Former Cardinals' World Series Winner Chris Duncan Dies of Brain Cancer at 38

Duncan spent all five years of his MLB career with the Cardinals from 2005-09.

Former Cardinals outfielder Chris Duncan died on Friday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 38.

Duncan played five years for St. Louis from 2005-09, making his biggest impact as a rookie in 2006. He slashed .293/.363.589 in 280 plate appearances, smacking 22 homers. The Cardinals won the National League wild-card in Duncan's breakthrough season before winning the World Series over the Tigers.

Duncan homered in the Cardinals' NLCS win over the Mets in 2006 and tallied a double and RBI in the World Series.

The Arizona native returned to St. Louis after his last professional season—in the Washington Nationals' minor-league system—in 2010, working as a sports talk radio host. Duncan was initially diagnosed with brian cancer in 2012, and he took a leave of absence in March 2018 after a tumor returned, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch. 

Duncan's father Dave was a former MLB catcher and served pitching coach for Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa with multiple teams, including the Cardinals teams Chris was on. His brother, Shelley, also played in the big leagues. His mother, Jeanine, died in 2013 of the same brain cancer Chris had.

He retired as a .257 hitter in five seasons with 55 career home runs.