June 15 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

Yesterday

What is this all about?

Here are the top 5 June 15 moments in San Francisco Giants history.

Walk off 1964 home vs. Reds, half a game out of first which means only 8200 paid on a Monday afternoon, 5-5 in the 9th, Jim Ray Hart singles home Willie McCovey off Ryne Duren to win the game.  It's Hart's rookie season, he finished in a tie for second with Rico Carty in the NL Rookie of the Year race to Dick Allen.  It's the first of his 5 seasons as the Giants starter at third and the 16th best season for a third baseman in franchise history.

Walk off 1969 home vs. Expos, we're a game and a half out of first in the West, first game of a doubleheader (we'd win the second game too) it's 4-4 in the bottom of the 9th, Ken Henderson hits a 3 run homer off Dan McGinn to win the game.  It's the 35th walk off homer in San Francisco history. Henderson had a couple of really solid years as the Giants left fielder, this was not one of them, he was sub replacement with an 80 OPS+.  Henderson broke in with Giants as a teenager, he got 70 at bats as a 19 year old in '65.  After 8 seasons we moved him with Steve Stone to the White Sox for Tom Bradley.  Later in his career, Henderson (along with another former Giant, Willie Montanez) would be part of a 4 team, 11 player trade.

1973 at Philadelphia, we're 14 over .500, half a game up in the West, it's 1-1 in the 10th, Willie McCovey hits a 3 run homer off Max Scarce. We win the game 4-3. This was McCovey's last season in his first Giants stint and he had a 162 OPS+. In the offseason we trade him to San Diego for Mike Caldwell.

Walk off 1979 home vs. Cardinals, 6.5 out of first, 2 out in the bottom of the 13th, 6-6, Willie McCovey hits a 3 run homer off Darold Knowles to win it for the good guys.  McCovey's 41 years old in his last full big league season, it's his six, and last, walk off home run.  It's his 515th homer, he hits only 6 more.

2002 home vs. A's, 9 over .500, 2.5 out of first, 1-1 with 2 out in the 4th, Reggie Sanders hits a grand slam off of Aaron Harang, we win 6-2.  Sanders spend just the one season in San Francisco (we signed him as a free agent, he left as a free agent) he was the starting RF and was good enough, 3 WAR, 107 OPS+  Sanders played the first 8 seasons of his career in Cincinnati and in the 9 subsequent years played for 7 teams, including this year as a Giant.  This was his second career grand slam and his 203rd home run.

See you tomorrow.  Go Giants!

June 14 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

Yesterday

What is this all about?

Here are the top 5 June 14 moments in San Francisco Giants history.

1966 home vs. Cubs, 13 over ,500 and a game up in the National League, fewer than 7000 paid on a Tuesday afternoon, 7-7 in the bottom of the 7th, Willie McCovey hits a two run homer off of Billy Hoeft, we win the game 11-7. This was McCovey's best year with the bat to that date, he had a 163 OPS+.  It's the third best season of his career - through 2016 it's the 12th best season for a first baseman in franchise history.  It's McCovey's 177th career homer.  We hit 5 homers on the day.

1985 home vs. Padres, we're 12.5 out of first, 4-4 in the top of the 10th, they've loaded the bases with one out, Terry Kennedy (future Giant) facing Mark Davis (future Padre) Davis gets him to go 6-4-3 to end the threat.  The year before Davis had an ERA+ of 66 and lost 17 games - to keep sending him out to the mound, 174 innings pitched, with that kind of ERA+ is malpractice.  Things get better for Davis, he wins the Cy Young in '89 as the Padres closer.  Mark Davis killed Terry Kennedy, Kennedy was 1-21 lifetime, that's a .048 BA and a .182 OPS.  Kennedy's one hit off Davis was 6 days later, he hit a 2 run double and got thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple.

Walk off 1985 home vs. Padres, same game, now 4-4 in the 11th, David Green homers off Luis DeLeon to send everyone home.  It's Green's first home run of the season, he had a .535 OPS at the time.  Only 4 more homers to come in his Giants career.

1991 home vs. Pirates, a dozen games out of first place, 2-2 in the 8th, Willie McGee homers off off of Zane Smith, that 3-2 margin is the final score.  This was McGee's first year (and his best) as a Giant, he was a 3 win player, had a 119 OPS+.  Everyone remembers where McGee came from (the Cardinals, got him as a free agent) do you remember where he went?  Boston.  Signed there after the '94 season.  This is the subjective view of someone way too close to it, but McGee never really felt like a Giant, right?  Funny thing - he was born in San Francisco. If I were going to ask for another outfielder from the same time who also didn't feel like a Giant, you wouldn't have to think too hard before you came up with Kevin Bass - and he was born in Redwood City.

1995 at Cubs, we're 2 back in the west, 3-3 in the 13th, 2 on, 2 out, Mike Benjamin singles home Robby Thompson off of Anthony Young.  4-3 is the final score.  Drafted in '87, up in '89, Benjamin spent 7 years as a Giant utility player, he had a career OPS+ of 61.  Some players had career years, Benjamin had a career half week.  In this game he had 6 hits, each of the prior two games he had 4. It broke the MLB three game record for hits. One June 10 he had a .150 batting average - after this game he was hitting .447.  Right here, this moment - the height of Mike Benjamin's life.

See you tomorrow.  Go Giants!

World Champion Golden St Warriors

The 2017 #NBAFinals MVP salutes #DubNation #ThisIsWhyWePlay pic.twitter.com/qgTuz5UakG

— NBA (@NBA) June 13, 2017

June 13 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

Yesterday

What is this all about?

Here are the top 5 June 13 moments in San Francisco Giants history.

1959 at Philadelphia, we're a game out, up 2-1 in the bottom of the 9th, the Phillies put the first two on, but Johnny Antonelli gets Wally Post in a line drive 4-6 double play, he strikes out the next batter and we take the game.  Antonelli came over with the club from New York (we traded Bobby Thomson for him) he finished third in the MVP race in '54, 21-7, ERA+ of 178 and won two games in the World Series, through 2016 thats the 30th best year for a pitcher in franchise history.  He had a good year in '59, 19 wins, a 123 ERA+, and then after next season he'd be gone, moved with Willie Kirkland to Cleveland for Harvey Kuenn. Antonelli never enjoyed playing in San Francisco, particularly in Seals Stadium, and was getting booed by the fans by year's end.

1961 home vs. Dodgers, we're 2 games off the lead, right behind LA, both of us chasing the Reds, down 3-2 with one out and one on in the 7th, Willie Mays hits a 2 run homer off of Stan Williams, that holds up, we win 4-3.  It's #291 for Mays.

Walk off 1963 home vs. Cubs, 60 games into the season in a flat tie for first place in the National League, bottom of the 10th, 1-1, Willie Mays hits the game winning homer off of Dick Ellsworth.  It's homer #380 for Mays, his third career walk off - the first two were also in extra innings.  It's the 17th walk off home run in San Francisco history.

1967 at Houston, down 5 in the NL standings, 2-2 with 2 out in the tenth, Willie Mays hits a grand slam off of Barry Latman, 6-2 is the final score.  Mays hit 8 grand slams in his career, this is his 7th, the only one in extra innings.  June 13 meant a lot of Wilie Mays.

1986 at Houston, 2nd place Giants are 3 behind the first place Astros after losing the first game of the series the night before, the Astros only had 3 hits, but still led 1-0 coming to the 9th inning (it was a Mike Scott game) with 2 on and 1 out Dave Smith came on to face Chili Davis, he hit a 3 run homer and we won the game 3-1.  Chili hit 350 homers in his career, this was his 70th.

See you tomorrow.  Go Giants!

June 12 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

Yesterday

What is this all about?

Top 5 June 12 moments in San Francisco Giants history.

1960 home vs Braves, down a game in the NL standings, big Sunday crowd, nearly 40,000 paid for a 4 hour game against Milwaukee, it was 4-4 with 2 out in the 6th when Orlando Cepeda cleared the bases with a double off of Ken MacKenzie.  We'd go on to win the game 16-7. In '64, Alvin Dark, apparently believing he was off the record, told Newsday that the Giants had an excess of minority players, a year later we moved Cepeda to the Cardinals. We just brutalized the McCovey/Cepeda thing, we tried to play one in left and then the other - Cepeda got a handful of starts at third, McCovey sat against left handed pitchers so Cepeda could play first.

1971 at Mets, 17 games over .500 with a 7 game lead in the west (this was the third season the leagues were split into divisions) down 1-0 in the 6th, Chris Speier doubled home 2 off of Ray Sadecki, we'd win the game 5-1.  Sadecki, of course, was the return from the Cardinals for Cepeda in '66, he lost 18 games in '68 and we moved him to the Mets after the '69 season for Bob Heise.  Yes, we turned Orlando Cepeda into Bob Heise.

2003 at White Sox, 16 games over .500 with a 4 game lead in the west, we came into the 9th down 4-2 but a Bonds homer tied the score, it's now 4-4 with the bases loaded and Rich Aurilia pinch hits a grand slam off of Damaso Marte, after 9 seasons, this is the last year of Aurilia's first Giants stint, he heads to Seattle in 2004.  This was his second of 3 career grand slams.

2004 at Baltimore, we're 2.5 out of first in the west, this is the first half of a doubleheader (we lose game 2) in front of nearly 50,000 paid on a Saturday at Camden Yards, bottom of the 9th in a 5-5 game, Orioles have the bases loaded with just one out - Matt Herges facing Miguel Tejada, he gets him to go 1-2-3 to end the inning. Herges was a deadline deal the year before with the Padres, coming over for Clay Hensley, and he was terrific, a 183 ERA+ in 70 games down the stretch.  But that's it, he was miscast as our closer in '04 and we dumped him on the Diamondbacks just about a year after this game.

2004 at Baltimore, same game, still 5-5 in the 11th, AJ Pierzynski (booo, booo, booooooo) homers off Jorge Julio to put us up 6-5 and we'd win it 9-6.  Pierzynski had 11 homers in his one year in San Francisco and hit into a league leading 27 double plays.  Bonds hit homer #675 in this one.

See you tomorrow.  Go Giants!