Former Royals, Angels Pitcher Passes Away at 78

Maren Angus-Coombs | Dec 7, 2024

Jun 17, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals former player Al Fitzmorris warms up before the Big Slick Celebrity Softball game at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Al Fitzmorris, an original member of the Royals and former Angel who posted one of the best winning percentages in Kansas City history, passed away Wednesday evening after a lengthy battle with cancer, his family confirmed. He was 78.

The Royals released a statement on social media:

“We mourn the passing of Al Fitzmorris, an Original Royal who joined us in 1969, was an integral part of our first playoff team in 1976, and stayed in Kansas City after his playing days to raise a family while also remaining actively involved with our community efforts.

“We send our condolences to Al’s loved ones and will miss Al dearly.”

We mourn the passing of Al Fitzmorris, an Original Royal who joined us in 1969, was an integral part of our first playoff team in 1976, and stayed in Kansas City after his playing days to raise a family while also remaining actively involved with our community efforts.

We send… pic.twitter.com/B4Ae8VQQJg

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) December 5, 2024

Alan James Fitzmorris was born on March 21, 1946, in Buffalo, New York. He attended Madison High School in San Diego and initially signed with the White Sox as an outfielder before the 1965 season.

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Fitzmorris spent time as a two-way player in 1966 and 1967 before transitioning to pitching full-time in 1968, after which he was drafted by the Royals. In his 99 career MLB at-bats, he hit .242 (24-for-99) with five doubles and eight RBIs.

Fitzmorris was selected by Kansas City in the 1968 expansion draft and spent most of the Royals' inaugural 1969 season with Triple-A Omaha. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound right-hander went 10-6 with a 3.75 ERA, earning a call-up to the major league team that September.

At 23, Fitzmorris made his MLB debut on Sept. 8, 1969, in Oakland, pitching three scoreless innings of relief to earn the victory. He finished the season with seven relief appearances, posting a 1-1 record, two saves, and a 4.22 ERA in 10.2 innings.

Fitzmorris spent three more years in the majors, mostly working out of the bullpen, before returning to Omaha for the first half of 1973. When he came back in July, he shifted to a starting role and went on to post a 52-32 record with a 3.13 ERA in 119 games (108 starts) through the end of the 1976 season. During this stretch, he completed 31 games and earned 14.0 of his total 16.6 bWAR.

In Nov. 1976, the Blue Jays selected Fitzmorris in the expansion draft but quickly traded him to Cleveland in exchange for catcher Alan Ashby and utilityman Doug Howard. In 1977, Fitzmorris made 29 appearances (21 starts) for Cleveland, finishing with a 6-10 record and a 5.41 ERA in 133 innings. After making seven relief appearances and one start in Triple-A in 1978, he was released on July 13.

Five days later, he signed with the Angels and finished the season strong, making nine appearances (two starts) with a 1-0 record and a 1.71 ERA in 31 2/3 innings. Following the season, Fitzmorris became a free agent and signed with the Padres in Feb. 1979. However, he never pitched for San Diego, making eight starts for their Triple-A Hawaii affiliate in his final professional season.