How The Memory of 1988 Surpasses the Dodgers’ Opening Day Loss
The Dodgers were bound to lose a game in their 2018 campaign. Though fans hoped it wouldn’t be in the first game of the season, the Dodgers are still the team that made it to the World Series last fall.
It was a dark and stormy night; at least that’s what it felt like. Really, it was Game one of the season, and the Dodgers were marching into a new year, putting the pain of Game seven far, far behind them. If we’re being honest, though, that heartbreak will never go away. No amount of Cody Bellinger home runs could ever erase it. For the foreseeable future, at least for me, all losses will take me back to that night; that dark and stormy night.
Summer, however, has a way of pushing out even the strongest of downpours.
Opening Day began with none other than Kirk Gibson throwing out the first pitch. Fans, historians, and all around lovers of the game will remember that, 30 years ago, an injured Gibson was summoned by his manager, Tommy Lasorda. He made his way to the field, accompanied by the melodious cheers of Dodger Stadium, and stepped to the plate to face A’s legend, Dennis Eckersley, (who, 29 years later in his return to Dodger Stadium, would reportedly introduce himself at the gate as “the guy who gave up that home run.”)
“That home run,” however, had yet to be hit. The history of the Dodgers had yet to be altered in Gibson’s favor.
Then, after a lengthy at-bat, Gibson hit a 3-2 slider from Eckersley into the right field bleachers.
To quote Vin Scully “the impossible has happened.”
This year, we remember that home run in a different light than in years past. We, along with the name Gibson once donned on the front of his jersey, see that home run as not only a joyous memory but a real, and potentially reachable goal.
The Dodgers fell short last fall, we know that all too well. This year, however, seems far more poetic than the last. It’s been 30 years since Gibson, and it’s been 30 years since the boys in blue last won the World Series. It’s been 148 days since the Dodgers lost game 7, and it’s been 1 day since they lost to the Giants. It’s been far too long since a World Series parade lit up the streets of Los Angeles.
This could be the year all that changes.
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On Thursday, Clayton Kershaw took the mound for his 8th consecutive Opening Day start. On the mound for the Giants was Ty Blach, who pitched in the place of his injured teammate Madison Bumgarner.
The offense got off to a thunderous start for the Giants but took until the 5th inning to get a run on the board. Joe Panik homered to right off of Kershaw for the only run of the game. LA had chances to take the lead but fell just short.
It’s not the end of the world, but rather, simply, the beginning of the season.
Just ask the 1988 World Champion Dodgers, who also began the season with a loss. Who did they lose to?
The San Francisco Giants.
The Dodgers may not have been able to prove that their offense is back and up to the challenge on Opening Day, not entirely, but what they did do was prove that their bullpen is as good as we think it is.
Actually, it’s probably better.
J.T Chargois is a name few knew before Thursday. Now, he’s known as the guy who threw a scoreless 7th against the Giants on Opening Day. Chances are, he hopes to be known for more than that, but as a reliever this early in the season, there’s not much better than throwing a scoreless frame.
He kept his team in the game. He walked towards the mound with the intent to do his job, and he succeeded.
Josh Fields and Tony Cingrani followed Chargois by each throwing a scoreless inning of their own.
Though Opening Day ended in defeat, it doesn’t mean the season will be defined by it, not in the slightest.
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It was a bright, and sunny day, and the Dodgers were playing baseball. At last, all was right in the world.