The Baltimore Orioles minor league team pitcher, Luis Ortiz, sadly passed away at just 20 years old.
Ortiz, originally from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, signed with the Orioles in 2019. He began pitching at the rookie level in 2021. The Orioles announces in a statement posted to Twitter that he died from his battle with cancer.
The Orioles captioned the statement by saying “Our hearts are heavy today as we mourn the passing of minor league pitcher Luis Andrés Ortiz Soriano. Luis was an inspiration to all who knew him, especially as he courageously battled cancer. Our hearts go out to his family and friends.”
The statement itself said:
“Our hearts are heavy today as we mourn the passing of minor league pitcher Luis Andrés Ortiz Soriano. We will miss his passion and love for the game of baseball, and we extend our deepest condolences to his family.
“Luis was an inspiration to all who knew him, especially as he courageously battled cancer. We hope that the cherished and treasured memories of Luis will be a comfort for his family and friends during this devastating time.”
Our hearts are heavy today as we mourn the passing of minor league pitcher Luis Andrés Ortiz Soriano.
Luis was an inspiration to all who knew him, especially as he courageously battled cancer. Our hearts go out to his family and friends. pic.twitter.com/tTzHIghtD9
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) March 12, 2023
Commenting on the statement, people passed on their thoughts, prayers, and condolences, saying things like:
“May the peace of God be with his family and the Orioles family and fans.”
“So sorry to hear this. I am hoping for the best for his family and friends.”
“RIP young man. My prayers for peace and strength go out to his family.”
“20 is way too young to go. May his family and friends find comfort and peace in this time and may they celebrate his life.”
“This is so very sad. I am sorry to read this. Bless him.”
“That is so sad, I know we all will die but 20 is very young with a great life a head of him. God needed him more.”
“This is devastating. 20 was too young for a young athlete. Rest well young man🥲”
The Orioles’ senior director of international scouting, Koby Perez, spoke about Ortiz and the courageous way he handled his battle with cancer to The Baltimore Sun, saying: “I can’t believe the way he took it on. Anytime he was around me, he acted really mature about it. He took it as well as anybody would ever take something like that. He was a fighter. He said he was going to fight, and he did all the way to his last breath.”
Fox News Digital reports that:
Ortiz was 16 when he signed with the Orioles in 2019. He pitched in the Florida Complex League in 2021 and was assigned to Single-A Delmarva in 2022 but spent the year on the injured list as he battled the disease.
Featured image credit: By EricEnfermero – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=48989995
"*" indicates required fields