1988 World Series

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The 1988 World Series matched the Oakland Athletics against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with the Dodgers upsetting the heavily favored A's to win the Series in five games, which is exactly the opposite result of their 1974 meeting (that series also went five games). The most memorable moment of the 1988 World Series was when injured Dodgers MVP Kirk Gibson hit a pinch-hit, game winning home run off of Athletics closer and future Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley in Game 1.

Managers: Tony La Russa (Oakland), Tommy Lasorda (Los Angeles)

Umpires: Doug Harvey (NL), Larry McCoy (AL), Bruce Froemming (NL), Durwood Merrill (AL), Jerry Crawford (NL), Derryl Cousins (AL)

Series MVP: Orel Hershiser, Los Angeles

Television: NBC (Vin Scully and Joe Garagiola announcing)

Radio CBS Radio (Jack Buck and Bill White announcing)

1 Game 1
2 Game 2
3 Game 3
4 Game 4
5 Game 5
6 Trivia
7 Quotes of the Series
8 External links

[edit] Game 1

October 15, 1988 at Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles Dodgers)

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Oakland	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	7	0
Los Angeles	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	2	5	7	0
WP: Alejandro Peña (1-0) LP: Dennis Eckersley (0-1)
HRs: Oak – José Canseco (1) LA – Mickey Hatcher (1), Kirk Gibson (1)

[edit] Game 2

October 16, 1988 at Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles Dodgers)

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Oakland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
Los Angeles	0	0	5	1	0	0	0	0	X	6	10	1
WP: Orel Hershiser (1-0) LP: Storm Davis (0-1)
HRs: LA – Mike Marshall (1)

[edit] Game 3

October 18, 1988 at Oakland Coliseum (Oakland Athletics)

                                 1  2  3    4  5  6    7  8  9     R  H  E
                                 -  -  -    -  -  -    -  -  -     -  -  -
    Los Angeles Dodgers          0  0  0    0  1  0    0  0  0     1  8  1
    Oakland Athletics            0  0  1    0  0  0    0  0  1     2  5  0

    PITCHERS: LAD - Tudor, Leary (2), Pena (6), J. Howell (9)
              OAK - Welch, Cadaret (6), Nelson (6), Honeycutt (8)

               WP - Honeycutt
               LP - J. Howell
             SAVE - none

   HOME RUNS: LAD - none
              OAK - McGwire

  ATTENDANCE: 49,316

[edit] Game 4

October 19, 1988 at Oakland Coliseum (Oakland Athletics)

                                 1  2  3    4  5  6    7  8  9     R  H  E
                                 -  -  -    -  -  -    -  -  -     -  -  -
    Los Angeles Dodgers          2  0  1    0  0  0    1  0  0     4  8  1
    Oakland Athletics            1  0  0    0  0  1    1  0  0     3  9  2

    PITCHERS: LAD - Belcher, J. Howell (7)
              OAK - Stewart, Cadaret (7), Eckersley (9)

               WP - Belcher
               LP - Stewart
             SAVE - J. Howell

   HOME RUNS: LAD - none
              OAK - none

  ATTENDANCE: 49,317

[edit] Game 5

October 20, 1988 at Oakland Coliseum (Oakland Athletics)

                                 1  2  3    4  5  6    7  8  9     R  H  E
                                 -  -  -    -  -  -    -  -  -     -  -  -
    Los Angeles Dodgers          2  0  0    2  0  1    0  0  0     5  8  0
    Oakland Athletics            0  0  1    0  0  0    0  1  0     2  4  0

    PITCHERS: LAD - Hershiser
              OAK - S. Davis, Cadaret (5), Nelson (5), Honeycutt (8), Plunk (9), Burns (9)

               WP - Hershiser
               LP - S. Davis
             SAVE - none

   HOME RUNS: LAD - Hatcher, M. Davis
              OAK - none

  ATTENDANCE: 49,317

[edit] Trivia

This was a rematch of the 1974 World Series, in which the Athletics beat the Dodgers 4 games to 1.

This was the last World Series that Peter Ueberroth presided over as commissioner. Coincidentally, Ueberroth rose to prominence for organizing the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

Kirk Gibson's homer in Game 1, marked the first time that a World Series game ended with a come from behind home run.

Jay Howell, who was the losing pitcher in Game 3, was suspended for two games (although it was originally, three) by then National League president Bart Giamatti, for using pine tar during the 1988 National League Championship Series against the New York Mets. Howell, was incidentally, also the losing pitcher in the prior year's All-Star Game in Oakland while as a member of the Oakland Athletics.

While Kirk Gibson was taking practice swings in the Dodgers' clubhouse during Game 1, Orel Hershiser set up the hitting tee for his teammate. Along the way, NBC's Bob Costas could hear Gibson's agonized-sounding grunts after every hit. Speaking of Costas, many in the Dodgers' clubhouse (especially manager Tommy Lasorda) were enraged by Costas' on-air statements about 1988 Dodgers possibly having the weakest hitting line-up in World Series history. After the Dodgers won Game 4, Lasorda during an NBC interview with Marv Albert sarcastically said that the MVP of the World Series should be Bob Costas.

Mickey Hatcher had only one home run during the entire regular season, yet he set the tone for the 1988 World Series in Game 1 with a two run left-center blast.

Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda tried to trick the Athletics into thinking that Kirk Gibson was not going to pinch-hit in Game 1. Preceding Gibson's at-bat, while Mike Davis was at the plate, Lasorda sent Dave Anderson, who hit .249 in the regular season, out into the on-deck circle. Oakland pitcher, Dennis Eckersley, who had seen Davis hit for power in the American League, became too cautious, reasoning that he would rather risk walking Davis (assuming that Anderson next up would still prove to be an easy out), instead of trying to pitch to Davis, and perhaps make a mistake that Davis could hit for a game-tying home run. Eckersley did indeed walk Davis, thus setting the stage for Kirk Gibson to hit his game winning home run.

Longtime Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully called the 1988 World Series for a national television audience on NBC. According to Scully (during an interview on ESPN Classic's SportsCentury profile on Dennis Eckersley), when he saw Kirk Gibson walk up to the plate, it looked as if he was using his bat as a cane. When NBC returned from a commercial break at the start of the bottom of the 9th inning of Game 1, Scully commented (as NBC's cameras were panning the Dodgers' dugout) that Gibson (who wasn't in the dugout at the time) wouldn't play for sure. According to Gibson, Scully's comments in large part, influenced his decision to want to bat.

The 1988 World Series marked Don Baylor's third consecutive World Series with three separate teams. Besides being a member of the 1988 Athletics, Baylor was a member of the 1986 Boston Red Sox and 1987 Minnesota Twins respectively.

José Canseco's grand slam in Game 1 was his only hit of the series. His fellow Bash Brother Mark McGwire had only one hit as well, the game-winning shot that ended Game 3.

The 1988 World Series marked the last time that NBC would televise a World Series in seven years. Beginning in 1990, NBC would be shut out of Major League Baseball coverage completely, after CBS signed a four year, exclusive television contract. After splitting coverage of the 1995 World Series with ABC, NBC would next cover a World Series exclusively in 1997.

Kirk Gibson would later say that prior to the Series, Dodger scout Mel Didier had provided a report on Dennis Eckersley that claimed with a 3-2 count against a left-handed power hitter, one could be absolutely certain that Eckersley would throw a backdoor slider. Gibson said that when the count reached 3-2, he stepped out of the batter's box and, in his mind, could hear Didier's voice, with its distinctive Southern drawl, reiterating that same piece of advice. With that thought in mind, Gibson stepped back into the batter's box; and thus when Eckersley did in fact throw a backdoor slider, it was, thanks to Didier, exactly the pitch for which Gibson was looking.

By the time Gibson reached his locker after Game 1, bullpen coach Mark Cresse had written "R. HOBBS" on a piece of paper and taped it over Gibson's nameplate, which was in reference to Gibson's heroics mirroring those of the fictional slugger played by Robert Redford in The Natural.

The Dodgers became the first (and so far only) team to have a perfect game pitched against them and win a World Series in the same season. Tom Browning of the Cincinnati Reds pitched the Perfect Game on September 16, 1988.

The 1988, Dodgers ended a streak of ten different teams winning the World Series, having won in 1981. The entire streak consisted of the 1978 Yankees, 1979 Pirates, 1980 Phillies, 1981 Dodgers, 1982 Cardinals, 1983 Orioles, 1984 Tigers, 1985 Royals, 1986 Mets and 1987 Twins. It is still the longest such streak in Major League history. The second longest streak was from 1982 to 1990, and the third longest streak is currently alive, from 2000 through 2006.

[edit] Quotes of the Series

“

So the Dodgers brought in Debbie Gibson, now if only they had Kirk Gibson! - NBC pre-game show host Bob Costas commenting on National Anthem singer, Debbie Gibson (no relation to Kirk) just prior to Game 1, of course not knowing what would happen later on in the evening.

”

“

You talk about a roll of the dice...this is it. - NBC's Vin Scully, announcing Tommy Lasorda's decision to use the injured Kirk Gibson as a pinch hitter in Game 1. As it turned out, the dice came up boxcars for Lasorda.

”

“

High fly ball hit into right field...she is...GONE! - Vin Scully, announcing Kirk Gibson's home run in Game 1 on NBC.

”

“

In a year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened! - Vin Scully, immediately after Kirk Gibson's home run in Game 1 on NBC.

”

“

Gibson swings, and a fly ball to deep right field! This is gonna be a home run! Unbelievable! A home run for Gibson! And the Dodgers have won the game, 5 to 4; I don't believe... what I just saw! - Jack Buck on CBS Radio.

”

“

Swung on and hit to deep right field! WAY BACK!!! THIS BALL IS GONE!!! Don Drysdale announcing Gibson's homer on the Dodgers Radio Network.

”

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I've seen a lot of dramatic finishes, in a lot of sports, but this one, might top almost every other one. - Jack Buck moments after Gibson's walk-off homer.

”

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High drive...up the alley in left-center field and this one is going to be GONE! Home run McGwire! So the kid from Southern California breaths life into Northern California! - Vin Scully commentating on Mark McGwire's game winning home run in Game 3.

”

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Got him! They've done it! And like the 1969 Mets, it's the impossible dream revisited! - NBC's Vin Scully calling the final out in Game 5.

”

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Nobody thought we would win the division. Nobody thought we would beat the mighty Mets. Nobody thought we would beat the team who won 104 games (the Oakland Athletics), but we believed it! - Tommy Lasorda.

”