Yesterday
Here are all the October 9 games that mattered in San Francisco Giants history.
1962 World Series 2-2, Game 5 is tomorrow.
1987 NLCS - we split the first 2 in St Louis, we go home for Game 3, the first playoff game at the Stick since '71 - and we lose. It didn't look that way early, we got 3 in the third off Joe Magrane (Davis and Brenly both doubled, Clark had a run scoring single) and then that man struck again, Jeffrey Leonard homered in the third and with a 4-0 lead we had a 90% chance to win the game. We missed a real chance to add to it in the 5th, 1 out, bases loaded, Bob Forsch got both Will and Chili to fly out and then in the 6th Jim Lindeman halved our lead with a 2 run homer off Atlee Hammaker. They beat us in the next inning, 5 singles, including an outing by Don Robinson where he didn't record an out, gave them 4 runs and a 6-4 lead. We showed some life in the bottom of the 9th, Harry Spilman homered with 2 out, but 6-5 was the final and we now trailed 2 games to 1. Game 4 is tomorrow.
1989 NLCS Game 5 home vs. Cubs, we're up 3 games to 1, this is a Monday afternoon at the Stick, 62,000 paid as we stood a game away from our first pennant in 27 years. The Cubs threatened in the first, Andre Dawson had runners on the corners, but Rick Reuschel struck him out - they got to Reuschel in the third, Ryne Sandberg doubling home the game's first run. Reuschel was in trouble again in the 4th, 1st and 3rd with just one out - but he got Shawon Dunston 4-6-3 to end the inning. We had our first threat in the 5th, the tying run on 3rd with 1 out, but Mike Bielecki got Sheridan and Uribe to end the inning. The Cubs had them on the corners again with one out in the 6th - but again Reuschel got out of it, and again it was Andre Dawson who flied out, followed by a Luis Salazar groundout. We tie the game in the 7th - Will Clark triples on Bielecki's first pitch to lead off the inning, Kevin Mitchell drives him home with a sac fly. Did Rick Reuschel put runners on the corners again in the 8th inning? Was Andre Dawson at the plate again? Both yes and again he got him to retire the side. Bielecki got the first 2 in the bottom, but then walked the bases loaded and was removed for Mitch Williams - who gave up a two strike base hit to Will Clark that scored two runs and gave us a 3-1 lead headed to the 9th. 3 outs from the pennant. Steve Bedrosian came on, got the first two, but then gave up three consecutive singles, the third by Jerome Walton plated a run and moved the tying run into scoring position with Sandberg coming to the plate.
But Bedrosian got him to ground out. The Giants win the pennant.
2002 NLCS Game 1 at St Louis 15 years after the '87 series it's Giants/Cards again for the National League pennant. We open on the road and get it going on Matt Morris immediately, Santiago drives in a run in the first and and we sandwich 5 singles around a Bonds triple in the second to take a five run lead (note, Morris wasn't pulled, I don't think we'll ever go back to that model of bullpen management again, and this was 2002, not 1960) We added a few homers (first two off of Morris) Lofton in the third, Bell in the 5th, Santiago in the 6th) and that allowed us to withstand the 3 homers we gave up to win the opener 9-6. Game two is tomorrow.
2010 NLDS 1-1, Game 3 is tomorrow
2012 NLDS Game 3, at Cincinnati the 2012 team is dead and buried, we lost the first two games of the series at home, we would need to win 3 straight in Cincinnati to advance to the NLCS and we can't get a hit in this one. Homer Bailey goes 7, gives up 1 hit, 1 walk and strikes out 10. Meanwhile, Ryan Vogelsong gives up 4 baserunners in the first, the last a Jay Bruce run scoring single. Despite still looking for our first hit, we tied the game in the third on a hit batsman/walk/bunt/sac fly. Vogelsong settled down and held it even until turning the game to Jeremy Affeldt in the 6th. It remained 1-1 going to the 10th, Reds pitchers had retired 13 straight when Buster Posey led off the inning with a base hit against Jonathan Broxton. Hunter Pence followed with a single but then Broxton struck out Brandon Belt and Xavier Nady. A passed ball moved the runners into scoring position - and then with two strikes, Joaquin Arias hit a ground ball to Scott Rolen, who won 9 career gold gloves but was now 37 years old in the last series he'd ever play in the major leagues - and he couldn't field it cleanly allowing the go ahead run to score. Sergio Romo retires them in order and we live to see another day.
2014 NLCS starts 10-11
2016 NLDS down 0-2, game 3 is tomorrow
See you tomorrow. Go Giants!
