Dave Bergman's Biggest Home Run came......when the Tigers really needed it Dave Bergman was a slick fielding lefty who played first base -- and was one of the most popular players during the championship runs of the 1980s. His walrus mustache was his trademark, but clutch hitting was his real game... Bergie never batted over .300, only hit 54 homers in his 17 year career with the Yankees, Astros, Giants and the Tigers, but his BIG MOMENT... one that won't ever be forgotten came on June 4, 1984: Remember the Tigers got off to that fantastic 35-5 start? ... fans thought that they were going to run away with the pennant, but that doggone Toronto Blue Jays team just wouldn't go away. After 35-5, we went 5-6 and had lost two in a row when the Jays came to the Corner trailing by only 4 games. We were losing late in the game when we finally tied it 3-3 on a Howard Johnson homer... Bottom of the 10th, still tied, 2 out and bases loaded. Bergie had one of the greatest at bats in Tiger history.... fouled off 3,4,5... then 6 and finally 7 pitches before golfing a 3-2 Roy Howell fastball into the right field upper deck. A huge moment in a great season! On March 24, 1984, a great deal sent Glenn Wilson and Johnny Wockenfuss to the Giants for Bergie and Willie Hernandez... pretty much clinched the pennant that day! "Everyone thought the deal was only for Hernandez, but we wouldn't have made it if Dave Bergman wasn't included," Sparky Anderson later said.
Return from Bergman to Detroit Tigers Players
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