RIP Mr. Kennedy

nice writeup Blez

AN and the entire Internet is permanent. Every game thread and snarky pun is chronicled for all future generations.  The record should show that Joe was a major cog for the A's success during his tenure.  His larger-than-life personality was poignantly accounted by Dan Haren.  I am glad that he was a member of the A's for our 2006 season and performed well.  He was one of the first to hint at the training department troubles here in Oakland, but he was classy about it.  To be remembered as a wonderful loving father and husband is way more important than the mercurial success on the baseball diamond.  RIP.

as an extended family (and sure there are those who think we are ridiculous for doing so), it does hit a little too close to home. First Corey, now Joe.

There has been enough written about Joe himself here lately. Yes, we know that baseball players are not invincible though we as fans sometimes like to think so.  No, his death may not be viewed as tragic as someone who is more widely known and loved, but it's tragic to us.  Yes, death occurs every day, but that doesn't mean we can't be taken aback by it, be depressed by it, mourn over it. Even if it's someone we didn't really know. Yes, life goes on, and in time, we may crack a joke or two or bring up a game that he lost.

Let that be our way of keeping Joe Kennedy alive.

As Blez mentions, the pain has only begun for the family Joe left behind. I can't know the impact this will have, as I still have both parents and I'm in my forties now. I will say this: it is my biggest fear that something should happen to me, not for my sake, buy my son's. He's 15 and I believe I have already created enough warm memories for him, but to lose me now? I shudder to think.

Good write up. We will always remember Joe's contribution to our Nation. Whether we jeered him, cheered him, or a little of both, we should always appreciate the time he spent here, pitching his heart out for our lovable team.

I have lost close friends of my own, and, though I am not a parent yet, I can imagine the pain Joe's family is enduring right this moment. It can show us all the need to appreciate every moment we have to spend with our loved ones. I will never take my time for granted.

If you recall the 1993 accident in spring training, Tim Crews rammed a dock with his boat.  He was legally drunk at the time.  He was killed, along with Steve Olin, and Bobby Ojeda was injured.

Appropos to your remarks, Blez, Crews also left behind (like Joe Kennedy) a young son who never knew him.  I recently read a heartrending article wherein the young son of Tim Crews (now a ballplaying teenager) spoke about how he wished he could just have one hour, one hour, with his father he never knew, just to talk pitching.  The son had talked to all the Dodger players who knew his Dad, so he really felt the loss in a unique way only a young man who had a father that played professional sports could have when that young man was in fact following in his father's foot steps.  You hear about Kendall, Swisher, and Crosby and their fathers, so you know there is that special relationship.  Tim Crews' son cannot reach it, and of course, the children of Joe Kennedy will also have to live with that gap.

he played to the best of his ability, which I always remind myself, far outweighs any ability I ever had.

Every year I seem to have a player that rubs me the wrong way. And I remember all too clearly the cheer that went up at AN Day when we all found out that Joe was DFA'ed and sent away from our team.

I may have not wanted him on our team, and I may have thought that he caused one too many losses this year, and he may have driven me completely insane! But the fact remains, he was a person outside of the game.

This is a tragic moment for all of us. It breaks my heart to think about this and I feel for his family. It seems like every time I read something new about his death, I hear some new information that makes me sad all over again. I had no idea he had a baby on the way. This is just a terrible situation. I may not miss Joe Kennedy the ball player, but my heart breaks for the man that was lost and the children he left behind.

but as alox so eloquently described a painful memory, I remember what my Uncle Donald's passing (of whom I named after) did to our family. The effects are still felt to this day.

But there he was at 51, on an ordinary evening in May 1984, doing what he did on many other evenings- listening to an A's broadcast- when death came calling. Heart attack. That weekend his oldest daughter was to wed (well, she went on with it); what should have been a glorious occasion was instead left with a huge void. Aunts of mine who didn't often drink had their fill that night. Awful scene.

My Uncle Don...damn, he loved his A's.

You took the time to write this and put it on the front page. I think that many of us are still thinking about this young man and his family..and it feels good to see Joe given this respect. Thank You for writing it.

He drove a lot of us nuts, but Joe K was a member of the family and my heart goes out to his young family. He seemed like a great guy too, according to what Dan Haren said. I feel like we're all grieving together. It's nice.