Customer Reviews

1984 World Series - Detroit Tigers vs San Diego Padres [VHS]

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High-priced, but worth it for all the behind-the-scenes footage that's included.

Brought back fond memories of the second World Series that I ever watched.

I was eleven years old at the time!!!!

The Detroit Tigers dominated baseball in 1984, starting off the season at a mind-numbing 35-5, then cruising to a MLB-best 104-58, remaining in first place the entire season. They quickly swept aside the Royals in 3 straight in the ALCS, then waited for San Diego to finish off the Cubs in 5.

The '84 World Series, despite the Padres experience, wasn't even close. Except for a come-from-behind win in Game 2, the Padres were mauled by the Tigers in 5 games. All of San Diego's starting pitchers were chased from the mound by the third inning, two of which didn't make it through the first! On the other side, Jack Morris pitched two complete games, Series MVP Alan Trammell batted .450 (including two home runs in Game 4), and Kirk Gibson buried San Diego for good in Game 5 with two upper deck home runs.

Until 2006, the "Bless You Boys" Tigers were the last great baseball team in Detroit. I'm sure we won't see a team start 35-5 or better again.

Sport writers already knew what one of major headlines was going to be at the end of the 1984 World Series between Detroit and San Diego, because whether it was Sparky Anderson's Tigers or Dick Williams's Padres, one of the two was going to be the first manager to win the World Series in both leagues (Anderson won his previous rings with the Cincinnati Reds and Williams earned a trio with the Oakland A's; Yogi Berra won with the Yankees but lost with the Mets, while way back when Joe McCarthy lost with the Cubs but won, repeatedly, with the Bronx Bombers). The odds favored Anderson, whose Tigers won 104 games during the regular season and after splitting the first two games at San Diego the Tiger returned to Detroit and closed out the series with three straight wins. Jack Morris was the pitching star of the series with two complete game victories while Tiger shortstop and Series MVP Alan Trammell batted .450 and drove in all of the team's runs in Game 4 with a pair of home runs.

The Padres managed to come back from a 3-0 deficit to even the series in Game 2, but that was all the National League champs could end up doing despite having experienced World Series veterans like Steve Garvey and Graig Nettles. Clearly the Padres had used up all their good luck coming back from a 2 game deficit in the League Championship series against the Chicago Cubs who were once again falling short of winning the title. This color video of World Series highlights also uses after the fact behind the scenes interviews to great advantage, particularly with regards to the pivotal at bat in the final game when Padre reliever Goose Gossage faced Kirk Gibson, who would hit his second most famous World Series home run (but first chronologically). Obviously Tiger fans are going to love this video, while the Padre faithful are left with this tape providing the highlights of the only World Series game they ever won in nine games over two appearances in the Fall Classic.