Mets hold moment of silence for Octavio Dotel after Dominican Republic nightclub tragedy
NEW YORK — The New York Mets held a moment of silence to pay tribute to former relief pitcher Octavio Dotel, who was killed in the Jet Set nightclub in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, when the roof collapsed on Tuesday.
According to USA TODAY, Dotel's death was confirmed by a spokesperson for the country's sports ministry. He was 51 years old.
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Dotel was signed by the Mets out of the Dominican Republic in 1993 and pitched two seasons in the Dominican Summer League before beginning his professional career in 1996 with the Gulf Coast Mets. He was called up to the Mets late in 1998 but did not make his major league debut until 1999 when as a starter he went 8-3 with a 5.38 ERA in 19 games.
The Dominican native also pitched in two postseason games for the Mets before being traded to the Astros in a deal that netted the Mets Mike Hampton and Derek Bell.
With the Astros, Dotel rose to fame as the team's closer, filling in for an injured Billy Wagner and ultimately earning the sole responsibility, recording 64 saves across parts of four seasons for the club. He spent 15 seasons in the major leagues between 1999-2013 with 13 different teams.
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According to multiple reports, Dotel was among the 44 people who died when the club's roof collapsed during a performance by meringue singer Rubby Perez. At least 130 people were reportedly injured.
Before the Mets' game, manager Carlos Mendoza paid respects to the victims of the tragedy.
"Thinking about our people in the Dominican Republic," Mendoza said. "A few guys are aware of the incident that happened with the roof collapse and it affected a lot of people there. We have a lot of Dominican community in the baseball world, so our prayers to their families."
The Mets have four players on their roster from the Dominican Republic: Juan Soto, Starling Marte, Jose Siri and Huascar Brazoban.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Octavio Dotel: NY Mets honor pitcher after Dominican nightclub tragedy

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