NewsMLB Network to debut Studio 42 with Bob Costas: The Earthquake World Series and MLB Productions' Triumph and Tragedy: The 1984 San Diego Padres
Programs take an in-depth look at important moments and characters in MLB Postseason historyMLB.com
10/27/09 1:56 PM ET
SECAUCUS, N.J. -- MLB Network will debut Studio 42 with Bob Costas: The Earthquake World Series and MLB Productions' Triumph and Tragedy: The 1984 San Diego Padres on Friday, October 30. At 9:00 p.m. ET, Costas interviews current NBC sportscaster Al Michaels about Game Three of the 1989 World Series with the Oakland Athletics at San Francisco Giants that was interrupted by the Loma Prieta earthquake on October 17, 1989. Michaels, who was calling the game for ABC Sports, famously interrupted an on-air highlight reel to tell the audience that an earthquake was happening. Power was lost in Candlestick Park and Game Three was postponed for ten days until October 27. In addition to Michaels, the piece includes interviews with Michaels' former ABC Sports colleague Tim McCarver, who was in the broadcast booth with Michaels when the earthquake began, former Oakland manager Tony La Russa and former San Francisco first baseman Will Clark.Highlights of the interview with Michaels include:
"I knew it was an earthquake within two or three seconds, maybe less. I remember hearing what sounded like bats being pounded on the floor of the upper deck, which was just above the booth. This was probably the eighth or ninth earthquake I had felt but the biggest one by far. People are always talking in California about "the big one." I thought this might be "the big one".
"I knew I was the only guy covering this earthquake live from San Francisco. There was a lot of misinformation floating around so I knew at that moment in time the only things I was going to talk about were the things I could actually see on television."
"There wasn't any real sense of tension or nervousness in the stadium because there was enough natural light. If this had taken place after dark and had the lights gone out, we would have had a whole other situation. There was also a little sense of security in that you had 50,000 people gathering so everyone was in the same boat. So right after it had taken place, you had people almost saying "Wow, isn't that something. Here we are at the World Series and what a story we have to tell."
MLB Productions' "Triumph and Tragedy: The 1984 San Diego Padres" is the premiere episode of a new MLB Network series that looks at the ups and downs of some of the most notable players and teams in baseball history. Narrated by MLB Network studio host and former Padres television announcer Matt Vasgersian, the documentary looks at the National League champion 1984 Padres, whose lineup was filled with unique characters and storylines-a team that came together to win the first National League Pennant in Padres history, only to have its players go down very different roads in the future. The team featured three future Hall of Famers: right fielder Tony Gwynn, pitcher Goose Gossage and manager Dick Williams. The roster also included star players who faced personal struggles, including second baseman Alan Wiggins, who left baseball in 1987 and died from complications related to AIDS in 1991 at age 32; pitcher and Padres all-time wins leader Eric Show, who died of a drug overdose at age 37; and pitcher Dave Dravecky, who lost his pitching arm and shoulder to cancer and now serves as a motivational speaker. The episode includes stories and interviews - some being told for the first time on television - with Gwynn, Gossage, Williams, Dravecky, current Padres broadcasters Jerry Coleman and Ted Leitner, and former 1984 Padres second baseman Tim Flannery, third baseman Kurt Bevacqua, first baseman Steve Garvey, shortstop Garry Templeton, catcher Bruce Bochy and pitcher Craig Lefferts. Triumph and Tragedy: The 1984 San Diego Padres will air on October 30 at 10:00 p.m. ET.
Highlights of the episode include:
"When I think about the things that happened during that time and after that time, there was triumph that was born of tragedy, and I think all of us on that club would agree." - Dave Dravecky
"Great moments and sad moments. It's never perfect and never works the way you want it. I guess the '84 Padres are a microcosm of what life is really all about." - Jerry Coleman
This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
