Legendary Astros pitcher J.R. Richard, whose career was cut short in 1980 following a stroke, died at age 71, the team announced Thursday.
“Today is a sad day for the Houston Astros as we mourn the loss of one of our franchise icons, J.R. Richard,” the Astros said in the statement. “J.R. will forever be remembered as an intimidating figure on the mound and as one of the greatest pitchers in club history. He stood shoulder to shoulder with club icons Larry Dierker, Joe Niekro and Nolan Ryan, to form a few of the best rotations in club history.”
Richard, a first-round draft pick of Houston in 1969, broke into the big leagues two years later and firmly established himself as one of baseball’s most formidable hurlers by the mid-1970s. In 1976 he won 20 games before leading the majors in strikeouts in both 1978 and 1979.
He was still on a meteoric rise in 1980 when he was named to his first National League All-Star team. But that summer, he threw his final Major League pitch. Playing catch before a July 30 game, he suffered a stroke. Despite comeback attempts over the next few years, Richard never returned to a big league mound.
Richard finished with 107 wins, 1,493 strikeouts and a 3.15 ERA across 238 games with Houston.
“Sadly, his playing career was cut short by health issues,” the Astros added, “but his 10 years in an Astros uniform stand out as a decade of excellence. We send our heartfelt condolences to J.R.’s wife, Lula, his family, friends and countless fans and admirers.”