Former Canadian MLB Pitcher Rheal Cormier Passes Away at 53.

[EastCoaster]

New Brunswick native Rheal Cormier dies at 53 after a battle with cancer. Cormier spend 16 years in the MLB with 5 teams Cardinals, Red Sox, Expos, Philles and the Reds. Born in St- Andre-LeBlanc small village near Shediac he played his minor and senior baseball in Moncton he was drafted in 6th round by the St-Louis Cardinals. Rheal best year was in 2003 with Philadelphia he was 8-0 as a reliever with a 1.70 ERA according to the Phillies that was the 2nd lowest among relievers and the 6th lowest by any club reliever in the modern era since 1900. Cormier made 84 appearances the most by a lefty Philadelphia pitcher. During his Philly tenure he appeared in 363 games as a reliever, it's the second most in club history behind Tim McGraw. Cormier represented Canada on the world stage at the 1987 Pan-American games, 1988 and 2006 Olympics and the World Baseball Classic. Rheal Cormier was inducted in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012. Canada lost a great baseball ambassador RIP my friend.

[Spanky99]

New Brunswick native Rheal Cormier dies at 53 after a battle with cancer. Cormier spend 16 years in the MLB with 5 teams Cardinals, Red Sox, Expos, Philles and the Reds. Born in St- Andre-LeBlanc small village near Shediac he played his minor and senior baseball in Moncton he was drafted in 6th round by the St-Louis Cardinals. Rheal best year was in 2003 with Philadelphia he was 8-0 as a reliever with a 1.70 ERA according to the Phillies that was the 2nd lowest among relievers and the 6th lowest by any club reliever in the modern era since 1900. Cormier made 84 appearances the most by a lefty Philadelphia pitcher. During his Philly tenure he appeared in 363 games as a reliever, it's the second most in club history behind Tim McGraw. Cormier represented Canada on the world stage at the 1987 Pan-American games, 1988 and 2006 Olympics and the World Baseball Classic. Rheal Cormier was inducted in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012. Canada lost a great baseball ambassador RIP my friend.

 

Sad day yesterday, why didn't you paste the quotes from the story?

[EastCoaster]

Here's a story posted by the Phillies:

Cormier was a big leaguer, but he never acted like one. He was unassuming off the field. He once told a story about going to one of his children’s Little League practices. He noticed his daughter stepping on first base with the wrong foot. He politely instructed her how to catch the ball properly.

 

A coach looked at Cormier funny, perhaps thinking he was just another dad getting involved.

 

Afterward, a few parents took batting practice. A few fathers hit a few balls hard. Then Cormier stepped into the box.

 

Cormier hit .188 in 228 plate appearances in the big leagues, which is tied for the 49th highest batting average in baseball history among pitchers with 225 or more plate appearances.

 

Cormier started launching baseballs like Babe Ruth.

 

“Did you play before?” a parent asked Cormier.

 

“Yeah, I play in the big leagues,” Cormier said.

 

During his time in Philadelphia, Cormier made contributions to Phillies Charities and visited patients in area hospitals. While with the Expos, he worked with several school programs in New Brunswick. He was a spokesman for teenage anti-suicide and anti-drug campaigns.

 

If you ever met Rheal he was the nicest most down to earth guy you'd ever meet despite his fame, he never lost his small village friendly charm.