Earthquake is still fresh in the referee’s memory – Blog – Uticode

The 1989 World Championships are still very much alive in the Clarks’ memory. A phone call from NFL supervisor Umpires made the matter official for Clark. He was going to be part of the referee’s staff at the 1989 World Series. That was near the end of the regular season. I was in Kansas City. […]

The 1989 World Championships are still very much alive in the Clarks’ memory.

A phone call from NFL supervisor Umpires made the matter official for Clark. He was going to be part of the referee’s crew at the 1989 World Championships.

That was near the end of the regular season. I was in Kansas City. That’s when I found out I was going to be working on my second series, “so said Clark, who has ruled the major league matches for 26 seasons.” That (1989 World Championship) was the second. I worked in the series in 1983 between Phillies and Orioles. “

Midway through his career, which began in 1976 when the US and National Leagues had exclusive referee rosters, Clark saw his assignment record steadily grow with importance, working in the All-Star Game and the Separator Series. But, in a career that has seen Clark doing more than 3,300 MLB games, nothing compares to the 86th World Series between Oakland A and San Francisco Giants – still.

I loved life. “I’m in my mid-forties, and I’m going to go to the World Series for a second time,” Clark said during a recent phone conversation from his home in Williamsburg, Virginia.

At the time of the post-season match in Bay Area, baseball was still mourning the loss of its commissioner. A month ago, on September 1, after only five months at work, Bart Giamatti suddenly died of a heart attack. On September 13, Faye Vincent was elected eighth Baseball Commissioner unanimously by MLB owners.

With Team A having the first two matches of the series at home, and like many fans from opposite sides of San Francisco Bay attending the games, the two teams traveled to the San Francisco Bay-Oakland Bridge. The four-mile journey across the bridge was routine and convenient for all parties involved in the chain.

That all changed on October 17, 5:04 PST, before Game 3 began in Candlestick Park.

What would later be called the Loma Prieta earthquake. A magnitude 6.9 earthquake shook the Greater San Francisco area. Baseball and Northern California residents were going through rough times in the near future.

“No, not a hint,” Clark explains of any potential gossip about a possible earthquake during the Fall Classic. That was the last thing on my mind. I’ve had tremors before, but I’ll never forget that day. ”

Clarke, along with the five umpires assigned to work on the series, were preparing to start the third game. The veteran was accustomed to working in pressure games, in front of crowded stadiums. He was part of the crew chosen for the 1978 playoff in Boston, where the New York Yankees and the Red Sox were, at the end of the regular season. The winner determines the Eastern American League title.

I was sitting in the referees’ room when the earthquake struck. At first, I thought people on the field were clapping, you know, trying to get their teams to start the match, “Clark remembers that autumn day.” I got to the TV, and I realized how bad things were. The Gulf Bridge collapsed. “

What Clark, the teams, fans and ABC TV who had broadcast rights to the series did not know at the time, baseball was going to experience the longest delay ever among the series’ games – 10 days.

Clark gives much of the credit to the Rising Commissioner for having come out with all the hurdles like the tragedy that an earthquake may build upon. Believing 39 years later, Vincent was sincere in never losing his sight in the search for the best interest in baseball.

(Vincent) was under incredible pressure to move the chain to a neutral location. Vincent was not running away from trouble. He wanted to be part of the solution. Fans have been waiting forever for the Bay Area series. Keeping the chain there, the commissioner was absolutely right. “

With the loss of strength in the area, and massive destruction on highways and in local neighborhoods, such as A and Giants, the ruling crew was in limbo. For Clark, he stayed, at first, in his Auckland hotel room – waiting. Fortunately for Clark, he had a friend who was the general manager of the hotel, who “took care of him”.

At first, I stayed in the ballpark, in the judges room. There were sofas to stay. I figured it was the safest place. Then, at around 1:00 AM, I got word that the San Mateo Bridge had been opened. I left the ballpark, and by 2:30 am I was in Auckland. “

When the earthquake struck, Clark described what he saw as stone walls “waving” rather than vibrating. Wearing a Jones shirt and long undershirt, and having just slipped on the shower shoes, nervous, Clark sprinted out into the field; Not very attractive moment captured by Sport Illustrated photographers and running for the magazine.

While staring at the candlestick, Clark remembers seeing the top surface pulse forward, then explode backward. He was afraid that “everything” would collapse. The fate of the series was in the hands of the commissioner.

“Fei was very busy that night,” Clark tells of October 17, 1989. “The MLS Referees Supervisor and League President (Dr. Bobby Brown) ordered us to stay in the area for two days, then we were released for eight.”

During his unexpected work break, Clark flew to his home in Newtown, Pennsylvania, West Trenton, New Jersey. This was a time when cell phones were not so popular. Before heading east, while in Oakland, Clark desperately wanted to have a word for his wife – to let her know he was fine. Before landing in Philadelphia, Clark bartered a deal with ESPN.

ESPN (which was in its 10th year in operation) was still broadcasting from Auckland; Thanks to its own generator. The thriving cable sport network also had satellite phones. Agreeing to participate in a 20-minute interview about the state of the world championships, Clark was handed a satellite phone to call home. He had no idea at the time how long the series would have been delayed. Reaching out to his wife lowered his anxiety level.

“I knew baseball was going to take a back seat for this (earthquake), and rightfully so. I remember seeing Fei on TV addressing the media. Seems like he was in a room full of candles.”

With baseball paused, and safely back east, Clark spent the next eight days busy playing golf. Media calls from New York and Philadelphia were continuing. According to Clark, he and his fellow referee staff were talking every day. When given word to return to the West Coast, Clark admitted that he did not know what to expect upon arrival.

Clark, now based in San Francisco, believes the enthusiasm for the World Championship was not the same as it had been before Game 3.

“We have all applauded the return of baseball,” says Clark, who is set as second base for Game 3, “Faye is the one who brought back the sense of normality.”

(The incredible story of Al Clark’s life is wonderfully recounted in a book written by him and co-author Dan Schlossberg: Called Out But Safe: A Baseball Umpire’s Journey)

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