List of baseball players who died during their careers

This is a list of baseball players who died during their careers. While some of these deaths occurred during a game, the majority were the result of accidents off the field, illnesses, acts of violence, or suicide.

Repeated studies have shown that contemporary Major League Baseball players have a greater life expectancy than males in the general U.S. population — about five years more, on average, which is attributed to their superior fitness and healthy lifestyles. The longer the active career, the longer the player lives, on average. This correlation is attributed to the maintenance of fitness and increased wealth.

Deaths of active players This is a list of notable deaths in baseball and untimely deaths of active professional baseball players.

Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame

Major League Baseball The following Major League Baseball players died during their careers.

Player Age Position Team Cause of death Year Ref(s) 22 Pitcher Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim automobile crash 2009 26 First baseman Boston Red Sox pulmonary embolism 1955 23 Pitcher Baltimore Orioles complications from use of ephedra 2003 22 Pitcher Middletown Mansfields tuberculosis 1873Arcidiacono, David. Major League Baseball in Gilded Age Connecticut: The Rise and Fall of the Middletown, New Haven and Hartford Clubs, McFarland, 2009, p. 195. 28 Catcher Boston Beaneaters suicide by throat-cutting (murder–suicide) 1900 26 Pitcher Chicago Cubs influenza 1890Blair had signed a contract to spend the 1890 season with the Chicago Cubs, but he died as a result of illness before games began. He had last appeared in the majors with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1888. "Death Of A Ball Player ", The New York Times, published February 23, 1890, accessed August 21, 2006. 31 Third baseman Boston Braves automobile crash 1924 36 Pitcher Pittsburgh Pirates appendicitis 1949 27 Outfielder California Angels homicide by firearm 1978 38 Pitcher Chicago Cubs stomach hemorrhage 1930 23 Shortstop Washington Senators purpura hemorrhagia 1906 29 Shortstop Cleveland Indians brain injury, struck on head by a pitch during a game 1920 38 Outfielder Pittsburgh Pirates plane crash 1972 29 Pitcher New York Yankees lung cancer 1916 28 Second baseman Brooklyn Dodgers typhoid fever 1892 31 Pitcher Cleveland Indians boat crash (boating while intoxicated; also killed Steve Olin) 1993 28 Catcher Louisville Colonels tuberculosis 1888Egan, James M. Base Ball on the Western Reserve: The Early Game in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio, Year by Year and Town by Town, 1865–1900, McFarland, 2008, p. 162. 25 Outfielder San Diego Padres driving while intoxicated resulting in crash 2002 40 First baseman Cincinnati Reds appendicitis 1924 35 Outfielder Washington Senators drowned, swept over Niagara Falls 1903 28 Catcher St. Louis Cardinals typhoid fever 1922 34 Outfielder Boston Braves typhoid fever 1907 32 Catcher Washington Senators Addison's disease 1902 30 Third baseman Chicago Cubs appendicitis 1912 27 Pitcher Chicago White Sox automobile crash 1970 25 Pitcher Philadelphia Quakers typhoid fever 1888 24 Pitcher Miami Marlins boat crash (boating while intoxicated) 2016 29 Second baseman Philadelphia Phillies duodenal ulcer 1933 27 Outfielder Philadelphia Athletics tuberculosis 1891 30 Pitcher Milwaukee Brewers dune buggy crash 1977 23 Pitcher Seattle Pilots homicide by firearm 1970 24 Catcher Baltimore Orioles drowning after escaping plane crash wreckage 1956 "Orioles' Rookie Drowned in Bay," The Associated Press (AP), Friday, September 28, 1956. Retrieved February 6, 2023. 34 Pitcher Cincinnati Reds plane crash 1925 27 Pitcher Detroit Tigers diabetes 1915 24 Outfielder Seattle Mariners homicide by stabbing (fratricide) 2011 29 Pitcher St. Louis Cardinals automobile crash (driving while intoxicated) 2007 29 Pitcher Detroit Tigers heart attack 1937 30 Catcher Cincinnati Reds suicide by throat-cutting 1940 25 Outfielder St. Louis Cardinals drowned while swimming 1970 27 Catcher/Outfielder Brooklyn Atlantics tuberculosis 1875Russo, Frank. The Cooperstown Chronicles: Baseball's Colorful Characters, Unusual Lives, and Strange Demises, Rowman & Littlefield, 2014, p. 91. 22 Second baseman Chicago Cubs plane crash 1964 31 Pitcher Cleveland Indians meningitis 1911 28 Pitcher Toronto Blue Jays hypertensive heart disease 2007 33 Pitcher St. Louis Cardinals heart attack 2002 31 Outfielder Brooklyn Dodgers cerebral hemorrhage sustained during a fight on an airplane 1935 25 Pitcher Chicago Colts tuberculosis 1899 26 Third baseman Washington Senators appendicitis 1920 26 Catcher Philadelphia Phillies automobile crash 1929 34 Pitcher New York Yankees plane crash 2006 30 Pitcher Louisville Colonels tuberculosis 1899 27 Infielder Chicago Cubs testicular cancer 1981 "Services for Chicago Cubs second baseman Steve Macko will...," United Press International (UPI), Monday, November 16, 1981. Retrieved February 6, 2023. 27 Outfielder St. Louis Cardinals brain tumor 1922 27 Pitcher Brooklyn Superbas tuberculosis, complicated by injuries sustained in a carriage accident 1901 30 First baseman Pittsburgh Alleghenys typhoid fever 1887 28 Pitcher Baltimore Orioles suicide by firearm (murder–suicide) 1894 28 Pitcher Detroit Tigers suicide by gas 1903 23 Shortstop California Angels automobile crash 1977 26 Catcher St. Louis Brown Stockings indeterminate illness 1876Hershberger, Richard. "SABR Baseball Biography Project – Tom Miller", sabr.org, November 17, 2011. 21 Catcher New York Giants automobile crash 1942 29 Pitcher Pittsburgh Pirates automobile crash 1976 32 Pitcher Boston Red Sox homicide by stabbing 1932 32 Catcher New York Yankees plane crash 1979 24 Pitcher St. Louis Browns pneumonia 1892 27 Outfielder Pittsburgh Pirates pneumonia 1901 27 Pitcher Cleveland Indians passenger in boat accident (see Tim Crews) 1993 38 Catcher Philadelphia Athletics peritonitis arising from surgery complications following an in-game injury 1909 26CatcherKansas City Cowboyssuicide by morphine overdose1889 27 Outfielder Washington Senators Bright's disease 1909 23 Outfielder Philadelphia A's drowned while in military training 1918 34 Infielder San Diego Padres automobile crash 1996 27 Pitcher Los Angeles Angels pulmonary aspiration 2019 27 Outfielder Baltimore Orioles typhoid malaria 1888 34 Outfielder Boston Red Sox suicide by poisoning (carbolic acid) 1907 25 Outfielder Cincinnati Reds homicide by firearm 2003 25 Infielder Cincinnati Reds general streptococcus due to empyema 1910 30 Catcher Baltimore Orioles Bright's disease 1893 22 Outfielder St. Louis Cardinals automobile crash (driving while intoxicated) 2014 26 Pitcher Cincinnati Reds nephritis 1900 22 Outfielder Brooklyn Atlantics drowned while fishing 1872 29 Shortstop Texas Rangers leukemia 1976 "Danny Thompson, Infielder For Texas Baseball Team, Is Dead of Leukemia at 29," The Associated Press (AP), Saturday, December 11, 1976. Retrieved February 6, 2023. 33 Pitcher Houston Colt .45s melanoma 1964 25 Pitcher Kansas City Royals automobile crash 2017 25 Pitcher California Angels inoperable brain tumor 1965 22 Outfielder Cleveland Forest Citys tuberculosis 1872 Batesel, Paul. Players and Teams of the National Association, 1871–1875, McFarland, 2012, p. 131. 29 Pitcher Houston Astros poisoning by carbon monoxide 1975 29 Pitcher Cleveland Indians automobile crash 1993 30 Outfielder New York Giants Bright's disease 1927

Former major-league players still active in professional baseball at the time of their death Player Age Position Last MLB team Last pro team Cause of death Year Ref(s) 25 Third baseman Baltimore Orioles Duluth Freezers drowning 1887 28 Pitcher Chicago White Sox Free agent heart attack 1982 37 Pitcher Philadelphia Phillies Hollywood Stars cirrhosis 1945 29 Outfielder Minnesota Twins Jacksonville Suns leukemia 1967 37 Infielder Houston Astros Cardenales de Lara vehicular homicide during attempted robbery (with Luis Valbuena) 2018 31 Shortstop Houston Astros Azucareros del Este automobile crash 2000 33 Pitcher Boston Bees San Diego Padres automobile crash 1939 21 Pitcher San Francisco Giants Phoenix Giants plane crash 1969 26 Shortstop St. Louis Cardinals Providence Grays complications from surgery 1908 28 Pitcher Philadelphia Athletics Greensboro Patriots automobile crash (bus) 1947 19 Pitcher Houston Colt .45s Salisbury Astros automobile crash 1965 37 Pitcher Milwaukee Brewers Algodoneros de Unión Laguna heart attack 2021 29 Pitcher San Francisco Giants Seibu Lions automobile crash 2001 27 First baseman Chicago White Sox Ponce Lions automobile crash 1986 37 Catcher Cincinnati Reds Leones del Caracas crushed by a falling satellite dish 1990 27 Third baseman Cincinnati RedsMobile Sea Gulls brain injury, struck on head by a pitch during a game 1916 30 Outfielder Chicago Cubs Macoto Cobras congenital disorder 2005 34 Pitcher Baltimore Orioles San Antonio Missions homicide by stabbing 1955 Howie Fox stabbed to death. Telegraph Herald. October 9, 1955. Retrieved February 3, 2016. 32 Pitcher Texas Rangers Tigres de Aragua automobile crash 2011 21 Pitcher Washington Senators Norfolk Jewels unknown illness 1897 33 Pitcher Milwaukee Brewers Yomiuri Giants lightning strike 2008 34PitcherPhiladelphia PhilliesFree agent automobile crash2017 28 Left fielder St. Louis Cardinals San Diego Padres cardiac arrest 1953 Gorman, Weeks, p. 3432 (2nd, Kindle edition) 22 Left fielder Boston Beaneaters Toledo Mud Hens typhoid fever 1902 29 Pitcher Los Angeles Angels Sacramento River Cats organ failure related to cocaine toxicity 2015 31 Catcher Brooklyn Dodgers Spokane Indians automobile crash (bus) 1946 40 Pitcher Chicago White Sox Indianapolis Indians heart attack 1960 23 Outfielder St. Louis Browns Milwaukee Brewers homicide 1907 33 Outfielder Baltimore Orioles Sankei Atoms pancreatic necrosis 1969 31 Outfielder Philadelphia Phillies Indianapolis Indians pneumonia 1908 26 Pitcher Atlanta Braves Sioux City Explorers heart attack and brain aneurysm 2001 37 Pitcher New York Mets Aguilas Cibaenas heart attack 2010 33 Infielder Arizona Diamondbacks KT Wiz automobile crash 2017 39 First baseman New York Giants Milwaukee Brewers suicide by firearm 1910 31 Pitcher Los Angeles Angels Bravos de León automobile crash 2024 26 Third baseman St. Louis Cardinals Brother Elephants automobile crash 1997 26 Third baseman Chicago ColtsDubuque Westerns tuberculosis 1898 25OutfielderCincinnati RedsOakland Oaks tuberculosis1913 27 Outfielder St. Louis CardinalsOmaha Cardinals plane crash 1956 27Third basemanLouisville ColonelsPeoria Distillers "brain fever"1894 22 Third baseman Pittsburgh Pirates Washington Little Senators typhoid fever 1896 29 Pitcher Toronto Blue Jays AZL Diamondbacks automobile crash 1999 33 Infielder California AngelsSalt Lake City Angels automobile crash 1972 27 First baseman Louisville ColonelsNorwich Witches unknown 1900 27–28Second basemanBaltimore OriolesRichmond Virginias rheumatism1884 20–21OutfielderCleveland BluesToronto Canucksspinal injury from diving accident1886 24Second basemanLouisville GraysLondon Tecumsehs pulmonary hemorrhage1877 29Second basemanMilwaukee BrewersFree agent automobile crash1995 33 Infielder Los Angeles Angels Cardenales de Lara vehicular homicide during attempted robbery (with José Castillo) 2018 28 Relief pitcher Chicago White Sox Free agent all-terrain vehicle crash 2017 32 Center fielder Boston Red Sox Portland Beavers automobile crash 1929 29 Infielder Philadelphia Phillies Sioux City Soos typhoid fever 1904

Minor League Baseball Players in this section did not play above the Minor League Baseball level; they are listed with their final minor-league team along with its major-league affiliation, if any.