Former MLB Pitcher Dies Following Dominican Night Club Collapse: Reports

Former major leaguers Octavio Dotel and Tony Blanco were among the dozens who perished after the roof of the Jet Set night club in the Dominican Republic collapsed during a concert early Tuesday.

Dotel, 51, passed away after being rescued alive from the rubble in Santo Domingo's National District. Blanco, 43, was confirmed dead late Tuesday.

NoticiasSin.com and Dionisio Soldevila reported Dotel was found buried in the rubble when the roof collapsed on the club early Tuesday morning. Hector Gomez and Diario Libre were among several in the Dominican Republic to report that Dotel passed away while being transferred to a hospital.

Dotel pitched for 13 different teams during a 15-year major league career: the New York Mets, Houston Astros, Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Angels, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, and Detroit Tigers.

No major league player had ever worn that many uniforms during his career until pitcher Edwin Jackson broke the record in 2019.

Dotel won a World Series ring with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011. He retired after the 2013 season with a 59-50 record, 3.78 ERA and 109 saves in 758 career games.

More news: Former MLB Pitcher Dies Following Dominican Night Club Collapse: Reports

Blanco played 56 major league games with the Washington Nationals in 2005. He spent 17 seasons in professional baseball altogether, according to Baseball Reference. The Dominican Republic Ministry of Sports and Recreation confirmed his death in an announcement on Twitter/X.

In a series of social media posts, authorities said rescuers made more than 100 ambulance rides to hospitals after the club's roof collapsed. The Associated Press, citing local authorities, reported at least 44 people have died and 160 others were injured.

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Videos circulating on social media show clubgoers nervously reacting as the roof began to collapse while merengue singer Rubby Pérez was performing at the Jet Set. Among the clubgoers who reportedly did not survive was Nelsy Cruz, the sister of former major league slugger Nelson Cruz.

Nelsy Cruz was the governor of the Dominican province Monte Cristi, an area in the northwest of the country near the border with Haiti. Dominican President Luis Abinader confirmed she died en route to a hospital.

"We deeply regret the tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub," Mr. Abinader wrote on his Twitter/X account. "We have been following the incident minute by minute since it occurred."

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Pérez reportedly survived the incident. La Nacion reports the Ministry of Public Works has announced it will investigate the causes of the collapse, while the nightclub is under inspection.

"Our city wakes up to a terrible tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub. My deepest sympathy goes out to the families still waiting for news of their loved ones," Santo Domingo Mayor Carolina Mejía de Garrigó wrote on Twitter/X Tuesday morning.

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