Former Phillies pitcher Rheal Cormier passes away at 53

MLB pitcher of 16 seasons Rheal Cormier passed away on Monday at the age of 53 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

The baseball world mourns the loss of a man who took the pitchers mound for the better part of a decade and a half.

The Philadelphia Phillies announced on Monday that former pitcher Rheal Cormier passed away at the age of 53 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. Cormier pitched in the majors for 16 years across the St. Louis Cardinals (1991-94), Montreal Expos (1996-97), Boston Red Sox (1995, 1999-2000), Cincinnati Reds (2006-07) and Phillies (2001-06. His most prolific stint occurred in the City of Brotherly Love.

Phillies: Rheal Cormier, veteran left-handed reliever, passes away at 53

Following his second stint with the Red Sox, Cormier signed with the Phillies as a free agent. As it turns out, he would become one of the best left-handed relievers in the franchise’s history.

Cormier spent six seasons with the Phillies, where his best arrived in the 2003 season. Through 65 appearances, Cormier owned a strong 1.70 ERA, a 0.993 WHIP and struck out 67 batters in 84.2 innings of work. Cormier’s 363 games played are the second-most for any left-handed reliever in Phillies history, finishing behind Tug McGraw (463).

The left-hander also holds the distinction of earning the first win for the Phillies inside Citizens Bank Park on April 15, 2004 after defeating the Cincinnati Reds 6-4. Cormier logged one inning of work, where he allowed one walk and zero runs.

Through his entire career, Cormier tallied a 4.03 ERA, a 1.281 WHIP and 760 strikeouts over 1,221.2 innings of work (683 appearances). Five years after his last official season, Cormier was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012.

We would like to extend our condolences to the Cormier’s family, friends and colleagues at this time.