There’s baseball, and then there’s heartbreak

Ran into Rex Hudler, the former Angels outfielder and current broadcster, on the elevator to the press box this morning. As usual, he said hello with a big smile.

Here’s a guy whose day is bright when all the electricity is off, and it’s a joy to just listen to him talk. Right now, he’s hurting like everyone else in the Angels organization after the death of pitcher Nick Adenhart.

Time does soften the hard edge of the shock and sadness when something like this happens, but that point is a long ways away for the Angels. Losing such a bright young talent was tough enough. Listening to Hudler describe the scene at the ballpark the following day absolutely breaks your heart.

Jim Adenhart, the pitcher’s father who was at the game the previous night, was banging on the clubhouse door the next day, desperately needing to visit the site of his son’s greatest moment.

Later, the father was outside embracing the pitcher’s mound, then scooping dirt into a container.

Describing it, Hudler’s eyes teared up. It was the saddest thing he’d ever seen.