1987 American League Championship Series

Infobox LCS
alcs = yes


year = 1987
champion = Minnesota Twins (4)
champion_manager = Tom Kelly
champion_games = 85-77, .525, GA: 2
runnerup = Detroit Tigers (1)
runnerup_manager = Sparky Anderson
runnerup_games = 98-64, .605, GA: 2
date = October 7–October 12
MVP = Gary Gaetti (Minnesota)
television = NBC
announcers = Bob Costas and Tony Kubek
radio_network = CBS Radio
umpires = Joe Brinkman, Durwood Merrill, Drew Coble, Al Clark, Mike Reilly, Jim McKeanThe by|1987 American League Championship Series pitted the Minnesota Twins, the AL West champions, against the Detroit Tigers, the AL East champions. Minnesota won the Series 4 games to 1, en route to winning the 1987 World Series 4 games to 3 over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Background

The Detroit Tigers finished the 1987 regular season with the best record in all of baseball, at 98-64 (.605). They won the American League East by two games in thrilling fashion over the Toronto Blue Jays, overcoming a 3½-game deficit and clinching the division on the last day of the season with a 1-0 win over the Jays. The Twins, by contrast, finished with the worst record of any of the four teams that made the playoffs, at 85-77 (.525). Although they held off the Kansas City Royals by two games to take the division, they were clearly seen as the underdogs against the power of the Tigers in the 1987 ALCS. After their elimination in the 1987 ALCS, the Detroit Tigers would not see the playoffs again for 19 years, clinching their next playoff berth on September 24, 2006.

ummary

Detroit Tigers vs. Minnesota Twins

Minnesota wins the series, 4-1

Game summaries

Game 1

Wednesday, October 7, 1987 at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, MinnesotaLinescore
Road=Detroit|RoadAbr=DET
R1=0|R2=0|R3=1|R4=0|R5=0|R6=1|R7=1|R8=2|R9=0|RR=5|RH=10|RE=0
Home=Minnesota|HomeAbr=MIN
H1=0|H2=1|H3=0|H4=0|H5=3|H6=0|H7=0|H8=4|H9=X|HR=8|HH=10|HE=0
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Jeff Reardon (1-0)|LP=Doyle Alexander (0-1)|SV=
RoadHR=Kirk Gibson (1), Mike Heath (1)|HomeHR=Gary Gaetti 2 (2)|

The 1987 AL playoffs opened at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, with the Tigers throwing Doyle Alexander against the Twins' Frank Viola. In the bottom of the second, the Twins opened the scoring when third baseman Gary Gaetti homered off Alexander to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead. However, Detroit answered back the very next half-inning, as catcher Mike Heath socked a home run to center field to tie the game. The game remained tied until the bottom of the fifth, when the Twins erupted for three runs. Gaetti led off the inning with his second round-tripper of the game, and Randy Bush followed by stroking a triple to right field and coming home on an double by Tom Brunansky. Steve Lombardozzi sacrificed Brunansky to third, and he scored on a subsequent base hit by Dan Gladden to make it 4-1.

Beginning in the top half of the sixth, however, Detroit staged a comeback. Kirk Gibson smacked a solo home run that inning, and then Heath ripped an RBI single in the seventh that scored Larry Herndon to cut Minnesota's lead down to one. In the top of the eighth, the Tigers took a one-run lead with a pair of sacrifice flies off Twins reliever Jeff Reardon that scored Gibson and Alan Trammell.

In the bottom of the eighth, however, Minnesota took the lead for good. A double by Kirby Puckett brought Gladden home to tie the game, and Don Baylor and Brunansky drove in the go-ahead runs off Willie Hernández with a single and double, respectively. A single by Johnny Grubb and a walk to Lou Whitaker was all the Tigers could muster against Reardon in the ninth, as Gibson struck out to give the Twins an 8-5 victory and a 1-0 lead in the series.

Game 2

Thursday, October 8, 1987 at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, MinnesotaLinescore
Road=Detroit|RoadAbr=DET
R1=0|R2=2|R3=0|R4=0|R5=0|R6=0|R7=0|R8=1|R9=0|RR=3|RH=7|RE=1
Home=Minnesota|HomeAbr=MIN
H1=0|H2=3|H3=0|H4=2|H5=1|H6=0|H7=0|H8=0|H9=X|HR=6|HH=6|HE=0
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Bert Blyleven (1-0)|LP=Jack Morris (0-1)|SV=Juan Berenguer (1)
RoadHR=Lou Whitaker (1), Chet Lemon (1)|HomeHR=Kent Hrbek (1)|

Game 3

Saturday, October 10, 1987 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, MichiganLinescore
Road=Minnesota|RoadAbr=MIN
R1=0|R2=0|R3=0|R4=2|R5=0|R6=2|R7=2|R8=0|R9=0|RR=6|RH=8|RE=1
Home=Detroit|HomeAbr=DET
H1=0|H2=0|H3=5|H4=0|H5=0|H6=0|H7=0|H8=2|H9=X|HR=7|HH=7|HE=0
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Mike Henneman (1-0)|LP=Jeff Reardon (1-1)|SV=
RoadHR=Greg Gagne (1), Tom Brunansky (1)|HomeHR=Pat Sheridan (1)|

Game 4

Sunday, October 11, 1987 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, MichiganLinescore
Road=Minnesota|RoadAbr=MIN
R1=0|R2=0|R3=1|R4=1|R5=1|R6=1|R7=0|R8=1|R9=0|RR=5|RH=7|RE=1
Home=Detroit|HomeAbr=DET
H1=1|H2=0|H3=0|H4=0|H5=1|H6=1|H7=0|H8=0|H9=0|HR=3|HH=7|HE=3
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Frank Viola (1-0)|LP=Frank Tanana (0-1)|SV=Jeff Reardon (1)
RoadHR=Kirby Puckett (1), Greg Gagne (2)|HomeHR=|

Game 5

Monday, October 12, 1987 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, MichiganLinescore
Road=Minnesota|RoadAbr=MIN
R1=0|R2=4|R3=0|R4=0|R5=0|R6=0|R7=1|R8=1|R9=3|RR=9|RH=15|RE=1
Home=Detroit|HomeAbr=DET
H1=0|H2=0|H3=0|H4=3|H5=0|H6=0|H7=0|H8=1|H9=1|HR=5|HH=9|HE=1
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Bert Blyleven (2-0)|LP=Doyle Alexander (0-2)|SV=Jeff Reardon (2)
RoadHR=Tom Brunansky (2)|HomeHR=Matt Nokes (1), Chet Lemon (2)|

Composite Box

1987 ALCS (4-1): Minnesota Twins over Detroit TigersLinescore
Road=Minnesota Twins
R1=0|R2=8|R3=1|R4=5|R5=5|R6=3|R7=3|R8=6|R9=3|RR=34|RH=46|RE=3
Home=Detroit Tigers
H1=1|H2=2|H3=6|H4=3|H5=1|H6=2|H7=1|H8=6|H9=1|HR=23|HH=40|HE=5Total Attendance: 257,631 Average Attendance: 51,526|

Quotes of the Series

*cquote|"Reardon has it...the Minnesota Twins are in the WORLD SERIES!!!" - NBC's Bob Costas calling the final out in Game 5

Notes

External links

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1987_ALCS.shtml Baseball-Reference.com] - 1987 ALCS