Former Cardinals pitcher Joaquin Andujar dies at 62
Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Joaquin Andujar, who won a major league-leading 20 games in 1984, died Tuesday at the age of 62 after a long battle with diabetes.
"Joaquin struggled for years with diabetes and in recent days had deteriorated a lot," former pitcher Mario Soto told Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes. "He was hospitalized several times but always came out unscathed. However, he surrendered to the disease that consumed him completely."
The Cardinals released a brief statement via Twitter on Tuesday that read: "He was 'One Tough Dominican' & a member of our Cardinals family. We loved him & we will miss him. RIP Joaquin Andujar."
Andujar spent the majority of his 13-year career with the Houston Astros, but it was in St. Louis where he enjoyed his most success. The right-hander followed his 1984 season with a second straight All-Star selection in 1985 after winning 21 games for the NL pennant-winning Cardinals.
Andujar was also a key contributor to the Cardinals' 1982 title, pitching to a 2-0 record with a 1.35 ERA in two World Series starts.
Joaquin Andujar served people like me as a role model. Before I dream about baseball as a career, Andujar was in all my dreams.
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) September 8, 2015
The Dominican native was signed by the Cincinnati Reds as an amateur free agent in 1969 before getting dealt to the Astros six years later. It was in Houston where Andujar debuted and played seven seasons with two All-Star appearances. He returned to the Astros to finish his career in 1988 after spending five seasons in St. Louis and two in Oakland.