Yordano Ventura dedicates Game 6 start to Oscar Taveras

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Dedicating his start Tuesday night in Game 6 of the World Series to his friend, Yordano Ventura wrote the name, initials and uniform number of Oscar Taveras on his shoes, glove and cap. Ventura has been devastated by the death of Taveras, a slugger for the St. Louis Cardinals, in an automobile crash in the Dominican Republic over the weekend that also took the life of Taveras's girlfriend. Taveras was just 22 years old, and his girlfriend, Edilia Arvelo, was only 18.

Ventura's cap was marked on the front panel with the message, "RIP O.T. #18," large enough to be seen easily.

Handling not only the sorrow of his loss, but also enormity of the situation his team was in, Ventura pitched three-hit ball over seven innings in a 10-0 victory against the San Francisco Giants that set up a winner-take-all Game 7 on Wednesday night.

On the field after the final out, Ventura wore a Dominican flag draped over his back. He also placed a flag at the table where he sat for a press conference with teammate and translator Christian Colon.

"If he was still here, I would for sure be talking to him, and Oscar would be very happy for me and very proud," Ventura said. "Oscar was a very humble guy and very likeable, and I'm going to miss him a lot."

[Photos: Best of Giants-Royals in World Series Game 6]

Ventura and Taveras lived parallel lives in the minor leagues on their way to the majors, Ventura said Monday night before a workout at Kauffman Stadium. They stayed at each other's houses and knew each other's families. Ventura was somber, respectful and brief — and not overly emotional — when describing his friendship with Taveras on Monday. But his death apparently hit Ventura harder than he let on.

"From the minute that I found out about Oscar, I said this game was going to be dedicated to him," Ventura said.

Here's a look at all of the equipment Ventura dedicated to Taveras:

Ventura wasn't subtle about it — despite risking a fine — and good for him. Using Twitter, reporter Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com got a little more information from Ventura, who posted messages in Spanish on Tuesday — including one of incredible sorrow.

Roughly, he said:

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David Brown is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rdbrown@yahoo-inc.com and follow him on Twitter!

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