Morandini Recalls 1988 Olympics in Seoul
Twenty-four years ago, before his senior season at Indiana University, he was a member of the gold-medal winning Olympic Baseball Team in Seoul, South Korea.
"It was the greatest experience of my life," he said. "It was a long summer. It was the first time many of us were overseas or away from home for that long a time and to finish it with a gold medal was great."
60 players began the process in Millington, Tenn. months before the Olympics began in September. The team went on tour and whittled the roster down to 25, and ultimately, in the days right before the Olympics, the 20-man roster was set.
"The special moment was seeing the final roster and seeing your name on that," said Morandini. The roster was posted on a wall in their locker room and it was at that moment that it became official - he was an Olympian.
The process began over a year earlier when Morandini and many of his Olympic teammates played on an "Intercontinental Cup" team that went to Cuba for two weeks in 1987 and won a Silver medal.
"I had a real good two weeks," said Morandini. "It was the same manager that was going to manage the Olympic team [Stanford coach Mark Marquess], and that's when I thought I had a real good shot [to make the Olympic team]."
In the summer leading up to the Olympics, they played over 30 games against some summer league teams and national teams around the United States, Japan and in Italy before heading to Seoul.
Sprinter Evelyn Ashford, who won five medals in her Olympic career, carried the flag at the Opening Ceremonies for the United States. The 22-year old Morandini got his picture taken with basketball superstar David Robinson and tennis icon Chris Evert.
The US team beat South Korea in their first game 5-3, but lost to Canada in their second game 8-7, setting up a must-win game against Australia which they won easily, 12-2, to advance to the semifinals. A win over Puerto Rico in a semi-final set up a Gold Medal game against Japan, who with Cuba boycotting the games, was the other front-runner along with the United States.
Tino Martinez hit two home runs and Jim Abbott threw a complete game to clinch the Gold Medal for the Americans.
"When we won it we ran around the stadium holding up the Olympic flag and went up on the stage for the National Anthem," Morandini recalled. "We were all up there in a line singing the National Anthem. My mom and brother came over and got to see it. That was special."
When asked about how the atmosphere differed from a World Series game, like the one he played in five years later, Morandini wasn't sure that it did.
"The stadium was jam-packed. It was very competitive when you go internationally," he recalled. "The Taiwan team doesn't like us. Japan doesn't like us."
The only difference? Cheerleaders.
"They had cheerleaders in the stands during baseball games," he said. "It was a bit different. The cheerleaders were representing the Olympics and they were scattered throughout the stadium. Baseball wise it was a bit different than here but once you get on the field the game is played the same."
Three-quarters of the team, including Morandini, would go on to reach the big leagues, including Robin Ventura, Martinez, Abbott, Ed Sprague, Charles Nagy, Andy Benes, Ben McDonald, and Tom Goodwin.
Morandini's Olympic jersey is back in Bloomington at Indiana University as part of an Indiana Olympian display. His medal is in a safe-deposit box, but it comes out occasionally and after the Olympics, went on tour.
"When we first won it, I did some appearances at schools talking about the Olympics and I brought it out. It was really a thrill for the kids to see it. I also got a parade at home in Leechburg, just north of Pittsburgh, they had a big parade. That was quite thrilling."
To Morandini, however, the only thing missing when he turns the Olympics on over these two weeks is baseball, which was removed after the 2008 Beijeing Olympics in which the US took home the bronze medal.
"For baseball not to be a spot in the Olympics is appalling to me," he said. "I don't know how you can't have enough counties. Japan. Taiwan. Korea. Italy. Canada. Cuba, Australia. The Latin-American countries. All these teams play baseball.
"I don't know if the fact that some teams had big league players starting to play or they couldn't decide who was eligible but they need to get baseball back in," he said.
Whether it comes back or not remains to be seen, but because of the summer of 1988, the Olympics will always hold a special place in Mickey Morandini's heart.
- BlueClaws -