CCRI Great and Former Red Sox Pitcher Rheal Cormier Dies at 53

CCRI Great and Former Red Sox Pitcher Rheal Cormier Dies at 53

The Philadelphia Phillies announced Rheal Cormier, the left-hander who spent 16 seasons in the majors, has died of cancer at age 53 of cancer.

Cormier was a star pitcher at CCRI and once lived in a third-floor apartment in Woonsocket during his college career. 

At CCRI he earned All-American honors in 1987 and 1988.

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One of his biggest achievement was how well he pitched in the Olympics before and after his time in the big leagues, 

 

According to ESPN:

Cormier owned a neat nook in Phillies history: He was the winning pitcher in the final game that Philadelphia won at Veterans Stadium in 2003, and also was the winner in the first game the Phils won after moving into Citizens Bank Park in 2004.

Overall, he was 71-64 with two saves and a 4.03 ERA with St. Louis, Boston, Montreal, Philadelphia and Cincinnati. A member of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, Cormier pitched 683 games -- among his countrymen, only Paul Quantrill (841) pitched more in the majors.

Cormier made other prominent appearances on the mound, too.

Three years before his big league debut, he pitched for Canada in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Then in 2008, a year after his final game in the majors, he again threw for Canada in the 2008 Beijing Games -- he tuned up for the event by tossing in a men's senior league.

"Rheal was one of the most vibrant people I've had the pleasure of knowing," former teammate and Hall of Famer Jim Thome said in a statement released by the Phillies. "He loved baseball, but he always put his family first."

"Frenchy was the kind of guy who would do anything for you and I'm lucky to have called him my friend for many years. Our time spent together in Philadelphia as teammates was unforgettable. He will be greatly missed but never forgotten," Thome said.

Cormier went 8-0 with a 1.70 ERA in 65 games for the Phillies in 2003.