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A former baseball prospect turned coach and instructor was killed near where he once aimed to make a name for himself in the big leagues.
Former Houston Astros minor leaguer Jon Kemmer was 35 years old when he was killed over the weekend in a rollover crash in Galveston County.
Explore Jefferson, an outlet near Kemmer’s hometown in Pennsylvania, said Kemmer was on his way from coaching a travel tournament in Houston to his home in Santa Fe, Texas, when he crashed.
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Houston Astros left fielder Jon Kemmer singles against the Washington Nationals during a spring training game at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach, Florida, on March 6, 2018. (Jasen Vinlove/USA Today Sports)
The outlet, citing the Galveston County Medical Examiner’s Office, said Kemmer was traveling on a rural road when his vehicle struck an electrical pole shortly after 6 p.m. local time. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Kemmer was the lone occupant of the vehicle.
Kemmer had been coaching the HTX Battle Bucks 14U travel baseball team at the Triple Play Classic in Houston, the outlet reported.
Houston Astros right fielder Jon Kemmer warms up before a game against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida, on March 16, 2018. (Kim Klement/USA Today Sports)
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The Astros drafted Kemmer out of Brewton-Parker College in Mount Vernon, Georgia, in the 21st round of the 2013 MLB Draft, and he made it all the way to Triple-A in 2019. However, the cancellation of the minor league season due to COVID-19 seemed to have put an end to his career.
He suited up in the Dominican Winter League in 2020, but his last appearance in minor league ball was 2019. His DWL stint was his last in professional baseball.
In Triple-A ball, he hit .265 with an .830 OPS in 362 total games, spanning from 2016 through 2019. He also played for the Minnesota Twins’ and Los Angeles Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliates.
Kemmer also played stints in foreign minor leagues, hitting .355 with a 1.005 OPS in Mexico’s Triple-A level in 2019 before playing for the Oklahoma City Dodgers, Los Angeles’ Triple-A squad. He participated in spring training with the Astros in 2017 and 2018.
Houston Astros right fielder Jon Kemmer plays against the Boston Red Sox at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida, on March 17, 2017. (Aaron Doster/USA Today Sports)
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Kemmer was a high school prodigy, hitting .727 in his senior year of high school. In his final season of college, he hit .387 with a 1.206 OPS.
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