Former Pirates Pitcher Octavio Dotel Dies at 51

Former Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Octavio Dotel died at the age of 51 following a night club roof collapse in the Dominican Republic on Tuesday. The collapse killed dozens and over left over 100 others injured.

According to MLB insider Hector Gomez, Dotel was rescued from the rubble but died while being transported to the hospital.

Dotel, who pitched for 13 different teams across 15 big-league seasons, made 41 appearances for the Pirates in 2010. While with Pittsburgh, Dotel went 2-2 with a 4.28 ERA and recorded 21 saves.

He was traded by the Pirates to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the trade deadline for right-handed pitcher James McDonald and outfielder Andrew Lambo.

The native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic made 758 appearances in his Major-League career and went 59-50 with a 3.78 ERA, 1,143 strikeouts and 109 saves.

Dotel won the World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011 when they defeated the Texas Rangers. He made five appearances during that series and allowed two runs in 3.2 innings.

Dotel announced his retirement in 2014 at the age of 40.

Pirates manager Derek Shelton expressed his condolences prior to Tuesday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

“I want to offer condolences to the Dotel family. I think you guys all heard about what happened in the Dominican Republic. Obviously, Octavio played here. He was in the league when I was coaching.”