Remember When: Kirk Gibson’s World Series Walk Off Home Run

 

Just one fell swing of Kirk Gibson’s bat launched one of baseball’s greatest home runs. And while the memory remains iconic, it wasn’t supposed to even happen at all.

The 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers were quite the underdog story. After finishing the ‘87 season 14 games under .500, they unexpectedly steamrolled the National League in ‘88. LA won 94 games and easily took the NL West crown. A major reason for their turnaround was stellar play from their star outfielder Kirk Gibson.

The injured Gibson was originally ruled out for the World Series, and it looked like the Dodgers had to face the mighty Oakland A’s without their star hitter. The A’s were the best team in baseball, winning 104 games off the strength of sluggers Mark McGwire & Jose Canseco, and dominant pitchers like Dave Stewart & Dennis Eckersley.

The ‘88 World Series began with some early fireworks. Gibson’s replacement, Mickey Hatcher hit a 2-run homer in the first inning — just his second of the season. However, Canseco answered with a grand slam the next inning to give Oakland a 4-2 lead.

While all this was happening, Gibson was watching the game in the Dodger clubhouse getting physical therapy. At some point during the game, broadcaster Vin Scully noticed that Gibson wasn’t in the dugout. It prompted Gibson to tell Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda that he was available to pinch hit, return to the clubhouse, and take swings in the batting cage.

Gibson hobbled to the plate and battled the count to two balls and two strikes. Davis stole second base on the next pitch — a ball — to put the tying run in scoring position. With a full count, Gibson stepped out of the box to collect his thoughts. He recalled advice from a Dodgers scout telling him to expect a backdoor slider in this situation. Eckersley threw the slider, and Gibson was ready for it. Using only his arms, Gibson didn’t miss.

The Dodgers walked off with a Game 1 win. It was Gibson’s only appearance in the World Series, but it sparked the Dodgers to win the series 4 games to 1.

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