GAME WON– How the Greatest Home Run Ever Hit Sparked the 1988 Dodgers to Game One Victory and an Improbable World Series Title
By Steven K. Wagner
Sunbury Press, Inc., 2021
$16.95
Available through Amazon.com and Sunbury Press
“I was sitting (in the Dodger bullpen) next to Jay Howell and Jesse Orosco, and when (Gibson) came out of the dugout, our reaction was, ‘What in the world is Tommy (Lasorda) doing? This doesn’t make any sense, because he can’t even stand up.’ As teammates, we did not think it was physically possible for him to take an at-bat.
“When we could tell that (Gibson had) hit a home run, Jesse lifted me high in the air, kind of bear-hugging me around my knees or thighs. He lifted me way above him and started running around the bullpen with me in his arms. I don’t know why he did that – I’d only known him for a month for goodness’ sake. I remember him carrying me around the bullpen and thinking we’re both going to fall on the ground and get hurt. It was such a moment of elation, and he did the first thing that came to his mind: He picked me up and carried me around”
Dodger Reliever Ricky Horton
This above quote from Dodger reliever Ricky Horton is from Steven K. Wagner’s latest baseball book – GAME WON – How the Greatest Home Run Ever Hit Sparked the 1988 Dodgers to Game One Victory and an Improbable World Series Title.
In the book, Wagner puts the reader on the scene – and behind the scenes – for Kirk Gibson’s dramatic walk-off, two-run home run that gave the underdog Dodgers a 5-4 victory in Game One of the 1988 World Series (and set the tone for the Dodgers’ ultimate five-game Series win. Wagner makes a good case for Gibson’s long ball being one of the (if not the) most exciting in baseball history, right up there with Giant Bobby Thomson’s 1951 pennant-winning blast off Ralph Branca, Pirate Bill Mazeroski’s World Series-winning home run in 1960 and the 1975 World Series Game Six extra-inning home run that Carlton Fisk of the Red Sox “willed, waved and danced” fair.
If you’re a baseball fan, you remember the iconic six-minutes of baseball history fashioned by Oakland closer Dennis Eckersley and Dodgers’ hobbled pinch hitter Kirk Gibson. Eckersley, a future Hall of Famer, came to the mound as 1988’s major-league saves leader and one of the game’s toughest relievers. Gibson, the Dodgers’ 1988 offensive stalwart, came to the plate not just off the bench, but off the trainer’s table, where he had been nursing (and icing down) a swollen right knee and a painful left hamstring. Gibson made his way gingerly to the batter’s box, fought off visible pain in a grueling eight-pitch at-bat and finally took Eckersley deep (on a 3-2 count with two outs) for a game-winning, two-run homer – and then limped around the bases (in what would be his only at bat in the Series.)
In Game Won, Wagner deftly delivers all we’ve come to expect in a baseball book. He takes us through the game inning-by- inning, even pitch-by-pitch – building to the big moment with prose that brings the reader into the ballpark. For example, in setting the stage for a Terry Steinbach at-bat against Dodger reliever Tim Leary, Wagner writes “As the Goodyear blimp floated listlessly overhead, Leary slowly made his way to the pitching mound. By then the sky was ink black, the tricky afternoon shadows that so often baffled hitters were gone, and the bright bank of stadium lights was fully operational as Steinbach stepped in to face the opposing pitcher.” Throughout the book, Wagner displays his talent not only for setting the stage, but for bringing the stage to life.
In Game Won, Steven Wagner displays his ability to not just set the stage,
but bring the stage to life.
Wagner also provides a look at the players involved. He delivers the baseball book staple – the stories and statistics that define how they got to this moment in their careers (and even a look at where the national pastime took them in the years after this moment).
But Wagner takes his efforts a step further – giving us a look at some of the people behind the scenes who had an impact on Gibson’s on-field moment. For example, we get a look at the contributions of 24-year-old Dodger “batboy” and former college pitcher Mitch Poole (assigned primarily to the club house and trainers’ room that day) in helping Gibson get ready for his at-bat and making sure Dodger Manager Tommy Lasorda knew Gibson was determined to make the painful trip to the plate. How important was Poole’s role? Wagner’s book includes a chapter entitled “The Batboy.”
Wagner also gives us a look at how announcer Vin Scully’s eighth-inning on-air announcement that Kirk Gibson “will not see any action tonight, for sure” provided even more impetus for Gibson to get himself off the trainer’s table and up to the plate; as well as how advice from Dodger scout Mel Didier helped Gibson prepare for Eckersley’s final 3-2 offering.
Then there is, what for this reviewer is the crowning touch. Each chapter begins with observations pulled from interviews with fans who were in the stands for the game – just another way Wagner brings the game and its impact to life.
“When he came into the on-deck circle, people started standing up and cheering. When he hit the home run, everyone went nuts.
“The second he hit it, I knew it was out because the whole stadium erupted. Popcorn was flying. Food boxes were flying. Everything was flying around. I don’t think I was even looking at the field because everyone was jumping up and down and hugging. It was awesome being there.
“Afterward, we sat around for maybe a half hour and waited for people to leave. When we got to the parking lot, people were screaming and going crazy – it wouldn’t end. “
Dodger Fan Brad Kuehfuss
As you can probably tell, I liked this book. It truly brings Gibson’s iconic home run – in fact, the whole game – to life. The detail provided shows the depth of Wagner’s research, as do the acknowledgements to the literally dozens of players, coaches, managers, team executives and employees, and fans. This is a book that takes the reader beyond the statistics and deep into the story (and feel) of the game – and the emotions of all those who were on the field, in stands and behind the scenes. I’d recommend it to fans, not just of the Dodgers, but of the national pastime itself. Well done, Mr. Wagner.
Steven K. Wagner has worked as a freelance journalist since 1989. He began his career with the Monmouth Sun-Enterprise in Oregon and worked for the Oregon City Enterprise-Courier and Portland Daily Journal of Commerce before joining United Press International. He has also worked for the Portland Oregonian and has freelanced extensively for the Los Angeles Times, Oklahoma City Oklahoman, Seattle Times, Baseball America and numerous additional newspapers and magazines. Other books by Wagner include:
“Perfect: The Rise and Fall of John Paciorek, Baseball Greatest One-Game Wonder” (Breakaway Books)
“Seinsoth: The Rough-and-Tumble Life of a Dodger” (Sunbury Press)
“The Four Home Runs Club: Sluggers Who Achieved Baseball’s Rarest Feat” (Rowman & Littlefield)
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——An Interview with Steven K. Wagner, author of Game Won.——
What made you decide to include fan comments, and how did you find the fans? Is there any one thought/emotion they all seemed to share?
I wanted a unique lead-in to each chapter, and adding recollections from those who were at the game seemed like a fun and interesting way to do it. I found the fans through friends of mine and Facebook. And, of course, my brother and his son were at the game. A common thread winding through each series of quotes was how thunderous the cheering was perceived after Gibson’s home run, almost shaking Dodger Stadium to its foundation. And, of course, nearly everyone remained inside the stadium for as long as they needed to.
What made this game special for you (special enough to tackle a book on it)?
The game was special because, in my mind, Gibson’s home run was bigger than Bobby Thomson’s. I argue in the book that given the significance of Gibson’s injuries and the fact that he was batting against a nearly unhittable pitcher and a future Hall of Famer made it the greatest home run in baseball history. Bigger than Thomson’s, which didn’t occur in a World Series game.
What spurred your interest in/love of the national pastime? How long have you been a fan?
I’ve been a baseball fan, specifically a Dodger fan, since the 1950s, when my dad took my brother and me to watch them play at the old Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. More than 60 years, I suppose. I recall carving a square out of a book, placing my transistor radio inside the hole, taking the book to school and listening to the 1963 World Series with my head on the cover. My grades probably suffered, but the risk was worth it.
Do you recall your first baseball game you attended (as a fan)?
My first game was at the Coliseum in Los Angeles, Milwaukee Braves vs. the Dodgers, probably 1959. I remember that Hank Aaron broke a bat and my brother and I walked down to the Braves’ dugout and begged the batboy for the bat. He refused and we left disappointed. I don’t think I’ve cheered for the Braves since.
Do you have a favorite player? Favorite baseball moment?
I always liked Don Drysdale for his intensity. He threw hard, and if he wanted to intimate a batter, he flattened him. That usually made his point. Drysdale’s and later on Orel Hershiser’s consecutive scoreless innings streaks have to be favorite baseball moments of mine, if you can call them moments, because those feats are so difficult.
