Angels fans, the guys at the MLB Network were kind enough to send me behind the scenes footage of what is to air this Sunday (Dec 4th) titled "The Postseason to Remember - 1986 LCS". The feature will air at 2:00 PM PT on the MLB Network.
This can't miss segment will be hosted by MLB Network’s Bob Costas & Tom Verducci who will analyze both the 86 ALCS & NLCS, including new in-studio interviews with Gary Pettis, Bruce Hurst, Calvin Shiraldi, Dwight Gooden and Billy Hatcher.
I tell fans both new and old that you truly cannot appreciate the Angels 2002 World Series Championship and victory over the Boston Red Sox in front of their home crowd in 2009's ALDS unless you've been through the painful loss of the 1986 LCS. If you were not an Angels fan in 1986, or you just started following the Halos after the 2002 Championship or Arte era, watch this segment to truly understand what us old guys have been saying and feeling for years. If series losses in '79, '82 and '86 provided scars, 2002 and especially 2009, was the ointment to heals those scars.
Here's some Quoutable Highlights from the ALCS Segment...
Bruce Hurst on heading into Game Five: "My mindset was I couldn’t give up any. I know that one [hit] could be too much."
Gary Pettis on Dave Henderson’s 9th inning home run in Game Five: "That right there was definitely a low in Angels’ history. I remember as soon as he hit the ball, [I was] in centerfield, I just put my head down and went, “Oh, no.”
Calvin Schiraldi on Dave Henderson’s 9th inning home run in Game Five: "I was in the bullpen screaming at the fans because we were so mad with the horses and the cops coming through the bullpen that all the fans were screaming at us. That ball goes over the fence and everybody in that entire bullpen is up on the railing screaming at the fans."
Gary Pettis on Game Five losing pitcher Donnie Moore: "In Anaheim the next year, when we came back, when he stepped on the field before the game walking to the bullpen, there were a lot of boos. It really bothered me to see that the fans would react towards him that way because he had done a lot of good things for us."
Here's a video highlight of what you'll see on Sunday's episode as Mike Witt sits down with the MLB Network and remembers the 1986 postseason.