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The $20 million question: Did alcohol play a factor in Yordano Ventura's death?
Yordano Ventura’s sudden and surprising death Sunday, after a car accident in the Dominican Republic, leaves a somewhat uncomfortable question needing resolution: What happens to the money the Kansas City Royals owed him?
Ventura, 25, signed a fully guaranteed $23 million contract in 2015, of which he was still owed $19.25 million: $3.25 million this year, $6.25 million in 2018 and $9.75 million in 2019. That’s no small chunk of change — certainly not for his family, which includes a young daughter.
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According to Ken Rosenthal at Fox Sports, what happens to Ventura’s money will likely hinge on the results of his toxicology report, which is supposed to take three weeks to complete. If the crash were an accident, and alcohol didn’t play a factor, then Ventura’s estate will get those nearly 20 million dollars. But if alcohol did influence the accident, what’s left of Ventura’s contract would be wiped out.
From Rosenthal’s report:
“…[G]uaranteed contracts include exceptions that relate to player conduct, and Ventura’s deal includes a provision that will nullify payment for failure to perform due to injury or death resulting from driving a motorized vehicle while intoxicated, sources said.”
This doesn’t sound like it’s a clause specific to Ventura, rather standard operating in baseball’s guaranteed contracts. Teams usually take out insurance policies on them, which is the case with the Royals and Ventura’s contract, according to Rosenthal. Exactly how much the Royals would get back from their insurance policy, though, isn’t known.
We do know that authorities on the scene of the accident said alcohol wasn’t visible, though a toxicology report could very well tell another story. On Monday, Dominican Republic police authorities said they hadn’t yet submitted their accident report, but the working theory was that speed caused the crash. The roads in the Dominican Republic are notoriously dangerous and The Kansas City Star reported Ventura was driving through fog.
As for the Royals, Rosenthal’s sources say they could decide to pay Ventura’s estate some of the money regardless of what happens with the toxicology report:
The Royals are in the beginning stages of discussing Ventura’s contract language with Major League Baseball, sources said. It is conceivable that the team could decide to pay a certain amount of money to Ventura’s estate even if the results of the toxicology report allowed the club to void the rest of his contract.
That would be a kind gesture. But until that toxicology report is released, no one knows for sure what to make of Ventura’s contract and what it will mean to his estate.
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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
