Curtis Granderson hit hard by the passing of a fan
Ryan McConnell, CT Sports Editor
April 19, 2007
The after effects of Monday's tragedy have been felt by those far away. In one case, by a man who lives 542 miles away and never knew the victim who knew him well.
Brian Bluhm was a baseball fan. More specifically, he was a Detroit Tigers fan, and a rabid one at that. The Midwesterner partnered with another online user to keep a blog dedicated to all things Tigers.
Bluhm's favorite player on that squad was Curtis Granderson, the centerfielder and leadoff hitter for the 2006 American League Pennant winners.
On Wednesday, Granderson took time after the Tigers' contest against the Kansas City Royals in Detroit to reflect on his feelings upon hearing about the tragedy at Virginia Tech, and on subsequently learning that Bluhm, a loyal fan of the boys from Motown, was among the victims in Norris Hall.
"I reverted back to being in college and thinking of where I was when I heard about bad news, especially 9/11 happening when I was in school, and trying to put myself in the kids' shoes at Virginia Tech," said Granderson. "Then finding out that one of the tragedies was from Detroit and not only a fan of the Tigers, but also a fan of myself, it hit home even more. Thinking about it even more, the impacts we have on people whether you know it or not, that definitely goes a long way."
Born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Bluhm's family moved to Troy, Mich., 20 miles outside of downtown Detroit. His family once again uprooted and moved to Louisville, Ky., when he was seven. While Bluhm was at Tech, his family moved to Winchester.
Granderson, who writes a blog on espn.com three times a week, used his April 18 entry to express his sorrow to Bluhm and other victims and took time to answer a question Bluhm e-mailed while he was still alive. Although the question was answered posthumously, Granderson hoped the message would reach the Tigers fan wherever he was.
"The disappointing thing was that I'm answering the question when he's no longer with us. I wish I could have gotten to the question a little earlier, but hopefully wherever he's at he'll be able to read the answer somehow, someway."
Bluhm, 25, had teamed to discuss the team from Motown with another poster during the season. His blog partner, "zacharyherman," left a message on their blog, sabersdrawn.wordpress.com, on Tuesday.
"My good friend and fellow contributor to this blog, Brian Bluhm, was among the 32 students killed in the massacre at Virginia Tech on Monday. I knew Brian exclusively through the Internet - I never met him in person or spoke to him on the phone. Still, I considered him an important person in my life and I am deeply saddened by his death," according to an excerpt taken from the message.
Bluhm's dedication to the Tigers and their campaign did not go unnoticed by Granderson.
"That was the big thing, him thinking about different stuff like that, and how effective our life as a baseball player is on people who watch us," Granderson said. "He's at school studying to become an engineer, and at the same time he's still a big Tigers fan, reading up on my stuff, reading up the rest of the players, sending in comments and questions."
Granderson furthered expressed his sympathies to Bluhm's family, and reiterated that his organization would continue to pray for them. Like other teams in baseball, the Tigers held a moment of silence before their Tuesday game.
"Our prayers from the Tiger's organization are with their family, it's very unfortunate event, and we're disappointed with everything that's happened," said Granderson. "But again our prayers and thoughts are with them, and we're going to continue support them whatever way we can help out."