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Yesterday
Here are the top 5 July 25 moments in San Francisco Giants history.
Walk off 1978 home vs. Cardinals, we're 21 over .500 with a 2 game lead in the west (we're gonna win! we're going to the playoffs!) almost 40,000 paid on a Tuesday night at the Stick, dueling complete games by Vida Blue and Bob Forsch, we're down 2-1 in the bottom of the 9th, Mike Ivie pinch hits a 2 run homer to win the game. It's Ivie's first Giants season, he splits time at first with McCovey, it's his second best ever year with the bat (his best is coming in '79) this is Ivie's 32nd career home run and the only walk off home run he'll ever hit.
1988 home vs. Dodgers, we're 7 games back, starting a 4 game set against the first place Dodgers, Kelly Downs throws a complete game 5 hitter and gets the win when, with the score 1-1 in the 7th, Kevin Mitchell hits a 2 run homer off Fernando Valenzuela for the final runs scored in the game. This is Mitch's last year at third base, he moves to the outfield, really during the '88 season, which is where he spends the rest of his NL career. This is Mitchell's 47th career homer, three of those had been off of Fernando - do you remember where Valenzuela finished his career? St Louis. He pitched in five games for the Cardinals in '97.
1992 at Philadelphia, this is game 96 of what looked for all the world to be the last ever season of San Francisco Giants baseball, we're a dozen games out, it's 2-2 in the 10th, Mike Felder drives home Kevin Bass with a double off of Mitch Williams - we win this one 6-2. Felder spent 2 seasons as our 4th OF, this was his second and his more productive - with an OPS+ of 106 this is easily the best season with the bat in his 10 year career. Felder's off to Seattle after the season and never plays a big league game after '94.
Walk off 2003 home vs. Padres, 11 game lead, 28 games over .500, we've won 8 straight, how about one more - 2-2 in the bottom of the 9th, Pedro Feliz hits a 3 run homer off of Jay Witasek to win the game. This is the best year of Feliz's career with the bat, he has a 102 OPS+ and the last season before we jumped his number of plate appearances beyond a reasonable level. This is his 19th career homer and the only Giants walk off he'd ever hit.
2010 at Arizona, we're 3 out of first, looking for a 4 game sweep in Phoenix, 2-2 with 2 out in the 10th, Travis Ishikawa singles home what turns out to be the winning run off of Esmerling Vasquez. This is the last year of Ishikawa's first Giants run, he was drafted 8 years before, as an 18 year old in '02 (in the 21st round, no one else selected in that round who signed made the big leagues; for example, the guy chosen right before Ishikawa was a San Jose St third baseman who never made it above A ball.) Ishikawa came up on '06, was our primary first baseman in '09. He spends all of '11 in AAA and then we let him go and he heads to Milwaukee. He comes back.
See you tomorrow. Go Giants!
2010 at Arizona, we're 3 out of first, looking for a 4 game sweep in Phoenix, 2-2 with 2 out in the 10th, Travis Ishikawa singles home what turns out to be the winning run off of Esmerling Vasquez. This is the last year of Ishikawa's first Giants run, he was drafted 8 years before, as an 18 year old in '02 (in the 21st round, no one else selected in that round who signed made the big leagues; for example, the guy chosen right before Ishikawa was a San Jose St third baseman who never made it above A ball.) Ishikawa came up on '06, was our primary first baseman in '09. He spends all of '11 in AAA and then we let him go and he heads to Milwaukee. He comes back.
