Waking up to news that two Kansas City firefighters died and two more were injured Monday while battling an inferno in the 2600 block of Independence Avenue, was jarring for Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer.
Growing up in Miami, Hosmer’s father worked for the Miami-Dade Fire Department in the Liberty City neighborhood.
“For me personally, it hits really close to home having a father (Mike) being a firefighter for 29 years,” Hosmer said.
Larry J. Leggio, 43, a 17-year veteran with the Kansas City Fire Department, and John V. Mesh, 39, a 13-year department veteran died when a wall of the burning structure, which included apartments, collapsed.