Ryan Freel dead at 36

[ThomasTomasz]

Former Major League Baseball utility infielder Ryan Freel, who played briefly for the Baltimore Orioles, has died at the age of 36.

Freel's death was first reported late Saturday afternoon by First Coast News in Freel's hometown, Jacksonville, Fla. A few hours later, Jacksonville.com reported that the cause of death was suicide, reportedly a self-inflicted shotgun blast, according to Sgt. Mike Paul of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Authorities are treating Freel's death as a suicide.

Freel, who played nine games for the Orioles in 2009, was acquired from the Reds in December 2008 as part of a trade that sent catcher Ramon Hernandez to Cincinnati.

Freel was 2-for-15 (.133) in limited action for the Orioles early in the 2009 season before the team traded him to the Cubs for Joey Gathright in May. Freel played 14 games for the Cubs in 2009.

He spent most of his eight-year MLB career from 2001 to 2009 with the Reds, for whom he played six seasons. He made his Major League debut with the Blue Jays in 2001.

His career batting average was .268. He also stole 143 bases.

Freel retired from pro ball in 2009 and had most recently worked for BLD Baseball, which stands for Big League Development, an organization that helps develop young players. Freel was also named head baseball coach at St. Joseph Academy in Jacksonville earlier this year in June.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...shot-wound-20121223,0,2362991.story?track=rss

I was just thinking a couple days ago about what Freel was doing, can't remember for the life of me why it came up.....definitely surprised to see this.

 

[EmpireWF]

A shotgun? :bomber:

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Freel once told Reds beat reporter John Fay that he's had "9 or 10" concussions over the course of his baseball career. And this was while he was still with the Reds, as he played a couple of years after that quote.

If you remember Freel, he would lay out and dive all over the place like a mad man. He ran into walls several times and had a nasty collision with Norris Hopper that knocked him out cold.

Total speculation, but we may be looking at yet another degenerative brain issue here.

 

[FedEx227]

Didn't he effectively retire from the league after getting hit in the head from a pickoff throw? I seem to remember him having a lot of issues immediately following that.

 

[NAHSTE]

Terrible news. He was the original scrappy white utility guy before the CRADS monopolized the breed.

I remember hearing of him lobbying to play some catcher, while he was already playing 5-6 positions in a given week for some pretty hopeless teams. RIP.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/blog/eye-on-baseball/21444808/remembering-ryan-freel

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Freel once told Reds beat reporter John Fay that he's had "9 or 10" concussions over the course of his baseball career. And this was while he was still with the Reds, as he played a couple of years after that quote.

If you remember Freel, he would lay out and dive all over the place like a mad man. He ran into walls several times and had a nasty collision with Norris Hopper that knocked him out cold.

Total speculation, but we may be looking at yet another degenerative brain issue here.

This is the same Ryan Freel that had a little midget inside of his head that spoke to him and he had discussions with. He called him Farley or something. Perhaps, he told him to do it.

 

[Rudi]

RIP. My favorite player to watch ever...my AIM screen name was FreelIsGod6. Reading a lot of statements from people in the Reds organization about how he was great to be around and a great person. Very sad he couldn't get the neccesary help to prevent this.

I'll never forget the night he dove into the stands at Dodger Stadium and broke some ladys arm. so his diving catch on the warning track robbing Pujols in 06.

:crying:

 

[Villain]

Freel owned the Dodgers when he was on the Reds. Damn... A fucking shotgun? That's gnarly...

 

[Woy]

Sad news. Always respected the guy as a player.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Pretty dark account of Freel's last days (very long):

http://www.sportsnet.ca/magazine/when-the-game-is-gone/

 

[Villain]

Nope. Not reading that.

 

[Sharkweather]

I just skimmed it, it got me at the end.

 

Later that night, he sat alone at the bar of an Outback Steakhouse. Ordered a 16-oz. prime rib steak, medium rare, just how he liked it. Chased it with two pints of beer and a whisky and Coke. He texted furiously on his phone. He told Christie he was sorry for cancelling on Santa Claus and asked his mother what she’d done with his guns. He knew she’d been collecting them for his own safety.

“You forgot one,” he wrote.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

That was beyond heavy……..I know it's easy to say that these guys made money and not feel for them, but CTE is nothing to joke about. I couldn't imagine how hard that was on his mother that morning.