Kirk Gibson Biography
Kirk Gibson (nicknamed “Gibby”) (born May 28, 1957) is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He is currently a color commentator for the Detroit Tigers on Fox Sports Detroit and a special assistant for the Tigers.
As a player, Gibson was an outfielder who batted and threw left-handed. He spent most of his career with the Detroit Tigers but also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
A fierce competitor, Gibson is perhaps best known for two dramatic home runs in the World Series, each of them off a relief pitcher who would end up in the Baseball Hall of Fame. With the Tigers, he clinched the 1984 World Series with a three-run homer off Goose Gossage, who had refused to walk him with a base open.
While with the Dodgers, Gibson was named the National League MVP in 1988. In-game 1 of the 1988 World Series, Gibson faced heralded closer Dennis Eckersley and hit a pinch-hit walk-off home run—often described as one of the most exciting moments in World Series history. He was named to the All-Star team twice, in 1985 and 1988, but declined the invitation both times. He announced his retirement from baseball in August 1995.
Following his retirement as a player, he spent five seasons as a television analyst in Detroit and then became a coach for the Tigers in 2003. He became the Diamondbacks’ bench coach in 2007 and was promoted to interim manager in 2010 following the mid-season dismissal of A. J. Hinch. On October 4, 2010, the Diamondbacks removed the “interim” label, naming Gibson their manager for the 2011 season. Gibson served as the Diamondbacks’ manager until September 26, 2014.
Kirk Gibson Age
Gibson was born on May 28, 1957, in Pontiac, Michigan. He is 62 years old as of 2019.
Kirk Gibson Education
Gibson was born in Pontiac, Michigan on May 28, 1957, grew up in Waterford, Michigan (attending Waterford Kettering High School), and attended Michigan State University where he was an All-American wide receiver in football. Gibson’s college football career was distinguished by leading the Spartans to a tie for the Big Ten title, setting school and conference receiving records, starring in the Hula Bowl and Senior Bowl, and making several All-America teams. For his accomplishments on the football field, Gibson was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in January 2017.
It was at the suggestion of Spartan football coach Darryl Rogers that Gibson played collegiate baseball. Gibson played only one year of college baseball but managed to hit .390 with 16 homers and 52 RBIs in 48 games. He was drafted by both the Detroit Tigers baseball team (1st round) and the St. Louis Cardinals (now the Arizona Cardinals) football team (7th round). He chose baseball.
Kirk Gibson Marriage | Children
Gibson married JoAnn Sklarski on December 22, 1985, in a double ceremony where Tiger pitcher Dave Rozema married JoAnn’s sister Sandy. They were married at Grosse Pointe Memorial Church in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan.
The Gibsons resides in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and have four children: Colleen, Cam, Kirk, and Kevin. Gibson’s son Cam was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 5th round, 160th overall, in the 2015 Major League Baseball draft. His son Kevin is a defenseman for the Fort Wayne Komets in the ECHL.
Kirk Gibson Health
Gibson is all for being part of a team that faces a common challenge. Ten million people worldwide have Parkinson’s disease. The limp that became Gibson’d trademark for determination when he circled the bases after his iconic walk-off pinch-hit home run for the Dodgers in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series is now in his left foot and is just one of his symptoms.
Parkinson’s id a disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement and causes tremors. Gibson announced in 2015 that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
Kirk Gibson Detroit Tigers
Gibson played as the regular right fielder for the Detroit Tigers from 1983 to 1987. He helped the Tigers win the 1984 World Series. He became a free agent after the 1985 season but received no significant offers because of what was later determined to be collusion among the owners of MLB teams. He re-signed with the Tigers and in 1987, helped them to win the American League East by one game over the Blue Jays in an enthralling divisional race. However, Detroit lost the 1987 American League Championship Series to the eventual World Champion Twins.
Early in his career, Gibson was proclaimed by manager Sparky Anderson to be the next Mickey Mantle. Anderson later apologized and said that probably put too much pressure on a young and inexperienced Gibson. Nevertheless, Gibson was considered a versatile power/speed player in the 1980s who was able to hit home runs as well as steal bases. He finished in the top 10 in home runs 3 times in his career and ranked in the top 10 in stolen bases 4 times. He fell one home run short of becoming the first Tiger in the 30–30 club in 1985.
Gibson was known for hitting clutch home runs. In the eighth inning of Game 5 of the 1984 World Series between the Tigers and Padres, he faced Goose Gossage, one of the game’s premier relievers, with Detroit up 5–4 and runners on second and third with one out. An intentional (or at least semi-intentional) walk seemed to be in order, especially because Gibson had already homered earlier in the game.
However, Gossage told San Diego manager Dick Williams he thought he could strike him out. Indeed, Gossage had struck out Gibson in his very first Major League at-bat in 1979 on 3 pitches, and Kirk had only managed one bunt-single against Gossage in 10 previous plate appearances.
When asked about Gibson, Gossage later said he had told teammate Tim Lollar in the second inning, “I own him.” If the Padres could hold the Tigers and score a couple runs in the ninth, they would force the Series back to San Diego and maybe turn the tide.
In the Sounds of the Game video, Detroit manager Sparky Anderson was seen yelling at Gibson from the dugout, “He doesn’t want to walk you!”, showing four fingers and then making a bat-swinging motion, the universal baseball gesture for “swing away.” Gibson got the message and launched Gossage’s 1–0 fastball deep into Tiger Stadium’s right-field upper deck for a three-run homer, icing the game and the Series for the Tigers.
In the ESPN interview with Gossage and Williams that aired after the 2008 Hall of Fame inductions, Williams took responsibility for the situation, as he allowed Gossage to talk him into pitching to Gibson. At the same time, Williams ribbed Gossage that Gibson’s home run damaged several seats “in consecutive rows.”
Kirk Gibson Los Angeles Dodgers
In 1988, an arbitrator ruled that baseball team owners had colluded against the players in an effort to stem free agency. He granted several players, including Gibson, immediate free agency. Gibson signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Gibson joined the Dodgers in 1988 and immediately brought a winning attitude after a publicized blow-up when pitcher Jesse Orosco put shoe black in his cap during a spring training prank. Gibson openly criticized the team, which had finished 4th in the NL West the previous season, for its unprofessionalism.
He became the team’s de facto leader and won a controversial NL MVP award after batting .290 with 25 home runs, 76 RBIs, 106 runs, and 31 stolen bases. While he didn’t lead the league in any major category, the intensity and leadership he brought to an increasingly successful team likely won him the award over players with more impressive statistics. (MVP runner-up Darryl Strawberry of the New York Mets, for example, led the NL with 39 home runs that season.)
In the 1988 National League Championship Series against the New York Mets, Gibson made an improbable catch in left field at a rain-soaked Shea Stadium in Game 3. Racing back, he slipped on the wet grass and, while on his way down with his knees on the ground and the rest of his body suspended, reached out and made a full-extension catch to save a potential Mookie Wilson double; however, the Dodgers lost the game 8–4.
In Game 4, his solo home run in the top of the 12th proved to be the winning hit. In Game 5, he hit a two-out three-run homer in the fifth; the Dodgers ended up winning the game 7–4. Nonetheless, his LCS heroics served as but a prelude to the career-defining moment that awaited him in the subsequent World Series.
Kirk Gibson 1988 World Series
Gibson is perhaps best known for his one and only plate appearance in the 1988 World Series against the Oakland Athletics. Having injured both legs during the NLCS, Gibson was not expected to play at all. In Game 1, however, with the Dodgers trailing by a score of 4–3, Mike Davis on first base, and two out in the ninth inning, manager Tommy Lasorda unexpectedly inserted his hobbled league MVP as a pinch hitter. Gibson, limping back and forth between a pulled left hamstring and a swollen right knee, made his way to the plate to face Oakland’s future Hall of Fame closer Dennis Eckersley.
Gibson quickly got behind in the count 0–2 but laid off a pair of outside pitches that were called balls. He then kept the count at 2–2 by fouling off a pitch. On the 7th pitch of his at-bat, a ball, Davis stole second. With an awkward, almost casual swing, Gibson used pure upper-body strength—and according to Gibson, advanced scouting-based knowledge of what the pitcher would likely throw with that count—to smack a 3–2 backdoor slider over the right-field fence. He hobbled around the bases and pumped his right fist as his jubilant teammates stormed the field. The Dodgers won the game, 5–4, and would go on to win the World Series, four games to one.
Kirk Gibson Later career
In 1991, Gibson signed as a free agent with the Kansas City Royals, and then in 1992, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Neal Heaton. He retired from baseball temporarily, after being released by the Pirates on May 5, 1992. A month later, Gibson got an offer to return to Detroit—not with the Tigers, but to play football again, with the Arena Football League’s Detroit Drive; he declined the offer. The following spring, Sparky Anderson convinced him to return to baseball. He spent the final three years of his career (1993–1995) back with the Detroit Tigers, including a renaissance season in 1994 when he slugged 23 homers.
Kirk Gibson Post-playing career
Broadcasting
He was a Detroit Tigers television analyst on FSN Detroit for five seasons, from 1998–2002. On February 10, 2015, it was announced that Gibson would return as a color commentator for the Detroit Tigers on Fox Sports Detroit, along with former teammate Jack Morris. On January 28, 2019, Gibson was named a special assistant for the Detroit Tigers.
Kirk Gibson Coaching
In 2003, he was named the Tigers’ bench coach by new Tigers manager and former Tigers teammate Alan Trammell. He served in that position until the midway point of the 2005 season when he was moved from bench coach to hitting coach, swapping positions with Bruce Fields. As of the start of the 2007 Major League Baseball season, Gibson became the new Arizona Diamondbacks bench coach.
Gibson had worn #23 as a player in both footballs at Michigan State and baseball throughout his career. However, while coaching for the Tigers, he wore #22 after #23 was retired for Willie Horton. Gibson wore #23 as a manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Kirk Gibson Managerial career
Arizona Diamondbacks
Gibson, Chase Field, 2011 On July 1, 2010, the Arizona Diamondbacks fired A. J. Hinch as manager and promoted Gibson from his position as bench coach to interim manager. Shortly after the season, Gibson was named permanent manager and given a two-year contract. In his first full year as manager, Gibson led the Diamondbacks to their first N.L.
West title since 2007, when most sportswriters expected them to be in the last place for the third time in a row. He was named NL Manager of the Year on November 16, 2011. On September 26, 2014, the Arizona Diamondbacks fired Gibson, ending his four-year tenure with the team. He finished his Diamondbacks career with a 353–375 regular season and 2–3 postseason record.
Kirk Gibson Dennis Eckersley
LOS ANGELES — One of the overlooked elements of the epic eight-pitch showdown between Dennis Eckersley and Kirk Gibson in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series was how close it came to ending in a harmless groundout. Behind in the count, 0-2, a frail, hobbled Gibson hit a slow bouncer down the first-base line that rolled foul just before Eckersley and his first baseman, Mark McGwire, could get a glove on it.
Gibson brought that up on Thursday night, with Eckersley seated next to him onstage. “Oh,” Eckersley bellowed, raising his palms up in front of his face, “that could’ve been fair. I picked it up. It was foul. It could’ve changed my whole life.”
Orel Hershiser, the celebrated Dodgers pitcher who won the 1988 World Series Most Valuable Player Award, reached into his pocket, pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to Eckersley, prompting the hundred or so guests in attendance to erupt in laughter.
Eckersley, Gibson, Hershiser, Tony La Russa and Billy Crystal, the impromptu emcee, were assembled at the Hotel Bel-Air for a roundtable discussion centered on Gibson’s historic walk-off home run against Eckersley. It marked the first time Gibson and Eckersley had gathered to talk about it in a formal setting.
They did it for MLB chief baseball officer and Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre, who hosted the event alongside his wife, Ali, to raise funds for his Safe At Home Foundation, which provides support for children exposed to violence in their household. La Russa called the event “historic.”
“This says a lot about Joe, more than anything else, doesn’t it?” Eckersley said. “Because this isn’t something I’ve ever done. And it’s not like I was champing at the bit to do something like this.” Gibson began the World Series with two badly injured legs and was never expected to play. He told his wife to go home, and the A’s hardly even brought him up in their pregame pitchers’ meeting. But then he took two injections and began to give it a try.
Hershiser, who went on to win Game 2 and the Game 5 clincher, remembered seeing Gibson in the cage, struggling to set baseballs on a tee and trying vigorously to find a batting stance that would allow him to swing without falling. As the ninth inning was winding down, Hershiser sat next to his catcher, Mike Scioscia, and informed him that Dave Anderson was not going to be the one to pinch-hit.
“What do you mean, he’s not going to hit?” Scioscia said. “Gibby’s going to hit,” Hershiser said, to which Scioscia responded: “Gibby can’t walk.” Down a run, with a sold-out Dodger Stadium ready to erupt, Gibson fouled off three consecutive fastballs from Eckersley, took a ball, fouled off another fastball, then took back-to-back fastballs off the outside corner, running the count full and allowing Mike Davis to steal second base.
Gibson, at that point simply hoping for a blooper over the shortstop’s head, told the story of what happened next. Gibson waited until Eckersley got into the stretch, then called for time and stepped out of the batter’s box. As he walked away, Gibson remembered what legendary scout Mel Didier told Dodgers left-handed hitters prior to the game, and he repeated it to himself, in Didier’s Southern drawl.
Patna, sure as I’m standing here breathin’, Eckersley’s gonna throw you that 3-2, backdoor slider. “That’s why I stepped out,” Gibson said on Thursday. “I said it, I stood in, he threw it, I took an ugly swing. And it went out.”
Eckersley stood in the cramped visiting clubhouse that night and answered every question from the passel of media members that flowed in. La Russa believes it spoke to Eckersley’s character. Eckersley identified that moment as the one that still resonates most with him because the home run and the immediate aftershock remain such a blur.
Eckersley won the World Series the following year, when his 1989 A’s beat the Giants team he grew up rooting for, and eventually got inducted into the Hall of Fame, as did La Russa. That helped them heal, as did one other thing.
“The fact it was Gibby who hit it,” La Russa said, “and not some yahoo that we all disrespected — it makes it easier to accept.” This gathering was supposed to happen last year, but that was around the time Gibson was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. Now 58, Gibson serves as a part-time analyst for FOX Sports Detroit and runs his own foundation. Gibson had Don Drysdale’s call of his home run on a cassette tape and used to pop it in during times when he felt down.
Gibson gives motivational speeches now and preaches the importance of positive thinking. “I enjoyed my moment, no doubt about it,” Gibson said. “I don’t know why it was me. I don’t know why it was me against Dennis. I encourage others — do something, make it special because baseball’s a tough game. Life is tough.”
Thursday’s event raised nearly $300,000 for the Safe At Home Foundation, which has impacted more than 50,000 children in the Los Angeles and New York areas by sprouting several safe rooms at various schools, called Margaret’s Place.
The roundtable discussion was preceded by a video montage of Gibson’s home run — first with Vin Scully’s call, then with Jack Buck’s, and then with images of “The Natural” spliced in. Eckersley sat up front, whispering to La Russa and maintaining a smile, which somehow wasn’t difficult.
“I truly feel honored — and that sounds crazy — to be a part of all this,” Eckersley said. “I really do. I and Kirk have gotten to know each other much more over the years. I’ve always had this respect for Kirk, the kind of player that he was. And for something like that to happen to me, at that moment in baseball, was incredible. What a moment. It really was. I can step away from that and appreciate it because I love the game.”
Kirk Gibson Hall Of Fame
It is certainly accurate that Kirk Gibson is best remembered for his dramatic World Series walk-off Home Run for the Los Angeles Dodgers (a year he was named MVP) but the real meat of his career was in Motown playing for the Tigers. Gibson was already a World Series Champion in Detroit (1984) and won the MVP of the ALCS that year. As a Tiger, Gibson would hit 195 Home Runs, steal 194 bases with a .480 Slugging Percentage.
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