Deion Sanders by Glen Macnow

Author:Glen Macnow [Macnow, Glen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-62285-048-8
Publisher: Enslow Publishers, Inc.
Published: 2014-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Image Credit: AP Images/Doug Mills

Deion Sanders talks with Barry Bonds of the Pittsburgh Pirates before Game 4 of the 1992 NLCS. Later that day, he flew to Miami to play football against the Dolphins.

Not everyone thought this was a great idea. Some fans questioned his loyalty to the Braves, who needed the win to get into the World Series. Braves general manager John Schuerholz worried that Sanders would get injured playing football. But Sanders’s teammates understood. “Deion has to do what he has to do,” said Avery.

As Sanders explained it, he was getting the chance to live every little boy’s fantasy. “This is the kind of thing kids dream about,” he said. “In the morning, they’re Michael Jordan on the basketball court. In the afternoon, they’re Deion Sanders on the football field. I’m a kid still.”

So, at 1:15 A.M., after that Saturday night baseball game, Sanders boarded a jet for Florida. He slept as the jet flew south. He landed at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport with the sun still below the horizon and headed to the Falcons hotel for a few more hours of sleep. Then, at 11:00 a.m., he joined his Falcons teammates at Joe Robbie Stadium for a game against the Miami Dolphins.

Sanders entered the game at 1:01 p.m. He returned two kickoffs for 42 yards and one punt for another 7 yards. He played a steady game at cornerback. He even entered the game on offense, catching a 9-yard pass. The Falcons led, 17–7, in the third quarter, but eventually lost to the Dolphins, 21–17.

After the game, trainers hooked Sanders up to a saline drip to replace his lost body fluids. He spent a few minutes with teammates. Then he limped off to catch a flight. He ate on the plane, took a nap as it flew over the Carolinas and landed in Pittsburgh an hour before Game 5 of the NLCS. A private helicopter whisked him to the stadium. He arrived just a few minutes before game time. He changed into his baseball uniform as the national anthem played.

After all the buildup, Braves manager Bobby Cox did not use Sanders that night. Some believed Cox viewed Sanders’s day as just a publicity stunt. But the Braves won the pennant, and Cox put Sanders on the World Series roster against the Toronto Blue Jays.

And what a World Series he had. Sanders shared time with Ron Gant in the outfield. He played in four of the six games and batted .533, with 8 hits in 15 at-bats. He stole 5 bases and scored 4 runs. His best moment came in Game 5. The Braves were down three games to one and facing elimination. In the fifth inning, Sanders came to bat against Blue Jays ace Jack Morris. The score was tied, 2–2, and Otis Nixon was on second base. Morris had used curveballs to get Sanders out twice earlier in the game. This time, however, he threw a fastball. Sanders smashed it into center field to score Nixon with the go-ahead run.

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