The Shadow of the Torturer

It distracted me a little bit, but I was still confident that I was going to blow Gibson away. The ball went right over my head. The answer would appear to be no." Lasorda: He wanted to go to the on-deck circle, but I wanted to play a little game with the A's. Sax: I never saw that kind of power. It doesn't make sense, to be quite honest with you. This isn't a midseason game against the Astros. He said, "Mitch, this could be the script.". The thing that surprised me was that he walked. I think it was a significant moment. I told her to meet me in the office because I wanted to go down to the dressing room. What do you have to get home for? (Editor's note: The initial version of this story ran on the 25th anniversary in 2013. It's an incredible emotion, but the kind you don't want. Tommy Lasorda managed the 1988 World Series Champion Dodgers team. update=copyright.getFullYear(); A lot of people not old enough to remember it firsthand now think they have the feel because those calls capture the goosebump-raising nature of it. Game 1 ended around 9, but because of Gibson's home run, KABC's general manager, George Green, called and said, "You're going all night until the calls stop." On Oct. 15, 1988, Kirk Gibson hit a pinch-hit, walk-off home run for the Dodgers in Game 1 of the World Series despite being injured. When you're in your moment, you're in your comfort zone. Sax: I knew it as soon as he hit. On October 15, 1988, the Dodgers won the first game of the World Series, the same year they won the pennant, but it couldn't have been done without Kirk Gibson's astonishing walk-off … 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers Statistics 1987 Season 1989 Season Record: 94-67, Finished 1st in NL_West ( Schedule and Results ) Exactly one week earlier, Gibson and six other players were granted "new look" free agency when an arbitrator ruled that owners had violated the collective bargaining agreement by acting in concert to restrict free agent movement. I had spent so much time with them the year before and was one of the cogs on that team, so I knew those guys very well. He was really suffering, and he couldn't do it. They were stunned. When I got there, the players were coming in and they were yelling, "Hey, Mel, backdoor slider!" The Dodgers and A's knew each other well. They were emergency swings. The reality really kicks in. Poole: I walked with Kirk back from the training room to this little cheap old cage area, and I set up the tee for him to hit off of. I said, "I don't give a goddamn if he wants the stadium, give it to him because he's going to help us win.". That's the ultimate goal. Fred Wallin ("Dodger Talk" postgame show host 1987-89): Normally "Dodger Talk" would go to the top of the next hour. I shouldn't have walked him. I had played with Michael the year before, and he hit over 20 home runs with us. I knew I could steal the base, but I also knew if I got thrown out stealing second with Kirk Gibson up at the plate, then you might as well bury me at second base because all of L.A. would've hated my guts. "When he (Kirk Gibson) hit that ball (during 1988 World Series), it was almost surreal. I remember how hard it was and how lucky I was to have done it. Who is this?" " - A's Shortstop Walt Weiss in The Sporting News 25 Greatest Moments (2001) Davis played for them the year before and was good. I can never explain it. Fun is fun, but when it's game time, you don't mess with other people on your team and you do everything you can to win the game even if it's spring training. Davis had been a near All-Star with Oakland in 1987 but had struggled in Los Angeles (after stepping into a sprinkler hole in spring training), collecting only 55 hits and 24 walks on the season. That was how we set the stage for Game 1. I thought he was a lamb. I just feel it. Don Baylor (Oakland A's DH, 1988): The Mets were the better team, and I wanted to play the better team. Sometimes I often think the inspiration comes from above. McGwire: There was no reason to walk Mike Davis. Nearby, 25-year-old Dodgers bat boy Mitch Poole, who had clubhouse duty that night, was doing laundry while the game played in the background. Mickey Hatcher hit third -- after hitting one home run all season. Tommy kept teasing me that he was going to get rid of me in 1988. A structured playoff series began in 1969, when both the National and American League reorganized into two divisions each, East and West. In 1985, the format of the League Championship Series changed to best-of-seven. We'd never seen anything like that before. La Russa: Our team had a really relentless competitive attitude that season. That being said, whenever I see it shown, I look away every time. I was hurting just watching him walk around the locker room before the game. On board of directors for Jim Murray Memorial Foundation. Lasorda: I wasn't sure what Gibson could do, but I wanted Davis to steal after he got on because you could steal on Eckersley at will. As the Dodgers prepared to face a heavily favored Oakland A's team in the World Series, Gibson looked unlikely to play. Their only hitters to reach 20 home runs were Gibson, who hit 25, and Mike Marshall, who hit 20. I said, "Mitch, leave me alone, goddamn it! He can't even walk. He didn't want to be diverted to me for the interview. It was me, Jerry Stephenson and Steve Boros. Hatcher: I don't think the players in the dugout were really energized about that at-bat until Davis stole second. I was enjoying the ride, and he was in it for a speed race. Honest to goodness, I didn't sleep much during the World Series. And coming off Dennis Eckersley, who had a league-leading 45 saves in 1988, it is one of just two World Series walk-off homers off a current Hall of Famer. Knowing he had Hershiser going in Game 2, Lasorda called on No. It wasn't supposed to etch a permanent place in baseball history before it was even over. I'm still not. It was the most theatrical home run I had ever seen. You always want to pump up the team you're going to play even if they're in last place. Lasorda: I didn't want Davis to steal right away for fear that they would walk Gibson to pitch to Steve Sax. Gibby got angry and said, "Go get my uniform, Mitch!" He actually just flipped it. He's limping, and then suddenly he hits the home run. Scully: When the ball is hit, my first thought is to look at the outfielder, Jose Canseco. Lasorda: He never came to bat again, but he paralyzed them. Hershiser: I was in the video room because I wanted to watch the game on TV and not the bench because I wanted to scout them since I was pitching in Game 2. I'm thinking I'm going to throw him a high fastball and he's done. "Slam dunk, right? I was with Oakland the year before, and I knew how good they were. I had to meet with reporters after the game, and I must have answered the same question a thousand times: backdoor breaking ball. I think the moment, just like Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World," would not live the way it does today without Russ Hodges' call. I didn't really notice it at the time, but he visualized a lot of things. It was almost like a "Twilight Zone" episode. I could've lived with that. He doesn't think about the swing, he thinks about the end result. He couldn't get over it. There was another choice word in there. Gibson: When Tommy finally came waddling over, I said: "Hit Davis eighth, and I'll hit for the pitcher." The Dodgers trailed 4-3 entering the bottom of the eighth inning when the NBC cameras panned the dugout. "All year long, they looked to him to light the fire, and all year long, he answered the demands until he was unable to start tonight with two bad legs. He got up, got the ice off and got his uniform on and went to go hit. Gibson: It's a good story. I just couldn't sit down. I put the bare minimum on for the uniform. document.write(update); Then again, nothing during the 1988 season went as planned for the Dodgers, who ended up re-writing their unlikely script during an improbable season, which ultimately played out like a Hollywood movie. I was just thinking about keeping the inning going the whole at-bat. It was just so surreal. It's been such a great year for him; he's led the Dodgers through thick and thin; it's a national stage; don't let him strike out. Davis: Dennis Eckersley was really easy to steal off of. I go there in the back, and Kirk has his uniform on. Indeed, with Canseco, Parker, Mark McGwire, Don Baylor and Dave Henderson, it was certainly a physically intimidating team. Any father or mother would do that, but I told them, "Don't worry about it, we'll have our day. I was yelling at Tommy from the other end of the dugout, and he was acting like I was a gnat on his shoulder. Scully: You can't prepare for such a moment. Tony La Russa (Oakland A's manager 1986-95): That was not received well. He was the personality of that group, and he really could have been the MVP of the World Series. I don't know why I did it. Lasorda: Hatcher was the guy who was supposed to go to Disneyland. So to finally be in a World Series, my energy was through the roof. I'm not a fan. As soon as I see it, I look away. Let's get that big crippled guy out and let's go home. I was really bad that year. I played well when we played together in Oakland, so I guess pitchers remember hitters the same way hitters remember pitchers. He never walked. He just said, "You stay here," which I did for part of the time, but I had to get out there and get a feel for the environment. Gibson had been seeking a five-year, $7.5 million contract but settled for a three-year, $4.1 million deal to return to Detroit when no other team offered him a contract. He was really hurting. Didier: I was sitting with my wife at the end of the Dodgers' dugout when he came up. Gibson was in the training room with bags of ice on both legs, watching the game and listening to Vin Scully's call. • You probably forgot he was in this game: That's 37-year-old Dave Parker playing left field for the A's, after serving primarily as the team's DH in the regular season. Didier: I had scouted the pitchers in the scouting report, and after I was done talking to the team about each guy, I turned, and all the left-handed hitters were sitting on the floor in the dressing room. I didn't budge. The Kirk Gibson League Championship Series stats seen below include his League Championship Series year-by-year hitting stats, League Championship Series fielding stats, and League Championship Series pitching stats (where applicable). He needed to get on for Gibson to get up. Will Smith homering off Will Smith, Dodgers' Taylor (ankle) out of Game 6 lineup, Astros rekindle memories of '04 Red Sox in ALCS, 'Dangerous' Seager hits 2 HRs, L.A. stays alive, Braves' Minter K's 7 in 3 innings in starting debut, Ex-Angels employee indicted in Skaggs' OD death, MLB players extend COVID-free streak to 47 days, MLB Playoffs Daily: Can Braves eliminate Dodgers, plus climactic Astros-Rays Game 7, Could the 2020 Astros join the 2004 Red Sox on Saturday? I threw a ton of fastballs to Gibson, and he looked bad on a bunch of them. Prior to 1969, the pennant winner was determined by the best won-loss record at the end of the regular season. Costas: When he came off, I shouted to him and he looked back at me and gave me a just-one-minute thing. All I had to do was throw him fastballs because he had no chance. Frankly, I didn't think I did as well as Tommy did to feel that urgency to compete. Mike could run a little bit, too, so I knew they were going to mess around there. He hit it right on the meat of the bat. . Poole: When we were in the back, he told me where that 3-2 backdoor slider would go.

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