Greg Halman, 1987-2011

Dave · November 21, 2011 at 6:37 am · Filed Under Mariners 

Terrible news to wake up to this morning – Greg Halman was murdered last night. Even with my own bout with mortality, this isn’t the kind of thing I know how to write about. A 24-year-old killed, and apparently by his own brother? Just horrible.

My thoughts and prayers are with the Halman family.

Comments

34 Responses to “Greg Halman, 1987-2011”

  1. Nate on November 21st, 2011 6:43 am

    wow. tragic. RIP Greg.

  2. Breadbaker on November 21st, 2011 7:03 am

    Wow, just wow. Whatever his limitations as a ballplayer, Greg Halman always played the game with a joy you could see on his face (and I remember him in the WBC as a kid). What terrible news.

  3. Greeff on November 21st, 2011 7:13 am

    RIP Greg, my thoughts are with your family.

    i was fortunate enough to know greg personally, having played togheter at Kinheim Haarlem where he at age 16 was already better the anyone i ever played with. and on top of that he signed with my favorite team, the Mariners.

    he truly lived the dream i wanted…

    And now he is gone. Greg you will be missed!

  4. MrZDevotee on November 21st, 2011 7:25 am

    There are just seriously some surreal things going on in the sports world right now. Tragedy after tragedy. And now this…

    Greg was a good kid. I met him briefly over the fence in Peoria… Warm, quick smile, obviously very enthused with the opportunity to play baseball for a living.

    Sometimes you can just tell when someone is a kind and genuine person, even through a brief, momentary encounter. He left an impression in that way.

    Don’t know what I’m trying to say, just a little shocked. He’s the only person I’ve ever met who was murdered. It’s a sad, disheartening, gross feeling.

    Sorry you won’t be back, Greg. And sorry you had to go through this. Rest in peace.

  5. Gritty Veteran Poster on November 21st, 2011 7:25 am

    Shocking and tragic. When Dave Niehaus passed away last year it was like a punch in the gut but at the very least we could reflect on a many years of great memories a life well lived. Greg Halman had his best years ahead of him. This is awful.

  6. Slippery Elmer on November 21st, 2011 7:26 am

    Terrible news. Prayers for his family.

  7. henryv on November 21st, 2011 7:28 am

    So sad. Rest in peace, Greg.

  8. ripperlv on November 21st, 2011 7:37 am

    He was a good kid and fantastic athlete. How very sad.

  9. Westside guy on November 21st, 2011 7:39 am

    Horrible, horrible news. I know it happens regularly, but it’s something that simply shouldn’t happen – ever. Poor guy.

  10. rsrobinson on November 21st, 2011 7:47 am

    Shocking news! What a tragedy for that family.

  11. greentunic on November 21st, 2011 8:00 am

    He was just a puppy too. So sad to see a life end that young. Dave Niehaus was sad, but in a strange way, acceptable because his life was full and long.

    Rest in peace, Greg.

  12. Sports on a Schtick on November 21st, 2011 8:08 am

    Greg will be missed.

  13. awakeling on November 21st, 2011 8:15 am

    Greg Halman was a good man brought down before his prime. This is just awful news. My heart goes out to his friends and family in Holland and the States.

  14. stevemotivateir on November 21st, 2011 8:19 am

    He was one the players I enjoyed watching at Rainiers’ games the last couple years. He hit the ball real hard! Guys at work would ask me who looked good in Tacoma and I would always say Halman and Carp. I was hopeful he’d make the leap to the next level and was excited to see the early success he had with the Mariners last year when he got the call. Rest in peace Greg. My condolences to your family.

  15. Pete Livengood on November 21st, 2011 8:43 am

    This is just so terribly sad.

    It seems meaningless to talk about Greg Halman the baseball player at a time like this, but if nothing else was clear, Greg clearly had more chances to succeed in front of him, and a world of athletic ability to mold into a successful player. To have that robbed of him – along with the rest of his life is beyond senseless and tragic.

    I don’t care whether Halman would have succeeded or not. At this point, all I can think of is his family, friends, and teammates. I mourn with them, but I am also so sorry for their grief.

    I also think of the thousands, even millions of kids who share Greg’s dream. My own son is one of those. While he’s had his share of successes as a young player, he’s as far away from that dream coming true as Greg was close to it. I can’t help but think of all those young players, and the death of a dream, even if baseball almost certainly had nothing to do with Greg’s death.

    My condolences to Greg’s family in the Netherlands, and to his Mariners family in the northwest and beyond. And to Greeff, I am so sorry for your more personal loss….

  16. nvn8vbryce on November 21st, 2011 8:50 am

    I did a double take when I saw the headline this morning. How senseless and tragic. May God grant comfort to the Halman family as they wrestle with such a tragic act for all involved.

  17. wtnuke on November 21st, 2011 9:27 am

    I really appreciated his enthusiasm and his effort every day. RIP Greg.

  18. lalo on November 21st, 2011 9:34 am

    My heart stopped beating when I read “Killed and Halman” in the same sentence on Twitter, I´m shocked, terrible, sad news, he was a great guy, R.I.P Greg Halman

  19. crazyray7391 on November 21st, 2011 10:34 am

    MrZDevotee said it perfectly, it’s just a gross feeling I had when I saw this story. There’s just no other way to describe the feeling.

    You will be missed Greg. Thoughts and prayers are with your friends and family.

  20. spankystout on November 21st, 2011 10:36 am

    WHAT?!?!

    This is so sad. Especially since his brother is suspect no.1. I feel terrible for the Halman family. They lose two sons/siblings in one crazy act….ugh I feel ill.

  21. vj on November 21st, 2011 11:15 am

    Unbelievably sad for the Halman parents. One child dead, the other possibly a murderer. There’s no words to describe how they must feel.

  22. matto on November 21st, 2011 11:30 am

    As VJ said above, gotta be really tragic for the whole Halman family. I broke the news to my family back in Seattle today (From Nashville). It literally woke me up when the Nashville Morning Sports show broke the news (to me). Sad, sad day.

  23. Nik Aitken on November 21st, 2011 11:49 am

    This is just awful, that’s all I’ve got in me today, just awful.

  24. tmac9311 on November 21st, 2011 12:00 pm

    Really was some of the worst news I could wake up too today. Halman was a player I irrationally loved, and one of the few brights spots I enjoyed about the M’s last year. Not then any of that rally matters at this time. Thoughts and prayers to the Halman family.

    Not that I don’t think they will, but I’m hoping we wear a patch with his number or initials next year.

  25. Typical Idiot Fan on November 21st, 2011 12:02 pm

    I realize that this is a waste of a post but… I honestly don’t have the words to describe what I’m feeling right now. The tragedy is just too much to comprehend.

  26. msb on November 21st, 2011 12:14 pm
  27. smb on November 21st, 2011 12:40 pm

    Thx for the flashback, msb…that’s how I want to remember him, personally. The execs were right about something for a change: he really did have a smile to light up a room.

  28. vj on November 21st, 2011 1:29 pm
  29. Jamison_M on November 21st, 2011 2:10 pm

    Peace, love and baseball… we’ll miss you, Greg.

  30. make_dave_proud on November 21st, 2011 3:18 pm

    I took my son to Little League day on June 5th last summer at Safeco. The Rays were in town, and Bedard was pitching.

    I can’t recall the inning, but Halman was at the plate. He drove the ball into the right-field gap that one-hopped into the fence and just spun on the track. Halman flew around the bases for a slide into third, driving in two runs. A triple!

    My son was cheering and yelling the whole time, one of the first times I’ve seen him get rowdy in support of the Mariners.

    I never gave Greg Halman a thing, and he gave me that moment with my son. RIP Greg.

  31. Rick Banjo on November 21st, 2011 5:55 pm

    tribute page

    Very nice. Very hard to see the clip of his first hit and RBI. Dave’s call was…Dave’s call, and it’s hard to realize both the loss of heritage and the loss of potential embodied in that clip.

    Sad.

  32. TherzAlwaysHope on November 21st, 2011 6:01 pm

    make_dave_proud: That is exactly the play that was running through my mind. Those beautiful, long, lopping strides. And the wonderful smile.

  33. The_Waco_Kid on November 21st, 2011 10:12 pm

    So sad. I’m speechless.

  34. Sneekes on November 23rd, 2011 1:40 pm

    From the moment it was announced that the Mariners had signed a kid from Holland I took a special interest in Greg Halman, possibly because being European it someohow meant that maybe it could happen to me too (despite being nearly 40!) Somehow though Halman managed to make it all the way to the majors – and what’s more – seemed to be a real nice guy too. I’ll miss him.

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