RIP, Cory Lidle

Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle was killed yesterday when the small plane he was piloting crashed into a highrise in Manhattan.

Moments after passing above the 59th Street Bridge, Lidle's single-engine plane disappeared from the radar. And just 13 minutes after takeoff, it slammed into a 40-story condominium tower above Manhattan's tony Upper East Side - filling luxury apartments with flames and scattering burning metal below.

Five years and one month after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, New Yorkers felt a shudder of fear with word that a plane had crashed into a building.

President Bush was alerted to the crash, and Pentagon officials said that within 10 minutes, fighter jets were sent aloft over several cities, including Washington, Los Angeles and Seattle.

Two Texas Air National Guard fighter aircraft patrolled the Texas Gulf Coast on Wednesday afternoon after the crash, according to the Guard.

New Yorkers would later realize the crash more closely resembled another tragedy, much smaller but still keenly felt: the 1979 death of Yankees captain Thurman Munson, in a small plane he was piloting.

Munson's catcher's gear still hangs in a special spot in the Yankees' clubhouse.

That was my first thought when I heard about this, too. I'll never forget that day in 1979, and I'm heartbroken that history has repeated itself. My prayers go out to the Lidle family as they cope with this tragedy.

David Pinto and Jay Jaffe have more. Rest in peace, Cory Lidle.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on October 12, 2006 to Baseball | TrackBack