19, Fans tuning in to the 1989 World Series were delivered a shock
The 1989 World Series, called the Bay Area Series by some, featured the Oakland Athletics and the San Francisco Giants. Oakland won the first two games at their home field. Game’s three through five (if needed) were scheduled to be played beginning on October 17 at San Francisco’ Candlestick Park. Fans tuning in for the pregame broadcast on ABC were watching highlights of earlier games when announcer Al Michaels interrupted with the words, “I’ll tell you what, we’re having an earth-“before the screen went blank. ABC returned to the air from Candlestick Park to briefly describe what had happened before signing off for other programming. No other earthquake in American history had been seen on live television. Later that evening ABC returned to the air from San Francisco, using Al Michaels as their local reporter, and Goodyear blimp images to display the extent of the damage.
Among the images shown was the collapsed Bay Bridge, which many Athletics players usually used to get home. That day they were forced to find alternative routes to check on their homes and families. Loss of power to the stadium, as well as structural safety concerns, led to the game’s postponement, and the series did not resume for ten days. When it did Oakland swept the remaining two games. Though the games were well-attended by fans, in the aftermath of the earthquake comparatively few returned to the series following the ten-day delay. The final game, played on October 28, was at the time the latest date on which a World Series game had ever been played.