Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
© St. Petersburg Times, published June 24, 2002
CHICAGO -- The Cardinals returned to baseball on Sunday, losing a subdued, no-frills game to the Cubs at Wrigley Field after learning teammate Darryl Kile likely died from a blockage of a coronary artery.
Dr. Edmund Donoghue, the Cook County (Ill.) chief medical examiner, said initial findings of an autopsy Sunday showed Kile had "80 to 90 percent narrowing of two of the three branches of the coronary artery." He said the blockage was the "likely cause of death."
Kile, 33, was found dead in the team hotel Saturday. Police said there were no signs of forced entry and no signs of foul play.
The autopsy news brought some understanding to the team, which also is dealing with Tuesday's death of longtime broadcaster Jack Buck, but did little to ease what was a difficult day.
The Cardinals voted unanimously to play Sunday's game -- a game Kile was supposed to start -- but lost to the Cubs 8-3.
Flynn, the late right-hander's wife, agreed she wanted the team to play when she met with the Cardinals after a 30-minute memorial service at the team hotel Sunday morning.
A fierce competitor, the 6-foot-5, 212-pound Kile spent almost 12 years in the majors without going on the disabled list.
"Basically she said she thought that Darryl would want them to play, also. And that certainly helped reinforce what their decision was," general manager Walt Jocketty said.
Donoghue said a final autopsy report could take from 4-6 weeks because he wants to study toxicology reports. He told reporters that a substance believed to be marijuana was found in Kile's room, a discovery that prompted him to order further toxicology tests.
"I want to make it perfectly clear that marijuana had nothing to do with this death," Donoghue told the New York Times, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and MLB.com, Major League Baseball's official Web site.
Kile's condition, coronary atherosclerosis, is commonly known as hardening of the arteries.
Friday night, Kile went to dinner with his brother, Daniel. Donoghue said Daniel Kile told him that Darryl said his shoulder was hurting and that he felt weak.
"For a guy who was a pitcher in the major leagues, (the weakness) was an unusual symptom," Donoghue said.
The medical examiner said he also suspected heart problems when he learned that Kile's father died after a heart attack. "It pointed us in the right direction," he said.
David Kile was 44 when he died on Feb. 24, 1993. He succumbed to a blood clot in his brain shortly after his heart attack.
Darryl Kile's artery condition apparently was not detected in the EKG test that is part of the routine physical examinations each team gives its players each spring. Only angiograms and special stress tests using radioactive dyes injected into the bloodstream are effective, medical experts say.
Kile's heart weighed 552 grams. "For his weight, a normal heart would have been 450 grams," Donoghue said. The autopsy revealed no damage to the heart, leading Donoghue to believe arrhythmia, or an erratic heartbeat, was the cause of death.
The Cardinals wore small, black patches with 57 on their left sleeves, and two of Kile's jerseys hung on either side of the dugout door leading into the clubhouse.
Kile's name and No. 57 were displayed on the marquee outside Wrigley Field and on the scoreboard inside the park. The U.S. flag was at half-staff, and all music except the national anthem was canceled. There was a moment of silence before the national anthem. There were no public-address announcements during the game except for players coming to bat and lineup changes. The Cubs also canceled usual festivities such as honorary first pitches and the traditional singing of Take Me Out to the Ballgame.
In the game, the Cardinals committed two errors and appeared to be going through the motions.
Jason Simontacchi (5-1) took the mound, trying to become the first St. Louis rookie starter since Allen Watson in 1993 to win his first six decisions. He lasted four innings, while the Cubs got strong pitching from Kerry Wood (7-5) and homers from Alex Gonzalez and Moises Alou.
"It was tough. Darryl is such a big part. When he doesn't play, he is on the bench," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said.
"We missed him. He says things during the game. It was very difficult. It's going to be difficult. It should be difficult because he was very special."
Players and coaches from St. Louis adjusted as best they could to a difficult and unexpected circumstance.
Jim Edmonds listened to La Russa and teammate Woody Williams talk about Kile before the game, and he looked up with a vacant stare, as if he couldn't believe the pitcher was dead.
Even fans put aside the strong emotions that usually accompany a Cardinals-Cubs game. When the pitchers went out to stretch before the game, fans standing along the rightfield line gave them a standing ovation.
The entire Cardinal team got a standing ovation as the players left the field after batting practice.
"All the support and all the love that we've seen from the Cubs organization as well as baseball has been overwhelming," Williams said, his eyes watering.
Instead of Sammy Sosa's trademark sprint to rightfield at the start of the game, the Cub jogged slowly to the outfield. He gave fans a subdued chest thump.
"I think hopefully our guys will rally the way Darryl would want them to and make the most of it," Jocketty said. "But it will be difficult."