Cardinals Pitcher Josh Hancock Dies in Car Crash

[Guest]

After reading how this happened, it hit pretty close to home. I had a business trip in Las Vegas last week, and on my way there, I just about lost it into the back end of a Cal Trans pick up truck.

 

Minding my own business in the fast lane (4 lanes wide each direction in this stretch of interstate) with a car pacing next to me, I see Cal Trans working in the median up ahead of me. I slow down from 80 MPH to about 70 MPH since they are well off the shoulder. The car next to me keeps the same pace. All of a sudden and within about 500 ft., the Cal Trans truck shoots up out of the median and right into the fast lane in front of me. I had nowhere to go. To the left were about 10 Cal Trans workers. To my right was this car that was still right next to me. In front of me was a truck that was hardly moving.

 

I lit up my brakes and just missed this truck by inches. My wife's face was white as a ghost. She thought for sure we were dead. Luckily, no one was behind me. Good thing I just bought new tires for the car a few weeks back. Older tires might have slid.

 

Anyway, I'm still here. Barely. I guess it was my lucky day. I survived what could have been an ugly crash and hit a royal flush on a poker machine later that night.

 

I'm not trying to place blame on you here B, but the thing you could do differently there is not drive next to someone. Again, I'm not blaming, I'm just pointing out that we need to all change our driving habits and there are things you can do to be safer. Staying away from other cars as much as possible is a good start (especially trucks). I realize in Southern California that is very difficult to do. The other basic thing people can is slow down - particularly when there is lots of traffic, or no shoulder, or construction. The slower you are going, the better your chances.

 

Sounds like that stretch of freeway is unsafe. Urban growth has created a lot of unsafe roads due to space limitations and budget contraints.

[Soul]

I don't want to assume too much here, but I worked at a restaurant in the past for a couple years, and not once did we ever offer a cab ride for someone that hadn't been drinking.

 

It's going to be an odd turn of events if he was drinking and driving.

 

I say who cares if he was drinking or not. It's very tragic and very sad regardless.

 

It is very sad and tragic regardless. But it's important to acknowledge the drinking and driving, if, in fact, he was drinking and driving. So, I would say everybody should care. It's an ongoing national problem that people can solve on their own with an ounce of common sense. It's nothing but stupidity that fails to prevent such tragedies. I see no reason why people can't speculate about the circumstances, considering what happened and what has emerged so far.

 

Seriously. Obviously we don't know anything for sure at the moment, but imagine if the tow truck hadn't been there to act as a buffer and he ran into a parked car. Things would have been a lot worse, and if he was drinking, I doubt there would be so much heart break.

 

I suppose. I would just feel bad if I got it wrong, so I'll wait for the tests. It does sound like it's leaning that way, but who knows maybe he refused the cab because someone had the wrong idea and he hadn't been drinking. Or something.

[Soriano12]

About 7 years ago, I was driving on I-290 around 10 AM in Worcester, Mass. when I came up on an incompetent road crew that decided to do some work in the left lane without setting up cones or anything. I came up on them really fast - you don't realize how fast a 60 mph car comes up on a stationary object - and I was able to get by them into the middle lane of the highway, but if there had been a car there, I probably would've had to hit it. I could easily see how this could happen without alcohol being involved... but we don't know either way right now.

 

A similar situation happened to me in Orlando a few years back.

I'm curious of the thought process that occurs when someone decides to block a lane in an expressway without proper warnings/cones.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

After reading how this happened, it hit pretty close to home. I had a business trip in Las Vegas last week, and on my way there, I just about lost it into the back end of a Cal Trans pick up truck.

 

Minding my own business in the fast lane (4 lanes wide each direction in this stretch of interstate) with a car pacing next to me, I see Cal Trans working in the median up ahead of me. I slow down from 80 MPH to about 70 MPH since they are well off the shoulder. The car next to me keeps the same pace. All of a sudden and within about 500 ft., the Cal Trans truck shoots up out of the median and right into the fast lane in front of me. I had nowhere to go. To the left were about 10 Cal Trans workers. To my right was this car that was still right next to me. In front of me was a truck that was hardly moving.

 

I lit up my brakes and just missed this truck by inches. My wife's face was white as a ghost. She thought for sure we were dead. Luckily, no one was behind me. Good thing I just bought new tires for the car a few weeks back. Older tires might have slid.

 

Anyway, I'm still here. Barely. I guess it was my lucky day. I survived what could have been an ugly crash and hit a royal flush on a poker machine later that night.

 

I'm not trying to place blame on you here B, but the thing you could do differently there is not drive next to someone. Again, I'm not blaming, I'm just pointing out that we need to all change our driving habits and there are things you can do to be safer. Staying away from other cars as much as possible is a good start (especially trucks). I realize in Southern California that is very difficult to do. The other basic thing people can is slow down - particularly when there is lots of traffic, or no shoulder, or construction. The slower you are going, the better your chances.

 

Sounds like that stretch of freeway is unsafe. Urban growth has created a lot of unsafe roads due to space limitations and budget contraints.

 

The 15 between San Bernardino and Vegas is awful. They're doing all sorts of construction projects to help with the traffic and it really tightened up the space on the freeway but people still drive 85+ since they are in the middle of the desert making it really unsafe at times.

[BigbadB]

I'm not trying to place blame on you here B, but the thing you could do differently there is not drive next to someone. Again, I'm not blaming, I'm just pointing out that we need to all change our driving habits and there are things you can do to be safer. Staying away from other cars as much as possible is a good start (especially trucks). I realize in Southern California that is very difficult to do. The other basic thing people can is slow down - particularly when there is lots of traffic, or no shoulder, or construction. The slower you are going, the better your chances.

 

Sounds like that stretch of freeway is unsafe. Urban growth has created a lot of unsafe roads due to space limitations and budget contraints.

 

No, that stretch of freeway is extremely safe. There is a huge median and 4 lanes going each way. There is also a wide shoulder on each side of the 4 lanes going each way. I was not between San Bernardino and Las Vegas. I was between Escondido and Temecula, which is still in San Diego County.

 

And as far as not driving right next to someone, yeah right. It's Southern California. You're going to be driving next to someone no matter where you are.

 

Typically, I've never had any problems. Typically, people who want to enter the fast lane from the shoulder LOOK before they turn.

 

Saying that it's my fault that someone was driving next to me is like saying it's someone's fault for getting hit by a drunk driver because they were driving at a time when drunk drivers are typically out driving. It's not reasonable at all.

 

Actually, the person driving next to me is the next person to place blame, because he was in an open lane and could have either moved over, slowed down or sped up to give me a path to avoid the possibility of an accident. I make that move all the time when I'm driving, because I don't want someone to swerve over into me to avoid an accident.

 

I called Cal Trans this am to turn the guy in. He has no business driving a vehicle if he enters the fast lane of traffic without looking.

[Soul]

After reading how this happened, it hit pretty close to home. I had a business trip in Las Vegas last week, and on my way there, I just about lost it into the back end of a Cal Trans pick up truck.

 

Minding my own business in the fast lane (4 lanes wide each direction in this stretch of interstate) with a car pacing next to me, I see Cal Trans working in the median up ahead of me. I slow down from 80 MPH to about 70 MPH since they are well off the shoulder. The car next to me keeps the same pace. All of a sudden and within about 500 ft., the Cal Trans truck shoots up out of the median and right into the fast lane in front of me. I had nowhere to go. To the left were about 10 Cal Trans workers. To my right was this car that was still right next to me. In front of me was a truck that was hardly moving.

 

I lit up my brakes and just missed this truck by inches. My wife's face was white as a ghost. She thought for sure we were dead. Luckily, no one was behind me. Good thing I just bought new tires for the car a few weeks back. Older tires might have slid.

 

Anyway, I'm still here. Barely. I guess it was my lucky day. I survived what could have been an ugly crash and hit a royal flush on a poker machine later that night.

 

I'm not trying to place blame on you here B, but the thing you could do differently there is not drive next to someone. Again, I'm not blaming, I'm just pointing out that we need to all change our driving habits and there are things you can do to be safer. Staying away from other cars as much as possible is a good start (especially trucks). I realize in Southern California that is very difficult to do. The other basic thing people can is slow down - particularly when there is lots of traffic, or no shoulder, or construction. The slower you are going, the better your chances.

 

Sounds like that stretch of freeway is unsafe. Urban growth has created a lot of unsafe roads due to space limitations and budget contraints.

 

The 15 between San Bernardino and Vegas is awful. They're doing all sorts of construction projects to help with the traffic and it really tightened up the space on the freeway but people still drive 85+ since they are in the middle of the desert making it really unsafe at times.

 

Yeah, I remember driving out in that desert and you can be going 85 and not feel like you are going incredibly fast. It's only when you come up on something standing still that you realize how swift you're moving.

[BigbadB]

Yeah, I remember driving out in that desert and you can be going 85 and not feel like you are going incredibly fast. It's only when you come up on something standing still that you realize how swift you're moving.

 

Well yeah. If you only go 85 through there, you definitely don't seem like you are moving all that fast. That's because everyone is passing you. :D

[Guest]

Avoiding areas with drunk drivers is not only practical, its a very intelligent choice. Obviously you can't avoid all risk, but you can make decisions to reduce your risk. None of that was directed at you personally so there really is no need to be defensive. I get it, idiot pulled out in front of you and you were lucky to not be in a wreck.

[Soul]

Yeah, I remember driving out in that desert and you can be going 85 and not feel like you are going incredibly fast. It's only when you come up on something standing still that you realize how swift you're moving.

 

Well yeah. If you only go 85 through there, you definitely don't seem like you are moving all that fast. That's because everyone is passing you. :D

 

:P

[jersey cubs fan]

Avoiding areas with drunk drivers is not only practical, its a very intelligent choice. Obviously you can't avoid all risk, but you can make decisions to reduce your risk. None of that was directed at you personally so there really is no need to be defensive. I get it, idiot pulled out in front of you and you were lucky to not be in a wreck.

 

Your first general point was right though. I can't stand how many drivers simply don't pay attention to what else is out there. So many people just focus on their route, and the car in front of them. You have to try and anticipate what other cars are going to do, including the really dumb things. You shouldn't drive in the left lane, that isn't the fast lane, that is the passing lane. When you see something on the shoulder up ahead, assume something might happen. Merge into the middle lane (or other lane if it's just 2), slow down if you are next to another car. Always create space between you and other cars.

 

I know California is known for traffic, but NY and NJ aren't exactly sparsely populated with cars. All the time I see things like cars in the right lane that do not accomodate other cars merging into the road, they don't even see them coming onto the road. People pull out into traffic when they know they can make it, without thinking about whether or not that move will force other cars to adjust (or maybe they do think that, and don't care).

[Pushfrog98]

I also noticed there are no Dunkin Donuts in St. Louis so their cops might actually be out patrolling. :wink: (Plus all the Wendy's are closed: weird city.)

 

Eh? That's un-American.

 

Un-American and unfathomable. But true.

 

Wendy's was a different deal. The guy who owned all of them around here stopped paying his taxes or something and they all shut down.

The same guy owned the Wendy's up in Bloomington/Normal.

 

And St. Louis might not have Dunkin Donuts, but they DO have Krispy Kreme

[Rob]

I nearly got in an accident last sunday coming back from the Cubs game on Lake Shore. I was driving in the lane on the right of the fast lane when a guy in a SUV flew up past me on my right, slowed down, and then tried to merge into my lane quickly without signaling when his rear tires were right next to my sister in the passenger seat. There was a truck right up behind me and no time to speed up. Thankfully, I had been keeping an eye on the road around me and knew I could make it into the fast lane. My passengers were jarred a bit when I had to swerve over there, but at least they weren't crushed by the renegade SUV.

 

I'm just happy there was nobody in that fast lane... cause I might not be here today if there was.

[Soul]

I also noticed there are no Dunkin Donuts in St. Louis so their cops might actually be out patrolling. :wink: (Plus all the Wendy's are closed: weird city.)

 

Eh? That's un-American.

 

Un-American and unfathomable. But true.

 

Wendy's was a different deal. The guy who owned all of them around here stopped paying his taxes or something and they all shut down.

The same guy owned the Wendy's up in Bloomington/Normal.

 

And St. Louis might not have Dunkin Donuts, but they DO have Krispy Kreme

 

Ahhhh. Seems like I'm the only guy left on the planet who still prefers Dunkin Donuts

[Guest]

Avoiding areas with drunk drivers is not only practical, its a very intelligent choice. Obviously you can't avoid all risk, but you can make decisions to reduce your risk. None of that was directed at you personally so there really is no need to be defensive. I get it, idiot pulled out in front of you and you were lucky to not be in a wreck.

 

Your first general point was right though. I can't stand how many drivers simply don't pay attention to what else is out there. So many people just focus on their route, and the car in front of them. You have to try and anticipate what other cars are going to do, including the really dumb things. You shouldn't drive in the left lane, that isn't the fast lane, that is the passing lane. When you see something on the shoulder up ahead, assume something might happen. Merge into the middle lane (or other lane if it's just 2), slow down if you are next to another car. Always create space between you and other cars.

 

I know California is known for traffic, but NY and NJ aren't exactly sparsely populated with cars. All the time I see things like cars in the right lane that do not accomodate other cars merging into the road, they don't even see them coming onto the road. People pull out into traffic when they know they can make it, without thinking about whether or not that move will force other cars to adjust (or maybe they do think that, and don't care).

 

That's exactly what I am saying and why I think the roads are so dangerous. People think of driving as themselves trying to get where they are going. They are oblivious to others or aggressive towards others. You have to assume the people around you are going to do something really stupid because if you die, it really doesn't matter whose fault it was.

[jersey cubs fan]

Ahhhh. Seems like I'm the only guy left on the planet who still prefers Dunkin Donuts

 

After a late 90's fad, Krispy Kreme has fallen hard from grace across the country. DD is loved by most.

[jersey cubs fan]

That's exactly what I am saying and why I think the roads are so dangerous. People think of driving as themselves trying to get where they are going. They are oblivious to others or aggressive towards others. You have to assume the people around you are going to do something really stupid because if you die, it really doesn't matter whose fault it was.

 

I know a girl who is a terrible driver, admits to being a terrible driver, has been in numerous "incidents", and basically just accepts that she's a terrible driver and won't do anything about it. Drives me nuts. She's the type of person who literally has no idea what is going on outside her car. She's not a speeder or anything, just incapable of seeing the world outside her narrow view. That is the most dangerous driver in my opinion. Far worse than the guy going 90.

[mjohnson71]

It's not looking good. I took a spin through the Cards forums and found the following.

 

1) The vehicle he wrecked was a rental. The reason he was in a rental was he damaged his car in the Pops/Oz/Penthouse Club parking lot (the 24 hour clubs across the river in Sauget Illinois) on Thursday morning. I speak from experience: if you're at those places you're up to no good.

 

2) a customer from Mike Shannons went on camera with face obscured and claimed at have dinner sitting next to Hancock and friends. Hancock was smoking, drinking beers pretty fast and did two whiskey shots. When Hancock left he knocked over a bar stool.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

It's not looking good. I took a spin through the Cards forums and found the following.

 

1) The vehicle he wrecked was a rental. The reason he was in a rental was he damaged his car in the Pops/Oz/Penthouse Club parking lot (the 24 hour clubs across the river in Sauget Illinois) on Thursday morning. I speak from experience: if you're at those places you're up to no good.

 

2) a customer from Mike Shannons went on camera with face obscured and claimed at have dinner sitting next to Hancock and friends. Hancock was smoking, drinking beers pretty fast and did two whiskey shots. When Hancock left he knocked over a bar stool.

 

I'm sure the stories are greatly exaggerated, but you're right that it's not looking good.

[Laura]

KSDK NewsChannel 5[/url]"] Hancock was involved in an auto accident in his Denali sport utility vehicle. It happened at Route 3 and Yellow Brick Road, about 5:30 a.m. [on Thursday, April 26]. The intersection is surrounded by popular after-hour nightclubs.

 

Police say Hancock was turning onto Route 3 when he narrowly escaped serious injury after a semi-truck hit his car.

 

Chief Patrick Delaney of the Sauget Police Department says, "He stopped at the stop sign, then he inched his GMC Denalie onto the southbound lanes of Route 3 when a semi tractor trailer that was traveling southbound clipped the front of his denali, tearing off the front bumper. Both officers on the scene said he did not appear to be impaired whatsoever. Of course, he was shook up over the accident, but once he was here and settled down, he was just a friendly, really nice guy."

 

The accident happened the same day that Hancock told reporters he had overslept and reported to an afternoon Cardinals home game late.

[jersey cubs fan]

KSDK NewsChannel 5[/url]"] Hancock was involved in an auto accident in his Denali sport utility vehicle. It happened at Route 3 and Yellow Brick Road, about 5:30 a.m. [on Thursday, April 26]. The intersection is surrounded by popular after-hour nightclubs.

 

Police say Hancock was turning onto Route 3 when he narrowly escaped serious injury after a semi-truck hit his car.

 

Chief Patrick Delaney of the Sauget Police Department says, "He stopped at the stop sign, then he inched his GMC Denalie onto the southbound lanes of Route 3 when a semi tractor trailer that was traveling southbound clipped the front of his denali, tearing off the front bumper. Both officers on the scene said he did not appear to be impaired whatsoever. Of course, he was shook up over the accident, but once he was here and settled down, he was just a friendly, really nice guy."

 

The accident happened the same day that Hancock told reporters he had overslept and reported to an afternoon Cardinals home game late.

 

Did the locals cops give a break to the hometown athlete?

 

Oversleeping for a game is a sure sign of somebody with issues.

 

 

Somebody wrote earlier this year that while steroids were a problem, drunk driving was an even bigger problem with the players. We've seen Tony get busted this year, and now a guy with multiple accidents who can't get to the field in time was reportedly drinking before driving in a crash. That writer may have been right on.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=law/070327&sportCat=mlb

[Guest]

I'm not sure I understand what you mean when you say "It's not looking good." The guy is dead. If he was drunk, we can all be thankful he didn't kill anyone else. Either way, the man tragically died - can it really be worse? In a way, if he was drunk, perhaps that would spur someone to do something to keep these things from happening again.

[Guest]

KSDK NewsChannel 5[/url]"] Hancock was involved in an auto accident in his Denali sport utility vehicle. It happened at Route 3 and Yellow Brick Road, about 5:30 a.m. [on Thursday, April 26]. The intersection is surrounded by popular after-hour nightclubs.

 

Police say Hancock was turning onto Route 3 when he narrowly escaped serious injury after a semi-truck hit his car.

 

Chief Patrick Delaney of the Sauget Police Department says, "He stopped at the stop sign, then he inched his GMC Denalie onto the southbound lanes of Route 3 when a semi tractor trailer that was traveling southbound clipped the front of his denali, tearing off the front bumper. Both officers on the scene said he did not appear to be impaired whatsoever. Of course, he was shook up over the accident, but once he was here and settled down, he was just a friendly, really nice guy."

 

The accident happened the same day that Hancock told reporters he had overslept and reported to an afternoon Cardinals home game late.

 

Did the locals cops give a break to the hometown athlete?

 

Oversleeping for a game is a sure sign of somebody with issues.

 

 

Somebody wrote earlier this year that while steroids were a problem, drunk driving was an even bigger problem with the players. We've seen Tony get busted this year, and now a guy with multiple accidents who can't get to the field in time was reportedly drinking before driving in a crash. That writer may have been right on.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=law/070327&sportCat=mlb

 

not to mention being out at 5:30 the morning before a day game. Not much of a job commitment there.

[killthegoat06]

uggh not looking good for hancock

[Laura]

There's an updated article on the front page of the St. Louis P-D (stltoday.com) that quotes witnesses -- a couple who only agreed to having their first names printed -- who say that Hancock was drinking steadily at Shannon's until at least 10:30, when the couple left.

 

The customer, who asked only to be identified by his first name, Vince, said Hancock was near him at the bar portion of the restaurant talking to Dave Campbell, a former major league player who now works for ESPN Radio.

 

“They were standing behind us at the bar, probably for about 45 minutes,” said Vince's wife, who asked that her name not be used. Hancock “got handed several drinks by the bartender -- they kept on handing them over to him.”

 

Vince said that when he and his wife left Shannon's – his receipt shows a checkout time of 10:31 p.m.-- Hancock was still at the bar, talking to a female.

 

“He had a mixed drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other,” Vince said. “And my wife's comment was 'He can barely put a sentence together.'”

 

Vince says that he overheard Hancock telling Campbell that he missed the beginning of Thursday's day game – which had a scheduled first pitch of 12:10 p.m. – because “he had spent all night drinking” on Wednesday. Hancock, Vince said, told Campbell that Manager Tony La Russa fined him for his tardiness.

 

Vince's wife added that Hancock told Campbell “how angry Tony was "because Hancock "was too hung over to play.”

[imb]

Christ. This is such a bad situation for the Cardinals. Do they go on all season honoring a person who it now appears died while driving drunk? He's lucky he didn't kill someone else, then it would have really been a black eye.

 

EDIT

Really hope that wasn't Freudian

Edited May 1, 2007 by Bunts Lick Butts