How did the 1989 earthquake affect the World Series?

The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake struck on October 17 just before Game 3 of the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics. The tremor caused damage to Candlestick Park, knocked out power, and forced the postponement of the games for ten days. Lighter than normal rush-hour traffic because people were tuning in or heading to the game likely prevented even higher casualties across the region.

What we know

• The Loma Prieta earthquake struck on October 17, 1989, at approximately 5:04 p.m. PDT, just before the start of Game 3 of the World Series. [2, 4]
• Candlestick Park suffered upper deck damage with falling concrete pieces and lost power, leading to the postponement of the game. [4]
• The championship series was suspended and eventually resumed on October 27, concluding the following day with an Oakland Athletics sweep. [4]
• Lighter than normal rush-hour traffic due to the impending baseball game almost certainly prevented a larger loss of life on Bay Area freeways. [2]

Where to go next

• what caused itWhy did the Nimitz Freeway collapse during the earthquake?
• a case in pointHow did the earthquake impact the Marina District in San Francisco?
• whenWhat was the timeline of the 1989 World Series rescheduling?
• how it workedHow did the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge sustain damage?
• the bigger pictureWhat other major earthquakes have affected Major League Baseball?
• an unexpected connectionHow did a baseball commissioner's sudden death intertwine with the series?Fay Vincent presided over his first World Series dedicated to his predecessor Bart Giamatti just as the historic earthquake struck the Bay Area.

Sources

• [1]1989 Loma Prieta earthquake (Wikidata Q1053476) · CC0 1.0
• [2]1989 Loma Prieta earthquake · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in popular culture · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]1989 World Series · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Cypress Street Viaduct · CC BY-SA 4.0