José DeLeón, a veteran Major League Baseball pitcher with a career spanning 13 seasons, passed away at the age of 63. DeLeón, who notably led the National League in strikeouts while playing for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1989, died Sunday evening at Cedimat hospital in Santo Domingo, as confirmed by his team in the Dominican Winter League, Los Leones del Escogido. While the team cited health issues as the cause of death, no further details were provided.
Throughout his career, DeLeón amassed a record of 86 wins and 119 losses, maintaining a 3.76 ERA across 264 starts and 151 relief appearances. He played for several teams including the Pittsburgh Pirates (1983-1986), Chicago White Sox (1986-1987, 1993-1995), St. Louis Cardinals (1988-1992), Philadelphia Phillies (1992-1993), and Montreal Expos (1995). The right-handed pitcher recorded a total of 1,594 strikeouts over 1,897 1/3 innings.
DeLeón’s standout season came in 1989 when he led the National League with 201 strikeouts. He also tied for the NL lead in losses during the 1985 and 1990 seasons. Initially drafted by the Pirates in the third round of the 1979 amateur draft, DeLeón made his MLB debut on July 23, 1983, and had an impressive start, striking out nine batters over eight innings in a victory against the San Francisco Giants.
In July 1986, DeLeón was traded to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for Bobby Bonilla. DeLeón’s postseason appearances came in 1993, where he delivered a solid performance, allowing only one run over 4 2/3 innings in a pair of AL Championship Series relief appearances against the Toronto Blue Jays.
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