FanHouse KirkGibson

Saturday Spotlight is a weekly lightning round of questions delving into the personalities of major leaguers.

James Shields wasted no time in becoming a fixture in the Rays rotation. The Rays signed him to a four-year, $11.25-million deal before he started his second full season in the majors. He delivered, winning 14 games and helping the Rays to a surprising AL Pennant in 2008.

On to the questions...

The Cubs haven't won the World Series in 100 years. You may have heard this a few times already in 2008. And if you haven't yet, you will probably grow tired of hearing about it three innings into their first playoff game against the Dodgers.

The Cubs haven't even been to the Fall Classic since 1945, but there is a growing feeling on the North Side that at least one of those droughts will end this year.

Now we know who stands in their way. The aforementioned Dodgers, the Brewers and the Phillies represent major obstacles to Chicago. The funny thing about all three of those clubs is that, to varying degrees, they can all be characterized as losers too.

Oh, they aren't "lovable" like the ones in Wrigleyville. Now that the Red Sox and White Sox have won titles recently, the Cubs linger as the final franchise that's been seeking the promised land since before World War II. They'll most certainly be a sentimental favorite nationwide.

But don't let the Cubs' quest for baseball's Holy Grail blind you. They aren't the only team in the Senior Circuit with a chance to erase some frustrating history this October.

Where does Kirk Gibson's homer in the 1988 World Series rank? Top 10 baseball moments of all time? Top five? #1? Wherever you personally rank it: the drama is hard to deny. The greatest closer in the game -- Dennis Eckersley -- going toe-to-toe with a guy that could barely walk, but yet was the catalyst for the Dodgers' offense that season. Pinch hit, bottom of the ninth, 3-2 count. It really doesn't get any more dramatic than that.

So I welcome you to relive that moment -- with the tremendous Vin Scully on the call -- all with baseball cards. Up next? Recreating that infamous homer off Jose Canseco's dome. What say you, YouTube auteur?

There are few occasions in professional baseball in which one's voice can become synonymous with history. Kirk Gibson's limp-off home run, Hank Aaron's 715th -- these are the chances professional commentators dream about, and they do their best to make the most of the moment.

Barry Bonds's impending record-breaker? Rather than hoping for the chance to call history, announcers are fleeing from the thought:

"There's a prayer that I say in my car, and I have all week," said Ted Leitner of XX Sports Radio. " 'Dear God: Please not here, and please not me.' And I mean that."

...Leitner even said that while he normally doesn't plan what to say in circumstances such as these, he will do so this weekend. "I know guys do that and I don't like that because it's not spontaneous," Leitner said. "But this one I'll have to so I don't embarrass the organization in any way or be unprofessional in any way.

"It's always joy and excitement (with a milestone), but this is not, so I want to make sure I convey it to the audience, the magnitude of it, without mentioning steroids, without mentioning grand juries, but at the same time there will no enthusiasm in my voice. There's no way. Then I would be a hypocrite."

That's the true challenge: how to convey the accomplishment in the proper context, without swinging too closely toward either joy or open disdain. Still, honesty is the best policy. Barry Bonds is a great hitter and that can still be celebrated, even if what he's been accused of is true (hint: it is). Get that across, and I think any announcer has done his job. Level heads can still prevail, right? Right?

(HT: BBTF)

Often used to commemorate special moments in history are the exact pieces of equipment that were involved in the event. At the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown New York, you'll find cleats, hats, bats, jerseys, gloves, batting gloves, and any other product that could've been used on-field to produce a special moment. In fact, last week a bloody sock worn by Curt Schilling in the 2004 playoffs drew a ton of speculation after a report surfaced that the blood on the sock was fake. But one item of baseball history you won't find at the Hall of Fame, nor on ebay, nor anywhere else, is the game-winning two-run walk-off home run ball by Kirk Gibson to win Game 1 of the 1988 World Series for the Dodgers against the A's.

"It's our biggest mystery," said team historian Mark Langill. "We have no idea where it ended up."
...
"There is no defining video of someone holding up a ball," Langill said. "The cameras go from the brake lights to Gibson rounding the bases, and they never go back into the stands."

So is it possible that the ball ended up with nobody taking it home? Were the fans all too concerned with celebrating rather than searching for memorabilia? Or is there one happy fan sitting at home on a lottery ticket quietly waiting for the right time to cash in? Nobody knows the answer, and we may never know. But we do have video for you to review (and try not to remain fixated on Lasorda bolting out of the dugout):