Retired Red Sox Shortstop Valentin, Mom Hurt In Red Bank Crash: Report

RED BANK, NJ — The driver of an SUV that smashed into the front of the Visiting Nurse Association building on Route 35 on Thursday is John Valentin, the former Major League shortstop who played for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Mets, according to a report.

An Associated Press report in the Asbury Park Press said police say Valentin, 50, of Holmdel, and his mother, who's 71, both were injured in the crash that happened about 10:30 a.m. on Thursday. Their injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, the report said.

According to the Red Bank Fire Department, Valentin and his mother were extricated by removing seats and a door of the Chevrolet Suburban and they taken by MONOC to the hospital.

The VNA building at 176 Riverside Ave., was vacant at the time, the reports said. The Suburban was on Route 35 when it left the road; the Asbury Park Press report quoted police as saying Valentin may have had a medical episode.

Responding were the Red Bank Fire Department's Union Hose Company No. 1 and Navesink Hook and Ladder Company, Red Bank First Aid and Rescue Squad, Red Bank police and the Middletown Township Fire Department's Special Services Unit, which shored up the damaged building, the fire department said.

Valentin was a shortstop and third baseman who played for the Red Sox from 1992 to 2001, according to Baseball Reference.com, and played for the Mets for one season, 2002, before retiring.

Main photo by Robert Kelly; additional photo and video via Red Bank Fire Department