On This Date in Sports October 14, 1984: Bless You Boys
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
The Detroit Tigers complete one of the most dominant seasons in baseball history, winning the World Series over the San Diego Padres in five games. In the finale at Tiger Stadium, Detroit wins 8-4, with Kirk Gibson’s three-run home run off Goose Gossage in the eighth inning being the final nail in the Padres’ coffin. The Tigers spent all season in first starting the year by winning 35 of their first 40 games.
The 1984 season was the Year of the Tigers, as Bless You Boys, became the team’s motto as they used a historic start to cruise to their first division championship in 12 years. The Tigers won their first nine games on the road on the way to a 35-5 record, the best 40-game record MLB history. The Tigers start included a first-week No-Hitter by Jack Morris and record 17 straight victories on the road. The Tigers would win the American League East by 15 games over the Toronto Blue Jays with a record of 104-58. The Tigers would easily reach the World Series sweeping the Kansas City Royals in the ALCS.
The San Diego Padres meanwhile had a magical season winning the National League West with a record of 92-70. Before 1984, the Padres had just one winning season in their first 15 years of existence, never finishing higher than fourth place. In the NLCS, the Padres faced the Chicago Cubs, losing the first two in Wrigley Field, before winning the final three at home. The big blow in the NLCS was Steve Garvey’s walk-off home run in Game 4.
The Managers in the World Series had met on this stage before, as Dick Williams, who had led the Oakland Athletics to the World Championship in 1972, led the Padres, while Sparky Anderson, who led the Cincinnati Reds that same year managed the Tigers. Anderson later won two titles with the Reds as each manager sought to become the first manager to lead teams in each league to a victory in the Fall Classic.
Jack Morris started the opener at Jack Murphy Stadium, while Mark Thurmond made the start for the Padres. The Tigers got an early run as Lou Whitaker led off with a double and scored on a single by Alan Trammell. The Padres answered in the bottom of the first as Terry Kennedy drove in two runs with a two-out double. It would be the only runs Morris would allow, as he shut down the Padres the rest of the way. Meanwhile, Larry Herndon hit a two-run home run in the fifth to give Detroit a 3-2 win in Game 1.
Dan Petry started for the Tigers in Game 2, as Ed Whitson made the start for San Diego. Whitson would struggle as he gave up three runs in the first and was removed, having only recorded two outs. Andy Hawkins would come on in relief and shut down the Tigers, while Padres got a run back in the first on a sac-fly by Graig Nettles. San Diego got another run in the fourth than flipped the game in their favor in the fifth. At the time, the Designated Hitter was used in all World Series games in even-numbered years and not used in any game in odd years. This meant the Padres had to use a DH, and it was journeyman Kurt Bevacqua who got the honors. Bevacqua would pay dividends, hitting a three-run homer as the Padres won 5-3 to even the series.
As the series shifted to old Tiger Stadium, the Tigers had Milt Wilcox toeing the rubber against Tim Lollar. Detroit jumped all over Lollar in the second, as Marty Castillo, the ninth-place hitter, smashed a two-run homer, starting a four-run rally. The Padres got a run back in the second, but the Tigers quickly answered, building a 5-1 lead. The Padres also got a series in the seventh but could not get any closer, as Willie Hernandez slammed the door shut over the last two and the third inning of a 5-2 Tigers win.
Jack Morris got the start again in Game 4, as Eric Show started for the Padres. Once again, Morris went the distance earning the win, as Alan Trammell had a pair of two-run homers to lead the way in a 4-2 win. Trammell batted .450 in the World Series, with two home runs and six RBI, earning World Series MVP honors.
In Game 5, the Tigers had a commanding 3-1 series lead as they sought their first World Championship since 1968. Dan Petry got the start for the Tigers, as Mark Thurmond hoped to get the series back to San Diego for the Padres. Thurmond would not even make it past the first inning as the Tigers scored three runs, keyed by a two-run home run by Kirk Gibson. Andy Hawkins and provided brilliant relief again, as the Padres fought back to tie the game n the fourth inning. Hawkins ran out of gas in the fifth as Detroit scratched out a run on a sac-fly by Rusty Kuntz. In the seventh, the Tigers added to the lead with a home run by Lance Parrish. Kurt Bevacqua hit a home run in the eighth off Hernandez, the American League MVP and Cy Young winner in 1984 to keep the Padres in the game. The Tigers looked to put the final nail in the Padres’ coffin as they had runners on second and third with one out in the bottom of the eighth leading 5-4. Dick Williams asked Goose Gossage to intentionally walk Kirk Gibson to load the bases. Gossage refused, saying he could strike out Gibson. The drama played out as Sparky Anderson goaded his slugger with; they don’t want to walk you. The next thing you knew, the ball was heading into the upper deck in right, sending Tiger Stadium into pandemonium with the score now 8-4. Willie Hernandez would retire the Padres with ease in the ninth as the series ended with Tony Gwynn flying out to Herndon in left.