explosion. I looked out my window and saw what appeared to be pieces of wings, on fire, falling from the sky," Drutman said. He and his girlfriend quickly evacuated the building. The plane left New Jersey's Teterboro Airport, just across the Hudson River from the city, at 2:30 p.m., about 15 minutes before the crash, according to officials at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport. But they said they did not where the aircraft was headed. FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said the plane was apparently not in contact with air traffic controllers; pilots flying small planes by sight are not required to be in contact. The National Transportation Safety Board sent a team to investigate. Former NTSB director Jim Hall said in a telephone interview he doesn't understand how a plane could get so close to a New York City building after Sept. 11. "We're under a high alert and you would assume that if something like this happened, people would have known about it before it occurred, not after," Hall said. Mystery writer Carol Higgins Clark, daughter of author Mary Higgins Clark, lives on the 38th floor and was coming home in a cab when she saw the smoke. "Thank goodness I wasn't at my apartment writing at the time," she said. She described the building's residents as a mix of actors, doctors, lawyers, writers and people with second homes. Sgt. Claudette Hutchinson, a spokeswoman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command in Colorado Springs, Colo., said fighter jets "are airborne over numerous U.S. cities and while every indication is that this is an accident, we see this as a prudent measure at this time." However, all three New York City-area airports continued to operate normally, FAA spokesman Jim Peters said. In Washington, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said neither President Bush nor Vice President Dick Cheney was moved to secure locations. "All indications are that is an unfortunate accident," said Yolanda Clark, a spokeswoman for Homeland Security's Transportation Security Administration. She said there was "no specific or credible intelligence suggesting an imminent threat to the homeland, at this time." The crash struck fear in a city devastated by the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Sirens echoed across the neighborhood as about 170 firefighters rushed in along with emergency workers and ambulances. Broken glass and debris were strewn around the neighborhood. "There's a sense of helplessness," said Sandy Teller, watching from his apartment a block away. "Cots and gurneys, waiting. It's a mess." The tower was built in the late 1980s and is situated near Sotheby's auction house. It has 183 apartments, many of which sell for more than $1 million. Several lower floors are occupied by doctors and administrative offices, as well as guest facilities for family members of patients at the Hospital for Special Surgery, hospital spokeswoman Phyllis Fisher said. No patients were in the high-rise building and operations at the hospital a block away were not affected, Fisher said. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

10-11-2006, 06:51 PM	#67
Sdpm100 Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2005 Location: Cheltenham, England Posts: 7,644	Well this thread certainly has polarised opinions. Anyway, like others have said the shock only came for me when I heard that one of those who had lost their life was someone who I knew of. The only other sports person I can remember in my life dying in a plane crash was former South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje, who died when a cargo plane crashed. Best of wishes to all those who have lost a loved one in this crash.

10-11-2006, 07:05 PM	#72
MorseMoose Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 6,023 Infractions: 1/1 (1)	Wow. That is really sad news. RIP Cory Lidle and his flight instructor.