Kansas City Royals’ Willie Aikens leaves to look after wife
Just two weeks after Willie Aikens was hired as coach for Kansas City Royals, he has been met with terrible news. Aikens’ wife of three months, Sara, 42, has been hospitalised after suffering from a stroke on Wednesday. The former Royals player immediately
left to be by her side. The incident has caused Aikens’ to delay starting his career as coach and counsellor for the Minor League team.
Aikens had been a Major League sluggish first baseman for the Royals and had been famous for his four home runs during the 1980 World Series. However, his reputation had taken a sudden hit when he was jailed for 81 days in 1983 for being part of a drug scandal.
His career came to a screeching halt when he was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for selling cocaine.
Royals General Manager Dayton Moore offered to take the player back in to the organisation as coach in the minor league and a counsellor for the young players. However, his new job will have to wait until he returns to the club after tending to his wife.
“Obviously the most important thing for him right now is his family,” Moore said. “That’s what he’s focused on, as he should, and baseball will be there when he can be there.”
Aikens was in Surprise, Arizona, when he got news of his wife’s condition. “I was eager to go to Spring Training, but I talked to Dayton and he told me not to even worry about that, to take care of business at home,” Aikens said. “And it’s so great to have
somebody behind you like that.”
“I’ll be there for her,” he said. “She was there for me all the time I was incarcerated. She stayed behind me so I’m not going anywhere. Everything is in God’s hands right now.”
The Royals will hope Aikens can recover from this incident to return to the game. For now, they can only hope things stabilise and work out in the interest of Aikens and his wife, Sara.
Tags: