1988 World Series

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. 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 LaRussa (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)

Game 1
October 15, 1988 at Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles Dodgers) 1 2  3    4  5  6    7  8  9     R  H  E                                 -  -  -    -  -  -    -  -  -     -  -  - Oakland Athletics           0  4  0    0  0  0    0  0  0     4  7  0 Los Angeles Dodgers         2  0  0    0  0  1    0  0  2     5  7  0

PITCHERS: OAK - Stewart, Eckersley (9) LAD - Belcher, Leary (3), Holton (6), Pena (8)

WP - Pena LP - Eckersley SAVE - none

HOME RUNS: OAK - Canseco LAD - Hatcher, Gibson

ATTENDANCE: 55,983

Game 2
October 16, 1988 at Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles Dodgers) 1 2  3    4  5  6    7  8  9     R  H  E                                 -  -  -    -  -  -    -  -  -     -  -  - Oakland Athletics           0  0  0    0  0  0    0  0  0     0  3  0 Los Angeles Dodgers         0  0  5    1  0  0    0  0  X     6 10  1

PITCHERS: OAK - S. Davis, Nelson (4), Young (6), Plunk (7), Honeycutt (8) LAD - Hershiser

WP - Hershiser LP - S. Davis SAVE - none

HOME RUNS: OAK - none LAD - Marshall

ATTENDANCE: 56,051

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

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

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

Trivia

 * 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, when he saw Kirk Gibson walk up to the plate, it looked as if he was using his bat as a cane.


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


 * Jose 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 spliting coverage of the 1995 World Series with ABC, NBC would next cover a World Series exclusively in 1997.

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." - Vin Scully, announcing Tommy Lasorda's decision to use the injured Kirk Gibson as a pinch hitter in Game 1.

"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.

"This is gonna be a home run! Unbelievable! A home run by Gibson!  And the Dodgers have won the game, 5 to 4; I don't believe... what I just saw!" - Jack Buck on CBS Radio.

"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.

"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.