CARY, N.C. – USA Baseball mourns the loss of alumnus Doug Creek, who passed away on Sunday from pancreatic cancer at age 55.
Creek was a member of the 1987 18U National Team and 1989 Collegiate National Team. With the 18U National Team, he appeared in four games as a two-way player, and helped the stars and stripes earn a silver medal at the Junior World Cup. With the Collegiate National Team, he made 11 appearances on the bump, including seven starts, and posted a 5-1 record in 41.0 innings pitched during Team USA’s Red, White, & Blue Tour, USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Series, and IX Intercontinental Cup that summer.
The left-hander played collegiately at Georgia Tech from 1988-1991, and is the one of the winningest pitchers in Yellow Jacket history. He is one of 14 pitchers in NCAA history to total 40-plus wins and 400-plus strikeouts in his career, and thanks to his incredible career he was inducted to Georgia Tech’s Hall of Fame in 2000. He was selected in the seventh round of the 1991 MLB Draft to the St. Louis Cardinals and spent 14 years in the professional ranks. He made his big-league debut in 1995 with the Cardinals, and following his stint in St. Louis he spent time with the San Francisco Giants (1996-1997), Chicago Cubs (1999), Tampa Bay Rays (2000-2002), Seattle Mariners (2002), Toronto Blue Jays (2003), and Detroit Tigers (2005), where he made his final appearances in the major leagues.
Creek was a coach at several of USA Baseball’s identification events and national team programming. He served on many Task Force staffs at the National Team Championships and National Team Identification Series (NTIS) Champions Cups over the years, and most recently served as a coach at the 2019 13U/14U Athlete Development Program (ADP), 2021 Prospect Development Pipeline (PDP) League and 18U National Team Training Camp, and 2022 16U/17U National Team Development Program.
“Doug was a beloved member of our USA Baseball family and was an integral part of many coaching staffs over the years,” said USA Baseball Executive Director/CEO Paul Seiler. “The news of Doug’s passing weighs heavily on the hearts of our staff members who worked closely with him, and our thoughts are with the Creek family during this difficult time.”
