Inside Baseball

Emotional Wreck  

The Padres and a close former teammate try to come to grips with Mike Darr's death

By Tom Verducci

The shiny, new white GMC Yukon caught Ben Davis's attention, but not as much as the familiar smile and easy laugh of the man behind the wheel, Padres outfielder Mike Darr. Davis had played with Darr for five seasons in the San Diego organization until the Padres traded Davis, a catcher, to the Mariners on Dec. 11. Late last Thursday afternoon, having left his home in suburban Philadelphia and flown to Phoenix for the start of spring training, Davis happened upon his close friend in the parking lot of the apartment complex at which they would live while their teams shared a spring training base in nearby Peoria.

Darr was devil-may-care, whether diving in the outfield at Qualcomm Stadium or driving, unbelted, in his new SUV. Brian Bahr/Allsport

The two strapping young men jumped out of their vehicles and hugged each other. Maybe, Darr mentioned, Davis could join him for something to eat later. A travel-weary Davis said no, but added, "We'll definitely hook up soon."

"O.K.," Darr said. "Catch you later, bro." Darr called everybody bro. When Davis would tell him to wear his seat belt while riding in Davis's car, Darr would reply, "Nah, don't worry. I'm all right, bro."

There would be plenty of opportunities, Davis assumed, to hook up with Darr. "I never thought," Davis says, "that would be the last time I saw him."

On Friday at about 2 a.m., driving on Highway 101 only a few miles from his apartment, Darr lost control of the Yukon. In the passenger seat was Duane L. Johnson, 24, of Reno, a friend of Darr's. Ben Howard, 23, a rising pitching prospect in the Padres system, was in the back. The Yukon swerved left onto the dirt median, then quickly darted right, sending the SUV into a roll. It tumbled across the traffic lanes, plowed through a chain-link fence and came to rest upside down on a service road.

By then Darr, who would have been 26 on March 21, and Johnson were dead. Neither had been wearing a seat belt and both were thrown from the vehicle. Howard, who had belted himself in, walked away with only minor scratches and bruises. Frank Valenzuela, a spokesman for the Arizona Department of Public Safety, said that the accident appeared to be alcohol-related.

The baseball season officially began for many teams, including the Mariners, later that morning with the first workouts for pitchers and catchers. Davis, who will turn 25 on March 10, held back tears as Seattle manager Lou Piniella, in his welcoming address, stressed the importance of safety and seat belts. "We talk about it every spring," Piniella said after the meeting, "but today we went a step further."

Darr left behind a wife, Natalie, and two young sons, Mike Jr. and Matthew. A fourth outfielder blessed with speed and boundless enthusiasm, the 6'3", 205-pound Darr hit .277 with two home runs and 34 RBIs in 289 at bats last season, his third with the Padres. During his five years in the organization he personified the spirit of a youthful, scrappy outfit. Once, in the minor leagues, an injured Darr was sitting in the training room wearing only sliding shorts hiked to his hips, ice packs strapped on his hamstrings and shower sandals when a brawl erupted on the field. A nearly naked Darr bolted onto the field to join the fray. "At one point the fight just kind of came to a halt because nobody could believe what he was doing," Davis says.

Only seven months ago the Padres lost a top pitching prospect, righthander Gerik Baxter, in another auto accident. Now they must continue with an encouraging rebuilding program after losing one of their most beloved players. Moreover, the organization will closely monitor Howard, the survivor. "Physically, he's absolutely fine," Padres manager Bruce Bochy said last Friday. "It's the psychological part you worry about."

Davis, meanwhile, says, "I don't think I'll ever be able to put this behind me." The second overall pick in the 1995 draft, he spent his first full season in the majors last year, batting .239 with 11 home runs and 57 RBIs in 138 games. San Diego, though, preferred the defensive skills of Wiki Gonzalez and used Davis to fill a need at shortstop, acquiring Ramon Vazquez in the trade with Seattle.

Davis's attitude was questioned in 1999 when, in a tiff about playing time, he refused to warm up a pitcher in the bullpen. But last year "Ben really matured and did everything we asked of him and more," Bochy says. "I see him being an All-Star. He has that kind of ability."

Piniella says that incumbent Dan Wilson remains his primary catcher, though Davis, a 6'4", 215-pound switch-hitter, could play his way into a larger role. The Mariners' manager says that he is "excited to have him here" -- especially in the wake of the terrible crash on Highway 101."It does make you think," Piniella says. "What if Ben had joined them for dinner? What if he was in the car? He was such a close friend, maybe he would have been in the front seat."

A funeral service was scheduled for Wednesday in Darr's hometown of Corona, Calif. The Padres arranged to fly the entire team there. Davis asked for and received permission from the Mariners to be there to say a final goodbye to his bro.

Issue date: February 25, 2002

For more Inside Baseball see this week's issue of Sports Illustrated, on newsstands Wednesday, February 20. Click here to subscribe to SI.

 

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