Gibson HR stuns Athletics, 5-4
By JOEY JOHNSTON
Tribune Sports Writer
(c) Tampa Bay Times. Originally published Oct. 16, 1988.
LOS ANGELES — Kirk Gibson could barely walk. But he could hit. Could he ever.
Gibson’s two-out, two-strike home run off Dennis Eckersley in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the Los Angeles Dodgers to a dramatic 5-4 victory against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday night in Game 1 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium.
“I was just telling myself that these are the type of situations I enjoy so much,’’ said Gibson, who didn’t start and couldn’t even make the pre-game introductions because was getting treatment for injuries suffered during the National League playoffs.
“I was very sore and hurting. But I saw the opportunity. I knew if I could get out there, with the fans cheering me on, I could suck it up for one at-bat. This moment will be hard to match.’’
After the jaw-dropping finish, which is certain to assume a prominent place in baseball history, A’s manager Tony La Russa was understandably subdued. Perhaps still in shock, La Russa said he never considered walking Gibson.
“The guy on deck (Steve Sax) was tough, too,’’ La Russa said. “Our best chance was to go after Gibson. The guy just rose to the occasion. He’s a winning-type player.’’
The A’s seemingly had the game under control. Jose Canseco hit his first major-league grand slam to put the A’s up 4-2 in the second inning. Dave Stewart pitched eight innings of six-hit ball.
Stewart gave a 4-3 lead to Eckersley, who led the majors with 45 saves. Eckersley, Most Valuable Player of the American League playoffs with saves in all four games, got the first two outs, then walked pinch-hitter Mike Davis.
Up stepped Gibson, an improbable pinch-hitter who had been working on the hitting tee underneath the stadium. It was a shocking sight because Gibson has a strained left hamstring and a sprain of the medial collateral ligament and surrounding tissue in his right knee.
Gibson quickly was down two strikes to Eckersley, working feverishly to foul off several pitches, wincing in pain and barely staying alive. He took three balls outside, and Davis stole second, putting the tying run in scoring position.
A game-tying single would have been storybook enough.
But Eckersley, who surrendered five homers all season, was taken deep over the right-field wall by Gibson as Dodger Stadium erupted in bedlam.
Only a few miles from Hollywood, this ending was right from the movies, maybe even a scene that could have appeared in “The Natural.’’ Gibson, the sentimental, Roy Hobbs-like hero, limped around the bases, pumping his arms in glee and howling in delight. Finally, Gibson reached home plate and was buried by his jubilant teammates.
“I’m not surprised to see Kirk do something like that because I’ve seen him do it about 26 other times,’’ Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda said. “The thing I’m surprised about is he even went up to hit. He was hobbling up there like a one-legged man.’’
Gibson’s blow made a winner of Alejandro Pena, the fourth Dodger pitcher who worked two scoreless innings of relief.
The A’s, suffering their first postseason loss after sweeping the Boston Red Sox in the AL playoffs, are suddenly in trouble. They will start right-hander Storm Davis in tonight’s Game 2, but the Dodgers will counter with ace right-hander Orel Hershiser.
Saturday night’s emotional finish made a footnote out of the game’s start, when emotion fueled a quick beginning by the Dodgers.
Dodgers starter Tim Belcher was in immediate trouble, helping the A’s load the bases with a hit batter and a walk, but he escaped when Terry Steinbach flied out.
It was an important moment for the Dodgers, who believe in the power of scoring first.
Stewart’s first pitch hit Sax on the helmet. Sax was OK, but the A’s weren’t. One out later, Mickey Hatcher connected for a two-run homer. Hatcher, who hit one homer during the regular season, sped around the bases in a state of joyous disbelief.
The Dodgers led 2-0. But it wouldn’t last long.
Belcher’s wildness cost him severely in the second. After surrendering a single to Glenn Hubbard, he struck out Walt Weiss and got an 0-2 count on Stewart, the pitcher who was batting for the first time since 1985.
Then it went sour.
Belcher walked Stewart, then also walked Carney Lansford to load the bases. He struck out Dave Henderson, setting up a two-out, bases-loaded confrontation with Canseco.
Canseco won.
He drove a 1-0 fastball over the center-field wall and Oakland roared ahead 4-2. Canseco’s line drive was struck with such velocity, it put a dent in the NBC-TV center-field camera.
The grand slam sapped spirit from the Dodgers, who were forced into the bullpen after just two innings. But the A’s couldn’t build on Canseco’s slam and failed to register an early knockout. The A’s left eight runners on base through the first four innings, allowing the Dodgers time to recover from Canseco’s blow.
The Dodgers pulled within one run in the sixth. With one out, Mike Marshall and John Shelby stroked consecutive singles. Mike Scioscia drove in Marshall with another single, and Stewart was in trouble. He escaped quickly. Jeff Hamilton bounced to Lansford, who stepped on third base to force Shelby, then threw to first for a double play.
The Dodgers threatened in the seventh. With two outs, Sax singled and stole second. Franklin Stubbs took a good shot at putting the Dodgers ahead, but his fly ball was pulled in by Canseco just short of the right-field warning track.
The Dodgers’ bullpen kept the A’s in check, but time was running out. Belcher’s second-inning mistake, which Canseco muscled into a grand slam, looked like it could hold up. On this night, it appeared to be enough for victory.
Then Gibson came to the plate — against all odds. His swing at immortality helped to write an improbable ending.
And a Hollywood finish all the way.
