Former Cardinals reliever Octavio Dotel passes away following tragic accident

Update: Contrary to reports earlier in the day that Octavio Dotel was in stable condition, the former Cardinals reliever was pronounced dead at the hospital following this tragic accident.

The St. Louis Cardinals community awoke to tragic news regarding former reliever and World Champion Octavio Dotel, who passed away following an accident at a nightclub despite earlier reports that he was in stable condition.

On Monday night, merengue singer Rubby Perez was performing at Jet Set Nightclub in the Dominican Republic. Late into the night and into Tuesday morning, the roof collapsed at the nightclub, leaving the dozens of attendees in a dire situation. Patrons fled while concrete chunks fell from the roof.

Rescue efforts are ongoing, but reports indicate that 15 other people have been pronounced dead, while more than 100 individuals have been transferred to local hospitals. Dozens of others are still buried beneath the wreckage. According to Juan Manuel Mendez, the nation's director of Emergency Management Operations, there were 101 ambulance transfers to different hospitals.

Former St. Louis Cardinals reliever Octavio Dotel has passed away following a tragic incident at the Jet Set Nightclub in the Dominican Republic.

It was reported early Tuesday morning by Mike Rodriguez of MLB Deportes that Dotel, 51, was at the nightclub watching Perez perform. Rodriguez initially reported that Dotel was going to be okay following being rescued from the rubble, but he was pronounced dead at the hospital later in the day.

Dotel, a 15-year veteran of the game, played for the Cardinals during the second half of the 2011 season. While his time with the organization was brief, his impact was tremendous. Octavio Dotel pitched in 29 games down the stretch for the Cardinals after they acquired him in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays that also brought over Edwin Jackson, Marc Rzepczynski, and Corey Patterson in exchange for outfielder Colby Rasmus, Trever Miller, Brian Tallet, and P.J. Walters.

In his 24.2 regular season innings with the Cardinals, Dotel had a 3.28 ERA and a 0.851 WHIP. Where Dotel really shone, however, was in the postseason that year.

Dotel pitched 10.1 innings for the Cardinals that year with a 2.61 ERA, a .139 batting average against, and a 0.68 WHIP. Octavio Dotel, 37 at the time, was instrumental in the Cardinals' late-season push to make it to the playoffs, and he was an essential part of a stout bullpen as the team marched to a World Series championship that year.