Oakland Athletics tickets

Lasorda sent Gibson to the plate "looking for lightning in a bottle," as Scully put it. Gibson was clearly in pain, as he fouled off fastball after fastball to work the count to 3-2. One more strike and Athletics History in Oakland would win the game. Then Eckersley deviated from his fast-ball pattern. He tried to sneak a backdoor slider past Gibson. Gibson leaned out on his front foot and put a one-handed swing on the ball. It sailed deep into the right field stands and the Dodgers had won the game. Gibson hobbled around the bases, pumping his arms in joy, and was mobbed by his team-mates as he arrived at home plate.
There had never been another homer like it in baseball history. Bobby Thomson's wasn't in the World Series. Carlton Fisk's and Bill Mazeroski's came with their teams tied, not trailing. Not only did Gibson's homer snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, but it came while he was injured, and facing the best relief pitcher in the game. It was the most dramatic, the most unlikely, and one of the most important home runs in baseball history. "Not only did it win the game for us," Lasorda said, "but it also won the Series because they were never able to recover from that home run."

The Dodgers had more ammunition to throw at Oakland in pitcher Orel Hershiser, who was on the hottest hot streak in the history of the game. Hershiser had allowed no runs in his last 59 innings of the season, breaking the Don Drysdale record long thought to be unbreakable. He was named MVP of the National League playoffs. Over his last eleven games, Hershiser was 7-0 with six shutouts, one save, and a 0.51 ERA in 88 innings. The man Lasorda nicknamed "Bulldog" continued his brilliance in Game 2. He pitched a shutout against Oakland, allowing them only three hits while getting three himself. Remarkably, the Dodgers now led Oakland two games to none. The Oakland Athletics Baseball Team won the third game when McGwire hit a walk-off home run off Dodgers stopper Jay Howell, who was pitch¬ing for the first time since being suspended for illegally using pine tar to grip the ball in the National League playoffs. In addition to losing the game, the Dodgers also lost Mike Marshall, their leading RBI man, to injury.

NBC's Bob Costas proclaimed the Dodgers' Game 4 starting lineup without Gibson and Marshall to be probably the weakest ever to appear in a World Series game. The Dodgers watched the pre-game show in their clubhouse and were incensed. "Kill Costas!" Lasorda bellowed. "Kill Costas!" the players shouted in unison. But Costas was right. The Dodgers' number three hitter, Mickey Hatcher, had one home run during the regular season. Cleanup hitter Davis batted .196. First baseman Franklin Stubbs batted .223. Designated hitter Danny Heep had zero home runs and 11 RBI. The nine men in the Dodgers lineup had hit 36 home runs combined, six fewer than Jose But Costas didn't know about the Stuntmen. The Dodgers' collection of bench players were so named because, like Hollywood stuntmen, they did the job when the big stars couldn't. "You do what it takes to win as a team," Rick Dempsey said, "Even if that means just to encourage the guys who are playing ahead of you". The Stuntmen capitalized on the opportunity to shine in Game 4, as Los Angeles took a 4-3 lead into the late innings. Jay Howell, the loser the night before, came in looking for redemp¬tion and found it. He retired both Canseco and McGwire with the tying run on base to preserve the Dodger victory.