Just a few blocks north from where I spent most of the 1980's as Sales Director for Corinth Films proved to be the unfortunate landmark for a tragic and frightening accident Wednesday. Unbelievably, veteran NY Yankee pitcher Cory Lidle crashed his private plane into the side of a 40-story condominium at York and 72nd St. on the Upper East Side. Both Lidle and his passenger (who was his friend and flight instructor) perished in the crash, which created an inferno inside the apartments the plane flew into. Sadly, Lidle leaves behind a wife and a 6-year-old son back in California.

As I watched the horrifying news footage on CNN on-line, my thoughts naturally drifted to not only 9/11, but the death of Yankee great Thurman Munson back in 1979. I don't know how many Yankees fly their own planes as a hobby, and two deaths in a span of over a quarter century may not seem that unlikely. But I would certainly think twice about recreational flying if I was a player donning the pinstripes. Two deaths is two too many, especially for the families and teammates that are left behind. And who knows if we'll ever learn what really happened up there. R.I P. Cory.

--Matthew