Nolan Arenado pays tribute to legendary Top Gun actor after death
St. Louis Cardinals slugger Nolan Arenado paid tribute to legendary Hollywood actor Val Kilmer on Wednesday after the veteran's untimely death at 65 due to pneumonia on Tuesday night.
Kilmer, who was the youngest actor to attend Juilliard School at 17, starred in several blockbuster movies during his storied career. One of his most notable roles came opposite Tom Cruise as Tom “Iceman” Kazansky in Top Gun in 1986.
Arenado, an eight-time All-Star, shared an Instagram story to pay tribute to the legendary actor. The 33-year-old infielder put an image of Kilmer from his critically acclaimed role of Doc Holliday from Tombstone (1993).
Kilmer starred alongside Kurt Russell, Bill Paxton and Sam Elliott in the action flick. While Kilmer gained popularity for his role in Top Gun, he initially turned down the movie.
“I didn’t want the part. I didn’t care about the film. The story didn’t interest me,” he wrote in his memoir.
As it turned out, Val Kilmer not only aced his role in the movie but his role was also reprised in the sequel, Top Gun: Maverick, in 2022.
Nolan Arenado to be traded ahead of trade deadline, per CBS Sports analyst
Following an offseason fueled by rumors surrounding his future, Nolan Arenado's stint with the Cardinals remains uncertain. The veteran slugger was linked with a move to the Houston Astros, which was reportedly blocked by Arenado using his no-trade clause in the offseason.
However, CBS Sports' Mikee Axisa believes Arenado's Cardinals stint is coming to an end, predicting a move for the 33-year-old by the July 30 trade deadline.
"We know the Cardinals want to trade Nolan Arenado and that Arenado wants out," Axisa wrote. "Put those two things together and it feels like only a matter of time until he's moved. It didn't happen this offseason (it almost did) but it will at the deadline, we boldly predict."
While the analyst didn't mention any team linked with Nolan Arenado at the time, last year's World Series runner-ups, the New York Yankees, are expected to be one of the teams making a move for Arenado to shore up their infield.