Baseball Won’t Be What It Used to Be : Or at least what it was on Sunday, when the game was at its melodramatic best

On Sunday, the final day of the tight National League West divisional race, the baseball world was treated to the grand old game as it used to be. But savor that moment: Next year, a realignment of divisions will eliminate the special kind of excitement that permeated Dodger Stadium, where the hometown team spoiled it for their old rivals, the San Francisco Giants, who as a result finished behind the Atlanta Braves.

If next year’s rules had been in place this year, the Giants--with their 103 victories--already would have been assured a playoff spot as a wild card team, a ticket to the professional sporting world’s afterlife not available under baseball’s current system. For many, that may be reason enough to welcome the changes. Only a handful of teams ever have won more than 100 games, as the talented Giants did, yet been denied a chance at postseason play.

But then we would not have had quite what we had on Sunday. This day game in early October brought to mind great feats and great heroes of seasons gone by. There was natural grass, organ music and an enthusiastic and well-mannered big crowd. With all of Southern California’s well-publicized woes in recent years, credit the area’s fans and the Dodgers’ management for preserving one of the best sports environments to be found anywhere in the nation, all the while remaining respectful of the game’s traditions.

Even the irritating problem some cable TV subscribers had--being unable to view the game because of technical problems--could be dealt with by turning to baseball’s old companion, radio. There the great Dodger broadcaster Vin Scully rose to the specialness of the day, recalling all the famous October 3rd feats in baseball history--the best known being Bobby Thomson’s home run that defeated Ralph Branca and the Dodgers in 1951. Baseball changes, and one trusts it will prove resilient enough to meet the revisions planned for 1994. But how wonderful that it still produces magic moments like all those we saw, or just heard, at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 3, 1993.