Cardinal Great Bob Forsch Dies at Age 61

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Former Cardinals pitching great dead at 61

Many athletes and sports figures have been lost way too soon.

Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Forsch, who only a week ago threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 7 of the World Series, collapsed at his home near Tampa, Fla., and died Thursday night.

 

Forsch, 61, died from an aneurysm in his upper chest, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

 

"Just a very sad day," former teammate Rick Horton said. "Bob was such a good friend, a great teammate and a real professional in every sense of the word. That's really what I think about when I think of Bob, being a professional and a mentor to me.

 

"I was very surprised. Just the range of emotions: The Cardinals win the World Series, and I'm so glad he was there to throw out the first pitch at Game 7, but this is just really stunning."

 

Forsch is the only pitcher in Cardinals history to throw two no-hitters. He ranks third on the team's all-time wins list with 163, trailing Bob Gibson (251) and Jesse Haines (210).

 

Forsch also is third in strikeouts with 1,079.

 

"A great competitor, teammate and one of the finest men I played with," Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith said on Twitter. "Heaven just got a starter."

 

In 15 seasons (1974-88) with the Cardinals, Forsch went 163-127 and posted a 3.67 ERA. The right-hander helped the Cardinals to World Series appearances in 1982, 1985 and 1987.

 

He made two starts in the 1982 Fall Classic in which the Cardinals defeated the Milwaukee Brewers in seven games to win the World Series title.

 

“I don’t know anything good to say about this,” former teammate Dave LaPoint said. “You try to cheer yourself up, and it's just one things that shouldn’t happen to a guy that was my mentor, a lot of guys from the '70s to the '90s. He sure helped a lot of people. I don’t know anybody on this earth that has one bad thing to say about Bob Forsch, and that’s why we’re going to miss him.

 

“He took that extra second to make everybody’s life a little bit better.”

 

His best season came in 1977, when he won 20 games, posted a 3.48 ERA and had eight complete games.

 

The right-hander was traded to the Houston Astros during the 1988 season and played one final season with them in 1989.

 

For his career, Forsch had 11 seasons with at least 10 wins and 67 complete games.

 

"Everybody talks about his two no-hitters, and certainly that's kind of his mark, but he was really way better than that," Horton said. "Sometimes those are fluky, things but his weren't. He was an outstanding pitcher for a long time.

 

"Really, he was the quintessential Cardinal. He was with them a long time and contributed to a lot of winning Cardinals teams . . . He was a 20-game winner. I mean, you are talking about a top-notch pitcher and maybe one of the most underrated Cardinal players in the last 50 years in terms of how good he was and how much he contributed."

 

"We are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Bob Forsch," Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said in a statement. "Bob was a one of the best pitchers in the history of our organization and a valued member of the Cardinals family.

 

"Having been with Bob just last week, we are all stunned by this news."

 

The entire Cardinals organization extends its sincere condolences to Bob's wife, Janice; his two daughters, Amy and Kristin; and his countless friends."

 

Forsch spent the past few years as a minor league pitching coach in the Cincinnati Reds organization.

Very sad. R.I.P.

 

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