The Memories Linger : 20 Years Ago, Series Star Tenace Was Threatened by a Gun-Toting Man in the Stands

This World Series marks the 20th and 10th anniversaries of chilling moments for Gene Tenace, Blue Jay bench coach.

In the 1972 World Series, while playing for the Oakland Athletics against the Cincinnati Reds, Tenace’s life was threatened by a man in the stands with loaded gun.

Ten years later, while playing in the 1982 World Series for the St. Louis Cardinals, Tenace received a letter from the same man, apologizing.

“I am not opening any of my mail this time,” Tenace said.

Tenace became a part of baseball lore in 1972 by hitting home runs in his first two World Series at-bats. No one else has done that.

He hit four homers in that Series, tying what was then a record shared by Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Duke Snider and Hank Bauer.

“I remember looking up at the scoreboard when they made that announcement and thinking, ‘I don’t belong with those guys,’ ” Tenace said.

Someone else didn’t think he belonged, period. After Tenace had hit his first two homers, in Game 1 at Cincinnati, a man sitting behind home plate publicly threatened him.

“He was telling people that if I hit another home run, he was going to shoot me as I rounded the bases,” Tenace said. “One lady alerted the police, who came and picked the guy up. He had a loaded revolver in his pocket.”

The A’s did not tell Tenace of the threat until after the game, a decision that still makes him wonder.

“Sure, the guy with the gun was gone, but some people were wondering whether he was just a set-up guy for somebody else,” Tenace said.

After the game, Tenace was surrounded by FBI agents who stayed with him during the four Series games in Cincinnati.

“Everywhere I went, so did the FBI guys,” he said. “I couldn’t even ride the team bus. I had to go in an unmarked car that went into the stadium through a special entrance.

“Even my family and friends who live a couple of hours away from Cincinnati couldn’t see me.”

Tenace, who was named the most valuable player in the Series after driving in nine of the Athletics’ 16 runs, forgot about the incident until he appeared in a World Series 10 years later.

“I was opening my mail and there was a letter from this guy, saying he was sorry for what he did and that he was glad they caught him,” Tenace said. “I guess the guy had been following me around or something.”

A shaken Tenace turned the letter over to the police, and the memories still make him a little nervous.

“If somebody can shoot the president of the United States out in the open, they can shoot anybody,” he said. “If somebody wants you bad enough, they can get you.”