October 14 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

What is this all about?

Yesterday


Here are all the October 14 games that mattered in San Francisco Giants history.  It's a big day.

1962 World Series, last day of rain, Game 6 is tomorrow.

1987 NLCS Game 7, we're in St Louis, its 3-3, a win and we have our first pennant since that '62 team that's still waiting for the rain to stop - but we don't get it. It was over early, Jose Oquendo hit a 3 run homer off Atlee Hammaker in the second to put St Louis up 4-0 and they win the game 6-0.  Our season is over.

1989 World Series Game 1, it's our first World Series game since '62, and it's just over the bridge, we're in Oakland to face the powerhouse A's and they whip us in game 1. We get shut out 5-0. Oakland gets 3 off Scott Garrelts in the 2nd, Dave Parker homers in the 3rd, Walt Weiss in the 4th. Dave Stewart throws a complete game 5 hitter.  Game 2 is tomorrow.

2002 NLCS Game 5 home vs. Cardinals, we're up 3-1, a game away from the pennant, but 15 years ago we went to St Louis up 3-2 and you know how that turned out, so there is at least some level of historical need to get this done on this Monday night at the new ballpark.  The Cardinals leave two on in the first, a runner on third in the second, men on the corners in the third, and two on the 6th - but Kirk Rueter escaped all of it, turning the game over to the pen in the 7th and the Cards immediately broke the scoreless tie with a double by Mike Matheny and a Fernando Vina sac fly off of Felix Rodriguez.  That holds until the bottom of the 8th, Matt Morris has gone the whole way, but with 1 out he loads the bases, meaning there's no place to put the next batter - Barry Bonds - who just misses, but his sac fly ties the score.  Bottom of the 9th now, Morris still on the mound, he gets the first two Giants - then David Bell hits a first pitch single followed by a Shawon Dunston single.  2 on, 2 out, the Cards go to the pen, Steve Kline to face Kenny Lofton - who hits a walk off single to right - Bell scores the winning run.  And for the third time in San Francisco history, the Giants win the pennant.

2010 NLCS starts in two days.

2012 NLCS Game 1 it's the NLCS, so of course we're playing St Louis, unlike '87, and '02, October 14 doesn't mean the end of the series, this is Game 1 and we lose the opener at home 6-4. Madison Bumgarner gets lit up, gives up 6 earned and doesn't get out of the 4th inning. We got 4 back in our half of the 4th, the big blow a 2 run Gregor Blanco triple off of Lance Lynn.  But that's it, we lose 6-4. Game 2 is tomorrow.



2014 NLCS Game 3 home vs. Cardinals, it's the NLCS, so of course we're playing St Louis.  What the hell is going on between us and the Cardinals?  There are other teams.  We split the first two in St Louis and jump all over John Lackey in this one, 4 runs in the second inning, the big blow a 3 run Travis Ishikawa double. Kolten Wong cuts our lead in half in the 4th with a 2 run double off Tim Hudson, they add a run apiece in the 6th and 7th to tie the score.  We don't get a baserunner after the 4th inning until putting the first two on in the 10th and scoring the winning run when Randy Choate threw away a sacrifice bunt.  We're up 2-1, game 4 is tomorrow.


See you tomorrow.  Go Giants!

2017-18 NBA Predictions

2017-18 NBA win total projections.


East
Cle 53
Bos 48
Mil 48
Wash 48
Tor 45
Char 44
Mia 43
Phi 35

Det 35
Orl 33
Ind 32
NY 31       
Brook 30
Atl 27
Chi 25


West
GSW 64
Hou 55
OKC 52
SA 51
Minn 50
Den 48
LAC 47
Utah 44

Port 43
NO 42
Mem 36
LAL 32
Dall 32
Pho 29
Sac 26

I've picked this Warriors/Cavs series each of the past 3 years and I'll pick it again this year.

October 13 - Top 5 Games in San Francisco Giants History

What is this all about?

Yesterday

Here are all the October 13 games that mattered in San Francisco Giants history.  Spoiler alert, this hasn't been a great day for us.

1962 World Series is still raining.  Game 6 on 10-15

1987 NLCS Game 6, we're up 3-2, a game from winning our first pennant in a quarter century, we go back to St Louis for game 6 and Dave Dravecky locks them down, 6 innings, 1 earned, 8 strikeouts, no walks, and then Don Robinson followed with 2 hitless innings, but it wasn't enough. Candy Maldonado misplayed a Tony Pena flyball into a triple to lead off the second and scored on a sac fly and that's the game's only run. We threatened in the 5th, two on, one out, but John Tudor got both Thompson and Mitchell.  We only got one more chance, tying run in scoring position with an out in the 7th, but Tudor got Brenly and Thompson and we lose 1-0.  It all comes down to Game 7 tomorrow.

1989 National League Champions. Bay Bridge Series starts 10-14





2002 NLCS Game 4 home vs. Cardinals, 15 years prior the Cards evened up the NLCS on us, they face that need again today as we're up 2 games to 1 on a Sunday night. We only get 4 hits against the Cardinals 12. St Louis gets to Livan Hernandez in the first, scoring 2 with 3 hits and a hit batsman. They left a man on third in the second.  They got back to back singles to open the third and a pair of 2 out singles in the 6th. But it was still 2-0 with 2 out in the bottom of the 6th when JT Snow hit a 2 run double off Rick White to tie the score. Still 2-2 in the bottom of the 8th, 2 out, nobody on - Bonds at the plate and they put him on.  That's who Barry Bonds was, the Cardinals would rather put the go ahead run on base in the 8th inning of game 4 of the NLCS than pitch to him. Benito Santiago made them pay - he hit a full count two run homer off White, and we went to the 9th inning up 4-2.  Robb Nen came on and got into trouble, gave up a run scoring single to Jim Edmonds that left St Louis trailing only 4-3 with runners on the corners and 1 out.  Who is at the plate?  Future Inner circle Hall of Famer Albert Pujols, he's 22 in his second big league season (Pujols played the first ten years of his career in St Louis, here's how he finished in the MVP vote in each season: 4,2,2,3,1,2,9,1,1,2,5) but in this spot he struck out and then so did JD Drew to end the game.  We're up 3 games to 1, one game away from our first pennant in 13 years.

2010 NLCS starts 10-16

2012 NLCS starts 10-14 

2014 NLCS starts 10-14

See you tomorrow, lot happening on 10-14 for the home team. Go Giants!

October 12 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

Yesterday

What is this all about?

Here are all the October 12 games that mattered in San Francisco Giants history.  Spoiler alert, this hasn't been a great day for us.

1962 World Series is still raining.  Game 6 on 10-15

1987 NLCS. Game 6 tomorrow. 

1989 National League Champions. Bay Bridge Series starts 10-14

2002 NLCS Game 3, we took the first 2 in St Louis but drop game 3 at home, 5-4. Matheny and Edmond homered off Russ Ortiz in the 4th and 5th to give the Cards a 4-1 lead, we got them all back on one swing of Barry Bonds' bat in the bottom of the 5th, he hit a 3 run bomb off of Chuck Finley. But Jay Witasick gave up a solo shot to Eli Marrero in the 6th for the final margin of victory. We're still up 2-1 and Game 4 is tomorrow.

2010 NLCS starts 10-16

2012 NLCS starts 10-14 

2014 NLCS Game 2 - we took game 1, but the Cards even things up here, beating us 5-4 just like they did a dozen years prior. We had a 3-2 lead when Gregor Blanco singled off Carlos Martinez in the 7th to score Brandon Crawford, but homers in the 7th and 8th (Oscar Tavares, Matt Adams) gave the Cards the 4-3 lead as we went to the 9th. With 2 outs Matt Duffy scored the tying run on a Trevor Rosenthal wild pitch, but Kolten Wong took Sergio Romo's second pitch out of the yard in the bottom of the 9th to even the series.  We head home in two days.

That's it?  That's it.  See you tomorrow for a couple of games against St Louis.  Go Giants!

October 11 - Top 5 Moments in San Francisco Giants History

What is this all about?

Yesterday

Here are all the October 11 games in San Francisco Giants history that mattered.

1962 World Series, down 3-2, game 6 is 10-15



1987 NLCS Game 5 home vs. Cardinals, the series is dead even at 2, Game 5 is at the Stick, nearly 60,000 paid on a Sunday afternoon. We trade runs in both the first and third, the big blow Kevin Mitchell's homering off of Greg Mathews to tie it 2-2. They went up 3-2 on a Reuschel error in the 4th, but we busted it open in our half - singles for Davis/Clark/Uribe all led to a two run Robby Thompson triple off of Ricky Horton and took a 6-3 lead. Joe Price came on in relief in the fifth and went the last five innings of the game, never allowing a Cardinal to reach scoring position.  We head back to St Louis a game away from the pennant.

1989 National League Champions, World Series starts 10-14

2002 NLCS Game 3 is tomorrow

2010 NLDS Game 4 at Atlanta, we're up 2-1 in a best of five, one game away from our first NLCS appearance in 8 years. Monday night at Turner Field, we only get 5 hits, and Madison Bumgarner's in trouble early, the Braves leave them loaded in the second and push across a run in the third.  Our first hit comes with 1 out in the 6th, but it ties the game, Cody Ross homering off Derek Lowe.  Bumgarner gives it back in the bottom half on a Brian McCann homer. We come right back in the 7th, tying the game on an Alex Gonzalez error and, with the bases loaded and two out, Cody Ross comes through again with a base hit off Jonny Venters that scored the go ahead run.  Atlanta threatens in the bottom of the 9th, getting 2 on with 1 out against Brian Wilson - but he strikes out Omar Infante and gets Melky Cabrera to ground to third to end the series.  We are back in the NLCS, game 1 is Oct 16.

2012 NLDS Game 5 at Cincinnati, winner take all, we lost the first two at home, won the last two on the road - we're still in Cincinnati needing to win one more game to advance to the NLCS. Both clubs had 2 on with 1 out in the first - but neither scored.  No baserunners in the second or third, each team had harmless singles in the 4th.  And in the fifth we won the game. Gregor Blanco opened with a base hit off Giant nemesis Mat Latos, three pitches later Brandon Crawford tripled to drive home the game's first run and a Zack Cozart error gave us a second.   We loaded the bases with one out, Buster Posey at the plate and Latos still on the mound - Posey hit a 2 strike grand slam to give us a 6-0 lead.  The Reds chip away.  2 in their half. Another in the 6th. One more in the 9th off of Sergio Romo, the tying runs on base, only 1 out.  Romo got Jay Bruce to fly out.  Romo struck out Scott Rolen.  And we advance to the NLCS.



2014 NLCS Game 1 at St Louis 12 years have passed since '02, 27 since '87, and once again we're meeting the Cardinals in the NLCS. Madison Bumgarner gets the ball for the good guys and he's lights out, 7 and 2/3, 0 earned, 4 hits, 7 strikeouts and 1 walk. We scored 2 in the second, Travis Ishikawa driving home the first off of Adam Wainwright and a Matt Carpenter error getting us the second. A Brandon Belt sac fly the following inning gave us the final margin of our 3-0 shutout victory.

2016 NLDS Game 4, we're down 2-1 in a best of five and the Cubs end our season by scoring 4 runs in the 9th inning to beat us 6-5.  We had a 5-2 lead through 5, when we entered the 9th we had a 97% chance to win the game and go to a winner take all game 5.  We used 5 pitchers in the inning to face just 7 batters.  That's not just a failure of execution, it's a strategic failure that was not appreciated as such by the organization or local analysts.

See you tomorrow. Go Giants!