An average athlete might not return to the scene of one of his worst career moments, but Dennis Eckersley has never been average.
The Hall of Fame pitcher – who played for the Red Sox in two stints over his 24-year career, and currently works as a commentator on NESN – was on the wrong end of an iconic baseball moment: Kirk Gibson’s game-winning, pinch-hit home run in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.
In the 9th inning, with Eckersley on the mound to close out the game for the Athletics, a hobbled Gibson came to the plate and smashed a home run to give the Dodgers a 5-4 win.