Get the latest Boston sports news
Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.
Jim Corsi, former Red Sox pitcher from Newton, dies at 60
Corsi, who pitched for the Red Sox for three seasons, passed away at home after battling liver and colon cancer.
Jim Corsi, a former MLB pitcher from Newton whose professional stops included his hometown Red Sox, has died at age 60 after a battle with liver and colon cancer.
WBZ-TV’s Steve Burton broke the news that the longtime relief pitcher passed away Tuesday morning at his Bellingham home surrounded by family members.
The news of Corsi’s death comes just a day after he told Burton he was “at peace” with his diagnosis in an interview for WBZ.
“I know if I die I’m going to a better place, that’s the No. 1 thing. I feel sorry for everybody I’ll leave behind,” he said.
Advertisement:
Corsi starred at Newton North High School and Saint Leo University in Florida before being drafted by the New York Yankees in the 25th round of the 1982 MLB Draft.
He then went on to play 10 seasons in the major leagues, posting a 22-24 record with a 3.35 ERA and winning a World Series with the Oakland A’s in 1989 alongside former Red Sox star and current NESN analyst Dennis Eckersley.
“Jim was as friendly as anything to everybody. Everybody had a relationship with him,” Eckersley said of Corsi. “Everything was open with him. His life was an open book.”
Advertisement:
Corsi came home to the Red Sox in the 1997 season and stayed there until he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles in 1999 to finish out his career The reliever had a 9-7 record with a 3.35 ERA, 103 strikeouts and just 12 walks in 139 games with Boston.
“Jim’s heart was so big and full of love that his legacy goes far beyond his playing career and World Series Championship,” Red Sox president Sam Kennedy said on Tuesday. “The affection he showed his family, this region, and every fan he encountered was incomparable. For me and so many others, he was the embodiment of that childhood dream to someday play for the hometown team…we lost a great one today.”
“I could always count on Jim…He brought so much to so many, with an infectious love of baseball, humor, and boundless energy and heart,” added Red Sox senior VP of community, alumni and player relations Pam Kenn. “We lost a great player today, but more importantly, a great friend.”
After his playing career, Corsi worked as a studio analyst with local TV stations like NESN and UPN-38 before going into the construction business with his father and brothers, remodeling and building houses for Corsi Construction.
Advertisement:
In the interview with Burton, Corsi lamented not being screened for colon cancer when he was younger and offered a last piece of advice: “Don’t wait.”
“I was a professional athlete and thought I was invincible, strong. You’re not. Cancer is not prejudiced to anybody,” he said. “That’s my message: Don’t wait. You don’t want to end up like this. If you get it soon enough, you’ll be all right.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com