Darrell Porter

Catcher

Born: January 17, 1952
Joplin, Missouri

Died: August 5, 2002 (aged 50)
Sugar Creek, Missouri

Batted: Left

Threw: Right

MLB debut

September 2, 1971, for the Milwaukee Brewers

Last MLB appearance

October 4, 1987, for the Texas Rangers

MLB statistics

.247

188

826

Teams

Career highlights and awards

Darrell Ray Porter (January 17, 1952 – August 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball for the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals and the Texas Rangers. He was known for his excellent defensive skills and power hitting. He was also known for being one of the first American professional athletes to publicly admit he had a problem with substance abuse.

Born in Joplin, Missouri, Porter was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the first round of the 1970 Major League Baseball Draft. He made his debut on September 2, 1971 with the Brewers at age 19. He finished third in the 1973 Rookie of the Year voting. Porter was selected to the American League All-Star team in 1974, but had his best years after he was traded in 1976 to the Kansas City Royals, where he was selected to the All-Star team four times. In 1979, Porter became only the sixth catcher in Major League history to score 100 runs and have 100 runs batted in. 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, runs and RBI in a single season. He became a fan favorite for his intensity; teammate George Brett once said of Porter, "Darrell always played like it was the seventh game of the World Series."