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after the game and had the opportunity to see the replay himself. He said he was waiting to hear the ball land in
Worrell's glove while watching the bag for Orta's foot and due to the crowd noise he never heard Worrell catch the ball. Denkinger also said that when he looked down to see whether or not
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in 1960, joined the AL staff in April 1969, and became an AL crew chief in 1977. In 1975, Denkinger was one of the first
American League umpires to switch from the outside chest protector to the inside chest protector, which was used in the National League for decades before finally being adopted in
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More than 20 years after the 1985 series, Denkinger regularly appeared at sports memorabilia shows (including ones in St. Louis) willing to autograph photos depicting "The Call". In his house, Denkinger had a painting of "The Call" featuring himself, Worrell, and Orta, which was given to him years
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Orta's foot was on the bag, he saw Orta's foot on the bag, so
Denkinger called him safe. As crew chief of the 1985 World Series umpiring unit, Denkinger was scheduled to work behind home plate in Game 7, a fact that further upset the Cardinals and manager
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by 3 games to 2 and had taken a 1–0 lead in the eighth inning. The
Cardinals had taken the field with a ninth-inning lead 97 times in the 1985 season. They had won 97 times. In the bottom of the ninth,
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Denkinger served as an umpire advisor for a year after retiring. He then spent his time golfing and fishing while also spending time in
Arizona, France, Denmark and Illinois, with his family.
467:. According to Denkinger, FBI agents visited the letter writer and told him, "You're done. This is the end of it. You will not correspond with him in any manner, and life will go on."
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Denkinger's last season as a full-time umpire was 1993. Thereafter, he umpired fewer than 100 games each season until retiring due to a bad right knee, umpiring his final game at
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when he received a particularly menacing letter with no return address, in which the writer said that if he saw
Denkinger in person, he would "blow him away" with a
204:, in 1936. He and his wife, Gayle Price, had three daughters, Darcel Nikolajsen, Denise Hanson, and Dana Kelly. Denkinger died at a hospice facility in
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the AL in the late 1970s. All umpires who entered the AL starting in 1977 had to use the inside protector; AL umpires on staff prior to 1977 were
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and could continue to use the outside protector. Denkinger's last game using the outside protector was Game 4 of the 1974 World Series.
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after the play by an artist and which had previously been prominently displayed at
Denkinger's restaurant, the Silverfox in
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413:) and photographs clearly showed that he was out by half a step. The Royals went on to win Game 6 by the score of 2–1.
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In the immediate aftermath of the 1985 World Series, Denkinger received many hateful letters, including
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1-0 in ten innings, a game that is considered one of the best games in World Series history.
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459:. Denkinger got into contact with Major League Baseball Security, who in turn contacted the
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on June 2, 1998. Over the course of his career, he umpired 3,824 regular season MLB games.
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in the fifth inning, following Andújar's animated displeasure with ball and strike calls.
428:. The Royals won Game 7 by an 11–0 score, with Denkinger ejecting both Herzog and pitcher
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260:, serving as crew chief in the 1985 and 1991 World Series. Denkinger also umpired in the
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https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/longtime-mlb-umpire-don-denkinger-dies-at-age-86/amp/
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An oral history of Game 7 of the 1991 World Series: The night Jack Morris was unbeatable
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1001:"With the Royals in the World Series, it's Don Denkinger season again"
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Denkinger believed he had made the right call until he later met with
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276:, calling balls and strikes for the last game. He officiated in six
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712:"Don Denkinger, 86, Top Umpire Remembered for Botched Call, Dies"
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on July 28, 1994. Denkinger was also the home plate umpire for
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574:"Denkinger calls postseason umpiring 'kind of a disaster'"
176:. Denkinger wore uniform number 11, when the AL adopted
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883:"When sports crowds get loud, game outcomes get altered"
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Two years later, Denkinger was behind the plate for the
828:"WS1985 Gm6: Denkinger calls Orta safe at first base"
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Denkinger was the first base umpire in Game 6 of the
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643:"Throwback Thursday: Don Denkinger Blows "The Call""
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reveal
Denkinger's telephone number and home address
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156:; August 28, 1936 – May 12, 2023) was an American
180:in 1980. He is best remembered for an incorrect
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390:, the leadoff batter for the Royals, hit a slow
938:"1985 World Series, Game 7: Cardinals @ Royals"
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347:on May 15, 1981, and the first base umpire for
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339:He was one of seven umpires who worked in two
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228:from 1957 to 1959, he began umpiring in the
184:call he made at first base in Game 6 of the
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623:: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
343:. Denkinger was the second base umpire for
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864:"Royals Win To Force Series Into 7th Game"
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314:1978 American League East tie-breaker game
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600:"The List: Worst calls in sports history"
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881:DiGiovanna, Mike (October 25, 2011).
554:List of Major League Baseball umpires
439:, from Cardinals fans. Two St. Louis
208:, on May 12, 2023, at the age of 86.
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18:American baseball umpire (1936–2023)
710:Goldstein, Richard (May 14, 2023).
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1110:Major League Baseball umpires
684:Blum, Ronald (May 13, 2023).
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369:The Call (Kansas City Royals)
803:1987 ALL-STAR GAME BOX SCORE
791:1976 ALL-STAR GAME BOX SCORE
779:1971 ALL-STAR GAME BOX SCORE
451:were ramping up for another
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363:The Call: 1985 World Series
224:team. After serving in the
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349:Kenny Rogers' perfect game
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572:Gleeman, Aaron (2009).
310:1995 AL Division Series
230:Alabama–Florida League
220:, where he was on the
200:Denkinger was born in
116:Donald Anton Denkinger
976:"Fans Behaving Badly"
598:Page 2 Staff (2001).
162:Major League Baseball
1047:. October 26, 2015.
870:. October 27, 1985.
379:St. Louis Cardinals
216:Denkinger attended
1045:Sports Illustrated
1007:. October 20, 2014
918:. October 27, 1985
805:, Baseball Almanac
793:, Baseball Almanac
781:, Baseball Almanac
716:The New York Times
443:went so far as to
383:Kansas City Royals
359:on June 11, 1990.
888:Los Angeles Times
868:The Press-Courier
485:1991 World Series
375:1985 World Series
320:champion, as the
316:that decided the
202:Cedar Falls, Iowa
186:1985 World Series
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90:Years active
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471:Later career
453:World Series
441:disc jockeys
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418:Commissioner
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58:(2023-05-12)
56:May 12, 2023
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1100:2023 deaths
1095:1936 births
465:.357 Magnum
392:ground ball
101:Gayle Price
1089:Categories
1080:Retrosheet
915:Retrosheet
578:NBC Sports
560:References
411:until 2008
399:Jack Clark
388:Jorge Orta
353:Nolan Ryan
168:(AL) from
85:MLB umpire
82:Occupation
37:1936-08-28
894:April 20,
724:0362-4331
489:1992 ALCS
481:1988 ALCS
449:Cardinals
357:no-hitter
355:'s sixth
332:beat the
222:wrestling
93:1969–1998
985:March 8,
942:Archived
838:Archived
648:vice.com
619:cite web
609:March 9,
583:March 9,
518:See also
381:led the
190:The Call
106:Children
1011:May 18,
954:YouTube
850:YouTube
833:MLB.com
729:May 18,
695:May 13,
318:AL East
751:, ESPN
722:
487:, and
377:. The
272:, and
256:, and
212:Career
158:umpire
98:Spouse
66:, U.S.
47:, U.S.
1013:2023
987:2010
950:2018
924:2018
896:2013
846:2018
731:2023
720:ISSN
697:2023
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604:ESPN
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308:and
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274:1987
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266:1971
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246:1974
226:Army
182:safe
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53:Died
31:Born
461:FBI
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