Donnie Moore

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Donnie Ray Moore (February 13, 1954 – July 18, 1989) was an American relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Chicago Cubs (1975, 1977-79), St. Louis Cardinals (1980), Milwaukee Brewers (1981), Atlanta Braves (1982-84) and California Angels (1985-88).

In a 13-season career, Moore posted a 43-40 record with 89 saves, 416 strikeouts, and a 3.67 ERA in 655 innings. He was selected as an All-Star in 1985.

A native of Lubbock, Texas, Moore is unfortunately most remembered for the home run he gave up as an Angel to Dave Henderson in the during Game 5 of the 1986 American League Championship Series with only one more strike needed to clinch the team's first-ever pennant, and subsequently received the majority of the blame for his team failing to enter the 1986 World Series after the Boston Red Sox came back and won. Moore, who had long battled depression, was dealt a severe mental blow from this event, and sports fans and the sports media never forgot it.

Moore was battling injury at the time of that game, and indeed was never able to remain injury-free following it. After saving only nine more games in 41 appearances over the next two seasons, Moore was let go by the Angels. He signed with the Kansas City Royals for the 1989 season, but played only in the minor leagues before being released in June of that year, ending his 14-year career in baseball.

On July 18, 1989, all of the repercussions of the 1986 loss—the decline and now end of his baseball career and serious marital and financial difficulties—along with his battle with alcoholism, drug abuse, and severe depression, finally overcame him. During an argument with his wife Tonya, Moore shot her three times, the incident occurring in witness of their three children. Tonya Moore and daughter Demetria, then 17 years of age, fled from the house and Demetria drove her mother to the hospital. Both survived the shooting.

Back inside the house, still in the presence of one of his sons, Moore then shot himself. He would die of the self-inflicted wound at the age of 35.

When he was cut by Kansas City, he'd really been depressed about that. I mean, here he is, the high-life career . . . then all of a sudden, it's gone. He comes back home . . . and the marriage, the family, is all destroyed. I mean, what else does he have left?

— Demetria Moore on what drove her father to his final acts of desperation

Moore (left) with pitching coach Marcel Lachemann after the '86 ALCS loss

[edit] ALCS Game Five

The game took place on October 12, 1986 in Anaheim. The Angels held a 3 games to 1 lead of a best-of-seven against the Boston Red Sox. In the game, the Angels held a 5-2 lead going into the ninth inning. Boston scored two runs on a home run by Don Baylor (scoring Dave Stapleton, who was pinch-running for [[Bill Buckner closing the gap to 5-4.

When Moore came in to shut down the rally, there were two outs, and a runner on first base (Rich Gedman, who had been hit by a pitch). The Angels were one out (just one strike) from getting into the World Series. But Dave Henderson hit a 2-2 pitch off Moore for a home run, giving the Red Sox a 6-5 lead. The Angels were able to score a run in the bottom of the ninth, pushing the game into extra innings.

"The pitch . . . Deep to left and Downing goes back. And it's gone! Unbelievable! You're looking at one for the ages here. Astonishing! Anaheim Stadium was one strike away from turning into Fantasyland! And now the Red Sox lead 6-5! The Red Sox get four runs in the ninth on a pair of two-run homers by Don Baylor and Dave Henderson." -- Al Michaels, ABC-TV.

Moore remained in the game for the Angels; he was able to stifle a 10^th inning Red Sox rally by getting Jim Rice to ground into a double play. Nevertheless, the Red Sox were able to score off Moore in the 11th inning via a sacrifice fly by Henderson. The Angels could not score in the bottom of the 11th, and lost the game 7-6.

The defeat still left the Angels in a 3 games to 2 advantage, with two more games to play at Fenway Park. However, the Angels were not able to close it out, losing both games by wide margins, 10-4 and 8-1. And so the pitch that Moore gave up for a home run, the point at which they were closest to advancing to the World Series (The Angels would win the World Series in 2002), was ultimately blamed for the shortcoming.

In the public perception, Moore became indelibly associated with the Angels' loss of the pennant, in much the same manner that Bill Buckner became associated with the Red Sox' subsequent loss of the World Series.