1990 World Series - Matchups - Game 3

Game 3

Friday, October 19, 1990 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California

Game 3 turned out to be the Chris Sabo show as the Reds shockingly went up 3–0 on the defending champs. Tom Browning started for the Reds while Mike Moore, who got two wins in the 1989 World Series, got the assignment for Oakland. In the second inning, Sabo put the Reds up 1–0 with a solo homer. The lead was short lived as DH Harold Baines hit a soaring two-run homer to give the A's a 2–1 lead in the bottom of the second.

In the third, the Reds put the game completely out of reach with a seven-run inning. It all began with Billy Hatcher's eighth hit in nine at-bats (he had rapped into a double-play in the first inning ending his streak of seven straight hits). Paul O'Neill then singled off the glove of first baseman Mark McGwire to put runners on first and second. Eric Davis drilled a sharp single to center scoring Hatcher and advancing O'Neill to third. Following an RBI groundout by Hal Morris, the Reds went up 5–2 when Sabo hit his second homer of the game into the left field stands. Todd Benzinger then singled and Joe Oliver hit an RBI double. Mariano Duncan drove Oliver home with a single, stole second, and scored himself when Barry Larkin hit a gapper. The Oakland Coliseum was in a state of shock with the A's now down 8–2. Rickey Henderson's third inning solo blast made it 8–3, but Tom Browning pitched effectively for six innings to earn the victory. Dibble and Meyers provided three scoreless innings in relief to put the Reds one win away from the title.