Oscar Taveras was nearly playing in this week's World Series. Instead, the 22-year-old St. Louis Cardinals rookie outfielder was killed in a car crash in his native Dominican Republic. As players for the Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants prepared Monday for Tuesday's sixth game of the best-of-seven Major League Baseball final, they pondered the tragedy that befell a young star who felt like one of their own. Taveras hit .239 with three home runs and 22 runs batted in over 80 games for the Cardinals this season after making his major league debut in May.