Former Pirates infielder José Castillo was killed in an SUV accident in his native Venezuela late Thursday night, along with free agent infielder Luis Valbuena.
Venezuelan authorities said Friday the crash was caused by highway bandits.
Castillo, 37, played the first four of his five major-league seasons with the Pirates from 2004-07. He split 2008 between the Giants and Astros, then played two professional seasons in Japan.
Carlos Rivero, who played briefly with the Red Sox in 2014, was injured. All three were playing for the Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League
Reports indicate Rivero was driving at the time of the accident, which occurred in Yarucuy. The vehicle was forced to swerve into the opposite lane to avoid a sliding rock and overturned.
The bandits then robbed all three men.
Castillo, Valbuena and Rivero were en route to Barquisimeto for a scheduled game Friday night after a game in the capital city of Caracas on Thursday.
Highway robbery and kidnapping have become commonplace in Venezuela in recent years because of extreme inflation and shortages of food and medicine, as the worldwide drop in oil prices — Venezuela's top export — have crippled its economy. Many major leaguers from Venezuela do not return to their homeland in the offseason. Those who do often hire armed bodyguards for protection.
Pirates backup catcher Elias Diaz' mother was kidnapped there Feb. 8. She was rescued unharmed three days later.
Venezuelan Winter League president Juan José Avila told Union Radio in Venezuela that the league might ban players from driving to games in private vehicles. Teams travel by buses that are accompanied by armed escorts.
Castillo was not married and did not have children.
The Pirates signed Castillo as a Latin American amateur free agent in 1997, and he emerged as one of the organization’s top prospects. He batted .256/.297/.380 with 33 home runs in 465 games during his four seasons in Pittsburgh, playing 388 games at second base, 41 at third base, 10 at shortstop and one in right field.
This was one particularly memorable play, at PNC Park in 2006:
Phenomenal catch by Jose Castillo venturing way out into right -- he did that all the time -- from 2006, as called by @GBrowniePoints at PNC Park: pic.twitter.com/WqQjfn7TFw
— Dejan Kovacevic (@Dejan_Kovacevic) December 7, 2018
Valbuena played for the Angels the past two seasons. He also played for the Mariners, Indians, Cubs and Astros during an 11-year career that began in 2008.
With news of the accident breaking in the early hours Friday, tributes to Castillo began to roll in during the morning, such as this tweet from the Pirates' official account:
We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of former Pirates infielder José Castillo.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends during this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/yKw7soe8Ic
— Pirates (@Pirates) December 7, 2018
And this from the Altoona Curve's official account:
We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former Curve infielder José Castillo.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his family during this time of grief. #WeAreFamily pic.twitter.com/eLxM96CBv1
— Altoona Curve (@AltoonaCurve) December 7, 2018
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred issued a statement Friday that read: "This is a very sad day for our sport as we mourn the deaths of Luis Valbuena and José Castillo. It is clear by all the stories today that they loved baseball and made an impact on their teammates and the clubs they represented. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my deepest condolences to their families, friends and fans, particularly those in their native Venezuela.”
