St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras and one of the top prospects of the past several seasons, died today in an auto accident in his native Dominican Republic, Dominican police confirmed to USA TODAY Sports.
Taveras' girlfriend also died in the crash, according to police in Puerto Plata.
The Dominican newspaper Listin Diario said the name of his girlfriend is Edilia Arvelo
Cardinals teammates mourn Oscar Taveras' passing
"We are all stunned and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of one of the youngest members of the Cardinals family," Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said in a statement. "Oscar was an amazing talent with a bright future who was taken from us well before his time. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends tonight."
"I simply can't believe it," Mozeliak said. "I first met Oscar when he was sixteen years old and will forever remember him as a wonderful young man who was a gifted athlete with an infectious love for life who lived every day to the fullest."
Lieutenant Junior Lopez Reyes of the Puerto Plata police confirmed Taveras and his girlfriend had died.
Taveras was heading from Jamao to his hometown of Sosua, near Puerto Plata in the Atlantic Coast of the Dominican Republic.
Lopez Reyes did not know yet the details of the accident.
"We're still investigating at the scene. We've had some heavy rainfall here lately. It might have contributed to the accident.''
Bryan Mejia, Taveras' agent, told reporters that Taveras and his girlfriend died in the accident. No other details were immediately available.