Rheal Cormier, R.I.P.

Former big league pitcher Rheal Cormier has passed away of cancer. He was only 53. 

The Canadian born southpaw, who grew up in the province of New Brunswick, represented his home and native land in the 1987 Pan-Am Games and in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Cormier was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 6th round of the 1988 MLB Draft. He would make his big league debut with the Cardinals during the 1991 season.

Cormier would remain with the Cardinals through the 1994 season where he was primarily utilized as a starting pitcher. Shortly before the 1995 season, the Cardinals traded Cormier along with outfielder Mark Whiten to the Boston Red Sox for Scott Cooper and Corey Bailey. The Red Sox utilized Cormier primarily out of the bullpen en route to an AL East title.

Following the 1995 season, the Red Sox traded Cormier along with Shayne Bennett and Ryan McGuire to the Montreal Expos in the deal which brought Wil Cordero to Boston. While pitching in his native Canada, Cormier was mainly a starting pitcher during the 1996 season but a shoulder injury limited him to a single appearance in 1997. His should injury persisted after signing with the Cleveland Indians as a free agent in 1998 and he would miss the entire season.

Cormier would return to the Red Sox in 1999 and would never make another big league start. After two seasons in Boston, Cormier signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Phillies where he would spend the next five and a half seasons. He would enjoy a career year in 2003 when at the age of 36 he went 8-0 with a 1.70 ERA in 65 appearances. In 2004, Cormier made a career high 84 appearances.

In 2006, Cormier represented Canada at the inaugural World Baseball Classic. Later that year, The Phillies traded Cormier to the Cincinnati Reds for Justin Germano at the trade deadline but was ineffective. The Reds released Cormier early in the 2007 season. He would sign a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves shortly thereafter but did not make the big league roster and would retire but not before representing Canada in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. At 41, Cormier was the oldest competitor in the Olympic baseball tourney. 

In 683 big league appearances over 16 seasons (more than half of them with the Phillies), Cormier went 71-64 with a 4.03 ERA and 760 career strikeouts. He would be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012. I leave you with his induction speech. R.I.P.