Roberto Clemente Death
Roberto passed away on December 31, 1972 at the age of 38 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Roberto's cause of death was plane crash.
When did Roberto Clemente die?
December 31, 1972How did Roberto Clemente die? What was the cause of death?
Plane crashHow old was Roberto Clemente when died?
38Where did Roberto Clemente die? What was the location of death?
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Roberto Clemente Birthday and Date of Death
Roberto Clemente was born on August 18, 1934 and died on December 31, 1972. Roberto was 38 years old at the time of death.
Birthday: August 18, 1934
Date of Death: December 31, 1972
Age at Death: 38
Roberto Clemente - Biography
Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker (August 18, 1934 – December 31, 1972) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball player. Clemente spent 18 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons playing in the National League (NL) as a right fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973, becoming the first Latin American and Caribbean player to be enshrined. His untimely death established the precedent that, as an alternative to the five-year retirement period, a player who has been deceased for at least six months is eligible for entry into the Hall of Fame.
Clemente was married on November 14, 1964 to Vera Zabala at San Fernando Church in Carolina. The couple had three children: Roberto, Jr., born in 1965, Luis Roberto, born in 1966, and Roberto Enrique, born in 1969.
Clemente spent much of his time during the off-season involved in charity work. When Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua, was affected by a massive earthquake on December 23, 1972, Clemente (who visited Managua three weeks before the quake) immediately set to work arranging emergency relief flights. He soon learned, however, that the aid packages on the first three flights had been diverted by corrupt officials of the Somoza government, never reaching victims of the quake. He decided to accompany the fourth relief flight, hoping that his presence would ensure that the aid would be delivered to the survivors. The airplane he chartered for a New Year's Eve flight, a Douglas DC-7 cargo plane, had a history of mechanical problems and an insufficient number of flight personnel (missing both a flight engineer and copilot), and was overloaded by 4,200 pounds. It crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Isla Verde, Puerto Rico immediately after takeoff on December 31, 1972 due to engine failure.
A few days after the crash, the body of the pilot and part of the fuselage of the plane were found. An empty flight case apparently belonging to Clemente was the only personal item recovered from the plane. Clemente's teammate and close friend Manny Sanguillén was the only member of the Pirates not to attend Roberto's memorial service. The Pirates catcher chose instead to dive into the waters where Clemente's plane had crashed in an effort to find his teammate. The bodies of Clemente and three others who were also on the four-engine plane were never recovered.
At the time of his death, Clemente had established several records with the Pirates, including most triples in a game (three) and hits in two consecutive games (ten). He won 12 Gold Glove Awards and shares the record of most won among outfielders with Willie Mays. On July 25, 1956, in a 9–8 Pittsburgh win against the Chicago Cubs, Clemente hit the only walk-off inside-the-park grand slam in professional baseball history.
