Zduriencik: Teammates ‘crushed’ by Halman’s death
Nov 21, 2011, 6:10 PM | Updated: 7:17 pm
By Brady Henderson
General manager Jack Zduriencik said the Mariners are still gathering information about the death of Greg Halman and plan to send two team employees to the Netherlands to be with the late outfielder’s family.
Halman, 24, was stabbed to death early Monday morning in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Dutch police said Halman’s 22-year-old brother was arrested as a suspect.
 Greg Halman |
“It’s still a little sketchy right now,” Zduriencik told “Bob and Groz” on Monday. “We’ll know a lot more as the days unfold.”
Zduriencik said team scouts Bob Engle and Wayne Norton, who both played a role in signing Halman, will travel to The Netherlands on Tuesday “to do whatever they can for the family.”
He added: “We will be there for them in any way possible.”
Zduriencik said Halman was known as a “real leader” during his time with Triple-A Tacoma. Halman made his major league debut at the end of the 2010 season and played 35 games for the Mariners last season.
“Teammates really liked him. He was a fun guy to be around,” Zduriencik said. “If you’ve been in the locker room you’ve seen the smile from ear to ear and the graciousness and the fact that he was still learning to become a big league player. So, a lot of fond memories of Greg and on behalf of the whole organization, it’s just tragic for all of us.”
Halman had been in the organization since 2004, signing with the Mariners when he was 16. Zduriencik said the news of his death was particularly hard on some of the younger Mariners who spent significant time with him in the minor leagues.
“He grew up with a lot of these players,” Zduriencik said. “There are a few players on our club that were with him for many years [and] are crushed by this, absolutely crushed. [They were] looking forward to having him come back to spring training and spending the time together after being apart, and of course that’s not going to be the case.”
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