Brian Wolfe endured a “torturous battle” before his sudden death at the age of 45.
His wife, Rachell Wolfe, shared the tragic news on Facebook.
“I’m sorry to write this but after a really really difficult and torturous battle Brian Wolfe passed away early this morning,” she wrote Tuesday on her account.
No cause of death has been reported. Former MLB outfielder Brandon Barnes confirmed Wolfe’s passing in a video posted to social media Wednesday.
“Life is too short and I know everybody says that. But I just lost one of my best friends and mentor,” Barnes said in the Facebook video.
Wolfe, a Fullerton, California native, pitched three seasons in Major League Baseball with the Blue Jays before a nine-year career overseas in Nippon Professional Baseball. The right-hander was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the sixth-round out of Servite High School in 1999.
He spent six years pitching in the Twins’ minor league system before he was released in May 2005. He finished the season in the Brewers’ system.
In January 2006, Milwaukee traded Wolfe to Toronto in exchange for Corey Koskie. He quickly climbed the ladder through the Blue Jays’ system and made his big league debut in May 2007.
That year, Wolfe made a career-high 38 MLB appearances out of the bullpen with a 2.98 ERA.Across 72 major league appearances, he went 5-5 with a 3.81 ERA.
Wolfe became a free agent following the 2009 season and joined the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan. He started 77 games for the Fighters from 2010-13.
The right-hander retired from baseball at 37 years old.
