Darrell Porter

Darrell Ray Porter (January 17, 1952 – August 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1971 to 1987 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, and Texas Rangers. He struggled with, but was never able to overcome, a substance abuse problem, yet went on to become the most valuable player of the 1982 World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals. He made his major league debut on September 2, 1971, with the Brewers at age 19. Porter was selected to the American League All-Star team in 1974.

Porter replaced Buck Martinez as the Royals starting catcher. He had the best season of his career in 1979, when he posted a .291 batting average along with 20 home runs, 112 runs batted in, and a league-leading 121 walks. The feat had previously been accomplished by Mickey Cochrane, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella, Johnny Bench, and Carlton Fisk—all in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Only Porter and Cochrane had 100 walks, 100 runs, and 100 RBI in a single season. He ended the 1979 season ranked third in Wins Above Replacement behind Fred Lynn and his Royals teammate George Brett. With the Royals, he was selected to three consecutive American League All-Star teams. At the time, Porter was only the second player in baseball history to win both awards in a single postseason; Willie Stargell of the Pittsburgh Pirates won both awards in 1979. After the 1985 season, the Cardinals released Porter, and he wound up his career with two seasons with the Texas Rangers as a catcher and designated hitter. In 1986 Porter led Major League Baseball with a home run every 12.9 at bats, the best ratio that season for any player with 10 or more home runs. He also broke his ankle during the 1986 season and was on the injured list for eight weeks. He appeared in his final major league game on October 4, 1987, and retired at the age of 35.

On August 5, 2002, Porter left his home in Lee's Summit, Missouri, saying he was going to buy a newspaper and go to the park. That afternoon at 5:26 p.m. CDT, he was found dead outside his vehicle in Sugar Creek, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City. Police theorized that Porter's car went off a road and got caught on a tree stump in La Benite Park in Sugar Creek. Police say Porter got out of the car, walked to the nearby Missouri River, and then walked back to his car. Authorities had initially speculated that he overheated while trying to push the car off the stump in high heat and humidity, but there was no evidence to indicate that he tried to move the car. The exact details surrounding his death remain unknown.

Career statistics In a 17-year major league career, Porter played in 1,782 games, accumulating 1,369 hits in 5,539 at bats for a .247 career batting average along with 188 home runs, 826 runs batted in and a .354 on-base percentage. Porter caught two no-hitters during his career—Jim Colborn in 1977 and Bob Forsch's second career no-hitter in 1983. Porter was also notable for being one of the few Major League catchers of his time to wear eyeglasses behind the plate at a time when most players needing vision correction were using contact lenses.