MLB Teams Pay Tribute to Octavio Dotel Following Tragic Death

3:24 PM PT -- MLB commissioner Robert Manfred released a statement on the passing of Dotel, Nelson Cruz's sister, Nelsy, and former pro Tony Blanco ... saying, "We send our heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of all those who have been affected and to our colleague Nelson and his entire family."

"The connection between baseball and the Dominican Republic runs deep, and we are thinking of all the Dominican players and fans across the game today."

The New York Mets paid tribute to former player Octavio Dotel on Tuesday ... hours after a nightclub roof collapsed and killed the World Series champion in the Dominican Republic.

Prior to the team's game against the Miami Marlins, the Metropolitans held a moment of silence for Dotel, who made his Major League debut with the squad in June 1999.

Beyond the moment of silence, team manager Carlos Mendoza addressed the tragic event in his pre-game press conference.

"We have a lot of Dominican community in the baseball world," he said. "So our prayers to their families."

The team he spent the majority of his career with -- the Houston Astros -- also released a statement on his passing ... saying they were "heartbroken."

"A workhorse, Dotel’s club-leading 159 appearances in 2002-03 combined were second in the Majors in that span, during which he posted a 2.15 ERA."

Dotel was among the at least 44 killed after the Jet Set roof in Santo Domingo collapsed in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Rescue efforts are still underway to reach around 100 people trapped underneath the rubble.

MLB Insider Héctor Gómez was the first to report the 51-year-old was pulled from the rubble, but later stated he died while in transit to the hospital.