Kansas City Royals

Kansas City Royals: Yordano Ventura Toxicology Report to be Private

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 4:34 p.m. ET

Fansided, David Hill/FanSided via Call to the Pen

The Kansas City Royals are still feeling the effects of Yordano Ventura's passing. However, some details will continue to remain private, including the results of his toxicology report.

When news broke early in the morning on January 22, 2017 that Yordano Ventura had died, there were quite a few conflicting reports. There were rumors that the Kansas City Royals pitcher had initially survived his crash, only to be beaten and robbed, left to die on the side of the highway. A separate fatal crash involving former Major Leaguer Andy Marte had been added to the tragedy, leaving some to speculate that there was just the one accident. There were rumors that Ventura was drunk at the time of his accident, which would need to be proven through a toxicology report.

While the results of that toxicology report have yet to come down, the public will not know the details. Authorities in the Dominican Republic stated that the results would only be known to Ventura's family and attorneys, and would not be released to the public.

This is certainly an interesting development, especially if the results are not given to the Royals. With another $20.25 Million due on Ventura's extension, the findings from the toxicology report are vital to determine if the team would need to pay the remaining amount due. Not giving those results to the Royals is a strange twist in this story.

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It does, however, make a great deal of sense not to give those results to the general public. As those officials stated, toxicology reports are not a part of the public record. As such, there is no reason for anyone else to have those findings. If Ventura's family and attorneys want to release the findings, that is on them.

In reality, this is for the best. Ventura's family is dealing with their grief and the loss of their husband and son, and still need a great deal of time to come to terms with what happened. Putting these findings out in the public eye will only increase the scrutiny of their fallen loved one, making each day harder.

Ventura's family and friends have already gone through a lot in the past few weeks. The smiling, beloved teammate and husband will never come through the clubhouse doors again, and will never return home. That is enough for anyone to handle, let alone having his final moments scrutinized in a public setting.

The results of Yordano Ventura's toxicology report will not be released to the public. That is the way it should be.