The only time I attended a postseason baseball game in person was in 1972, when the Oakland A's took on the Detroit Tigers. The two teams were passing each other in history - the A's, the famous "mustache gang" edition, were on their way to the first of three consecutive World Series championships, and the Tigers, still holding onto the relics of their 1968 World Series win (Al Kaline, Mickey Lolich, a handful of others), were headed straight towards the basement, beginning a period of general awfulness from which they wouldn't emerge until Sparky Anderson came on board years later.
Back in those day's, the A's were an awful draw. We were able to drive down to Oakland the day of the game, and easily buy decent seats. The game wasn't even close to being a sellout; in fact, they had trouble selling out the World Series games that year. I remember bits and pieces of the game, which the A's won in extra innings, in dramatic fashion - the Tigers had scored a run off of Vida Blue, who was pitching in relief, in the top of the 11th inning, and the A's mounted a rally and scored two in the bottom half. I remember a very old man leaving his seat and yelling quite loudly about what a bum Blue was, and then returning with a big sheepish grin on his face in the bottom half of the inning, when the rally began. For some reason, I also remember hearing "Burning Love" on the radio during the drive home.
The next day, the fireworks really began when Bert Campaneris, the A's crafty shortstop, was nicked with a pitch (and I do mean nicked - it barely touched him) and responded by flinging his bat straight at the pitcher. It was such an unexpected moment that it seemed to catch even the umpires by surprise. They tossed Campy, but they also tossed the pitcher, which set manager Billy Martin into a rage that lasted for close to twenty minutes. Good stuff.
The A's went on to win, but it wasn't easy - after taking the first two in Oakland, the A's lost two in Detroit, and were faced with a Game 5 in a packed Tiger Stadium (in those days, the team with the better record didn't automatically get home-field advantage). They pulled off a nail-biter, but lost their best player, Reggie Jackson, to injury. That set up what turned out to be a classic battle with the mighty Big Red Machine of Cincinnati, who were about as big a favorite as one could possibly imagine. More on that later.
This year's A's-Tigers series should be a great one - maybe not for Fox, considering that few people can name a player on either team, but for baseball. Proof once again that you can win without having the biggest paycheck in your pocket.
1 comment:
Campaneris was beaned by LaGrow. The pitch hit in on the ankle, hard. Campy made his living with his legs. He already had two or three hits and had stolen a couple of bases. It was clear what LaGrow had in mind. Campy was not justified in throwing his bat but to say he was nicked by the pitch is a damn lie!
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