Fernando GalloUgueth Urbina

There have been many promising athletes who have had their successful playing careers end because of things beyond their control. Bo Jackson had his hip; Lou Gehrig had his degenerative disease; Roberto Clemente died in a plane crash. All of these endings were sad and unexpected, but not bizarre and sickening like the case of Ugueth Urbina.

Urbina was a very good relief pitcher during his time in Major League Baseball and was an All-Star for both the National League (1998) and American League (2002). He also led the National League in saves in 1999 and was a member of the 2003 World Series Champion Florida Marlins.

The trouble started for Urbina when his mother was kidnapped in 2004 and held for a $6 million ransom in his native Venezuela. Urbina never paid the ransom but police located the kidnappers and rescued her five months later.

In 2005 things got very ugly for Urbina. On Oct.16, just two weeks after he pitched in his final major league game, the relief pitcher was involved in an incident at a ranch he owns in Venezuela. A group of men who worked for Urbina on the ranch claimed he and five of his friends assaulted them with a machete, poured gasoline on them and even set a few of them on fire. They also alleged they were attacked because Urbina was angry about some items that were missing from his home. One of the workers received over 300 stitches after the assault and several others had burns, bruises and cuts on their bodies. Urbina was arrested three weeks later and charged with attempted murder.

In March of this year, Urbina was sentenced to 14 years in prison for his part in the incident – effectively ending his baseball career. So apparently there is a way criminal athletes won’t get light sentences: Make sure they get caught in a foreign country.

Victor Nieto Christian Okoye

For those who can remember back to the late ’80s and early ’90s, the nickname “The Nigerian Nightmare” may invoke sentimental feelings or a taste of bitter animosity, but for most of Christian Okoye’s opposing linebackers, including former Dallas Cowboy and San Francisco 49er Ken Norton Jr., the name brought stars circling above.

Okoye’s brief tenure with the Kansas City Chiefs lasted only six years due to reoccurring knee injuries that he originally suffered during his 1990 campaign, but during that time, there may not have been a more feared back in the league.

Okoye played his first American football game at the ripe age of 23 where he walked on to the Azusa Pacific campus at a staggering 6-foot-1-inch and 260 pound size with a bulldozer mentality and great speed that he not only displayed on the football field, but on the track as a sprinter.

He was a freak of nature to say the least and three years after he was selected in the second round by the Chiefs out of Azusa in 1987, he earned his way to the league rushing title with 1,480 rushing yards on route to his team’s first playoff berth in nearly a decade.

He was everything for that Chief team. He was its grinder, its workhorse, its sandman sent down to cast nightmares on everyone throughout the league, its personal disclaimer to the opposing defense to enter the game at their own risk when visiting Arrowhead Stadium.

He was great when healthy, but was ran way too often, and any running back that averages nearly 300 attempts per season during a three-year span is vulnerable to injury, especially when your carrying around a 260-plus pound frame.

With Okoye, the what if’s always seem to be juxtaposed to his name. What if he started at a younger age, or what if KC had a passing attack, or what if he didn’t get injured? For me, the question isn’t ‘what if’ but ‘where.’ If not for his injuries, where would Okoye’s place be among the greatest running backs of all time?

Alicia de la Garza Bo Jackson

Most athletes play their game hoping nothing bad ever happens. No one goes into a game thinking this is the day I get hurt.

And for most athletes, they just aren’t expecting the worst, especially football players considering their job is to tackle people.

Bo Jackson was one of those athletes who didn’t expect the worst. In a 1990 playoff game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Jackson was a powerful running back with excellent speed.

During a tackle, Jackson fell to the ground in pain, complaining that his hip was knocked out of the socket.

There are rumors that Jackson claimed to push his hip back into place, but how is that possible? I’m pretty sure no one is strong enough to push his or her hip bone back into the socket.

Not only did this injury hurt Jackson’s football career, but he was simultaneously playing baseball at the same time. His football career was definitely over, but Jackson claimed he would be back on the baseball field.

He had surgery in 1991 to replace the hip. Hip surgery sounds pretty invasive. I don’t know how he managed to recover so quickly and go on and continue with professional sports.

Jackson missed the entire 1992 baseball season which left many people thinking his career was over for good. Little did people know, Jackson knew all along that he would be back.

Jackson’s football career was definitely cut short given he played only four professional seasons. Despite his short time in the NFL, Jackson still holds a Monday Night Football record with 221 yards in a game on Nov. 30, 1987.

He was a football legend but quickly became popular with the baseball crowd after returning to the game post surgery.

In 1993, Jackson returned to the Chicago White Sox and miraculously hit a home run on his first swing. That was also his first time up to bat in two years.

Apparently, “Bo knew.”

Jordan GuinnTed Williams

Many athletes have had their careers cut short due for a variety of reasons. Ted Williams was arguably the greatest hitter in the history of baseball. He wrote the book on hitting, literally. Williams’ book, “The Science of Hitting”, is the Holy Grail of baseball. He dissected the art of hitting the ball to the opposite field, situational hitting and the importance of hitting for contact.

He hit 521 home runs with a career batting average of .344. He is the last person in the history of the game to bat .400 in a season, when he hit .406 in 1941.

Two years later, he walked away from the game, albeit temporarily. Williams missed three seasons in the prime of his career (1943, 1944 and 1945) because he was serving in the United States military during World War II. When he came back in 1946, he won the MVP award. He was the runner up for the award in 1941 and 1942.

By serving his country, Williams effectively screwed himself out of 3,000 career hits and possibly 600 career home runs.

Galen Kusic Sean Taylor

The loss of such a great young talented man in Sean Taylor hurts. Today, Washington held a memorial service for him. Every player in the league wore #21 armbands to pay respect to the 24-year-old who died in such a terrible tragedy.

It is hard not to think about the awful way that Taylor died when you hear his name. But what we should remember is what a special football player he truly was. Not only did he play with unbelievable effort – he actually struck fear into the hearts of great players like Terrell Owens and Randy Moss. The last thing those guys wanted to see was Sean Taylor coming across the middle, ready to take their heads off.

Taylor was a throwback to old safeties like Ronnie Lott. Taylor broke out with a Pro Bowl season last year and was continuing to establish himself as one of the premier safeties in the league this year with five interceptions in nine games. He was also one of the hardest hitting – if not THE hardest hitting – safety in the league. Just go online and check out his highlights?this man hit with a vengeance.

It’s true that Taylor had previous run-ins with the law and had a reputation as somewhat of a hothead. A year and a half ago, Taylor had a daughter. Teammates and others that knew him said Taylor had completely changed and slowed down. Now, not only is a great player gone, but a father is as well. As a new father myself, it was hard to see his family lose him.

One of the most disturbing things about this tragedy is that Taylor’s girlfriend and baby girl were hiding under the covers when he was shot. People are murdered everyday throughout the country – especially black men. These crimes are never reported; no news programs celebrating their life.

Instead, we still hear about white women that were kidnapped three years ago and the possible arrest of their perpetrator. This incident is not only sad for the families involved and the people that care, but it reminds us all about how unjust, unfair and racist this country is. It’s a shame that the only way a young black man who was murdered can get any national coverage is if he’s a professional athlete or entertainer.

Sean Taylor will always be remembered. He was one of my favorite players and brought energy, excitement and leadership to a team that loved him. His fans loved him, his family loved him – he will be sorely missed. R.I.P #21.

Andrew Eggers

Roberto Clemente

When I was in middle school I had an English teacher that assigned one book report every week. Being a baseball fanatic, I choose to read biographies of historic players like Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, Mickey Mantle and Hank Aaron.

I was lucky enough to read about the great Roberto Clemente who played right field for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1955-72. During my reading I found that he was not only an outstanding baseball player, but also a great human being.

In 1972, while en route to Nicaragua to deliver aid to earthquake victims, Clemente’s plane crashed and he was killed and his body was never recovered. His legacy will always live on because Major League Baseball hands out the Roberto Clemente Award every year to the player who displays the most honorable humanitarian work. The award itself speaks volumes for the respect and admiration that is associated to Clemente throughout the baseball community. After 18 years of MLB service, Clemente reached a milestone in his career when he got his 3,000 hit which came in his last at-bat of the regular season. He also recorded a 12 gold glove awards just like another great outfielder named Wille Mays.

Like May he went through racial discrimination like many non-white baseball players at the time. Puerto Rican-born Clemente never let the negative comments hinder his play on the baseball field on his way to becoming one of the best players to ever play baseball.

To prove it, Clemente became a first-ballot Hall of Fame less than a year after his death because the Baseball Writers Association of American held a special election to do so. It was a nice gesture directly reflecting his high caliber of play on the field and well as his high character off the field.

He led his team to a pair of World Series championships and was the National League Most Valuable Player in 1966. Clemente earned a .317 lifetime batting average, hit 240 homeruns and was a 12-time all-star. The stud also won four National League batting title in a seven year span from 1961-67. His stats speak for themselves.

He was the first Latino baseball player to ever be inducted into the Hall of Fame and was the role model for many of the players who dominate the game today. Most of the great today are of Latino descent and I promise you that they looked up to Clemente as an idol and role model.

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