Scott Sanderson, R.I.P.

Former MLB pitcher turned agent Scott Sanderson has passed away at the age of 62. No cause of death has been given although his former Montreal Expos teammate and current Miami Marlins bench coach Tim Wallach indicated Sanderson had cancer. Baseball writer Danny Gallagher added that Sanderson had his voice box removed last year and had suffered a stroke which rendered him bedridden.

Sanderson enjoyed a 19-year big league career which began in 1978 with the Montreal Expos where he spent the first six seasons of his career. Although Sanderson would be part of two Chicago Cubs teams to make the post-season (1984 & 1989), pitch in a World Series with the Oakland A's in 1990 and earn his lone All-Star selection with the New York Yankees in 1991, I will always remember him as an Expo where he was a pivotal member of their starting rotation and was part of the team's lone post-season appearance in 1981.

My favorite memory of Sanderson came not on the mound, but at the bat. In a game at Wrigley Field on September 11, 1982, Sanderson belted a grand slam home run. A career .097 hitter, it was only one of two home runs he hit in his entire career

Sanderson also had stints with the Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants and two tenures with the California Angels. In 472 appearances on the mound, Sanderson compiled a 163-143 record with a 3.84 ERA along with 1611 strikeouts. After his playing career concluded in 1996, Sanderson became an agent and represented the likes of Frank Thomas, Lance Berkman and Josh Beckett.

Sanderson was well regarded in the baseball community. Cubs manager Joe Maddon who got to know Sanderson while on the Angels' coaching staff called Sanderson "kind" and "thoughtful." R.I.P.