It's Been Awhile...

[sanjosefuji]

It's been twenty-three years since the Oakland A's have played in the Fall Classic and twenty-four years since they've won it. In other words, it's been a mighty long time.

That's why as an A's fan, I will always cherish their sweep of the San Francisco Giants in the 1989 World Series.

A few months ago, I purchased five tickets from this memorable series for the insanely low price of five bucks. That's $5 for the lot, not $5 per ticket.

I've been wanting to add these tickets to my collection for awhile now, but not for the prices they fetch on eBay, which range from $15 to $30 per ticket. Thankfully, patience paid off.

Let's go back and reminisce The Battle of the Bay World Series...

Game One

In game one, Dave Stewart pitched a complete game shutout.

Dave Parker and Walt Weiss helped him out by hitting home runs off of Scott Garrelts in the 3rd and 4th innings.

Game Three

Here are a pair of tickets from one of the most famousWorld Series games in MLB history.


On October 17th, 1989, the Loma Prieta earthquake shook the Bay Area and was captured on live television during the World Series coverage.

I'm sure all of you have certain childhood memories that stand out more than others. This was one of those memories for me. I was laying on the couch (watching the pre-game), getting some rest before heading to Thrifty's to work the evening shift. Then all of a sudden, the house started shaking and things started falling off of shelves all around me. I dove under the coffee table and when it was over, the power was out and the house looked like a tornado swept through it. Nobody else was home at the time and I remember being worried about my family. Luckily nobody I knew was injured.

The game was postponed for ten days. But on Friday, October 27th the World Series resumed with Stewart and Garrelts both back on the mound. This time it was the A'sbats that won the game.

Jose Canseco, Carney Lansford, and Dave Henderson combined for nine hits... including three home runs, nine RBI's, nine runs scored, and twenty-two total bases to secure the game three victory.

Game Four

The next day, Oakland completed the four game sweep of the Giants with a 9 to 6 victory at Candlestick Park.

Mike Moore pitched six solid innings and Rickey Henderson went 3 for 6 with a double, a home run, two runs scored, and two RBI's.

Dave Stewart took home the World Series MVP Award with his stellar pitching performances in game one and game three. But he had plenty of offensive support from his teammates. In four games, the A's had a .301 batting average, 8 doubles, 3 triples, 9 home runs, 32 runs scored, 30 RBI's, and a .964 OPS.


Thank goodness for PED's. Just kidding guys... just kidding. But seriously... there's no telling how many more years I'll have to wait before the Athletics make it back to the Fall Classic.


Happy Thursday and sayonara!

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[ucffans]

Great story. You have an excellent way of bringing in the visuals with your description. You know, I bet you would make a great teacher!

I have the same memories from 1987 and 1991 with the Twins. I am a Phillies fan, so 2008 was great for me, but there was something magical about the Twins. Maybe it had to do with the fact that I was in my teens at the time.

[sanjosefuji]

ucffans - Thanks for the compliment. Hopefully my students feel the same way as you. I definitely think that the "era" plays a part in the way you feel about something.

Great story. You have an excellent way of bringing in the visuals with your description. You know, I bet you would make a great teacher!

I have the same memories from 1987 and 1991 with the Twins. I am a Phillies fan, so 2008 was great for me, but there was something magical about the Twins. Maybe it had to do with the fact that I was in my teens at the time.