San Francisco Giants

The San Francisco Giants are a professional Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. Founded in 1883 as the New York Gothams, the team was renamed the New York Giants three years later, eventually relocating from New York City to San Francisco in 1958. The Giants play their home games at Oracle Park in San Francisco. The Giants have played in the World Series 20 times and have won 23 National League pennants, and they held the record for the most NL pennants from 2012 to 2020. Since arriving in the Bay Area, the franchise has become one of the most recognizable institutions in San Francisco's cultural and civic life, drawing generations of fans to the waterfront ballpark on San Francisco Bay.

History and Origins

The Giants were established in New York in 1883 and became one of the NL's premier franchises in the early twentieth century. Under the direction of legendary manager John McGraw, the Giants appeared in nine World Series from 1905 to 1924, winning three championships. The franchise that would become the Giants was established in 1883 in New York City and was variously known as the Gothams or the New Yorks. In 1885, the team changed its name to the Giants, which was supposedly inspired by a description of the squad by its proud manager in the wake of an extra-inning victory.

During the New York years, the Giants won five of the franchise's eight World Series wins and 17 of its 23 National League pennants while playing most of its home games in the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan. The team made a bold move by hiring manager Leo Durocher away from the Brooklyn Dodgers during the course of the 1948 season. His acquisition paid off with trips to the World Series in 1951 and 1954, with the Giants winning the title in 1954. Additionally, those two postseason appearances were noteworthy for involving two of the greatest plays in baseball history: Bobby Thomson's dramatic pennant-winning home run (known as the "shot heard 'round the world") in 1951 and Willie Mays's famed over-the-shoulder catch during the 1954 World Series.

In 1957, the Giants made a move from New York to San Francisco. The move was driven by declining attendance at the Polo Grounds and the need for a more financially viable location. The Brooklyn Dodgers were considering a move to Los Angeles but were told it would not be allowed unless a second team moved to California as well. As a result, the Giants agreed to move to San Francisco, and New York was left without a National League team until the New York Mets in 1962.

Arrival in San Francisco

The Giants, along with their rival Los Angeles Dodgers, became the first Major League Baseball teams to play on the West Coast. On April 15, 1958, the Giants played their first game in San Francisco, defeating the former Brooklyn and now Los Angeles Dodgers, 8–0. San Francisco welcomed the Giants with a tickertape parade on Montgomery Street in 1958.

The Giants played for two seasons at Seals Stadium — from 1931 to 1957, the stadium had been the home of the PCL's San Francisco Seals — before moving to Candlestick Park in 1960. In 1958, first baseman Orlando Cepeda won Rookie of the Year honors. In 1959, Willie McCovey won the same award. In 1960, the Giants moved to Candlestick Park, a stadium built on Candlestick Point in San Francisco's southeast corner overlooking San Francisco Bay. The new stadium quickly became known for its strong, swirling winds, cold temperatures, and thick evening fog that made for a formidable experience for brave fans and players.

The San Francisco Giants featured a number of prominent young players who brought fans to the team's new stadium in droves. In addition to Mays — who is considered one of the greatest all-around players in baseball history — the Giants boasted a lineup with first basemen/outfielders Orlando Cepeda and Willie McCovey and pitcher Juan Marichal. Despite that star-studded roster, this team was not the foundation of great on-field success: the Giants played in only one World Series (a loss in 1962) during the team's first 29 years in the Bay Area.

In 1981, Frank Robinson became the first Black manager in the National League, taking over the reins of the San Francisco Giants. Later in the decade, the Giants won 83 games in 1986 and won the NL West Division title in 1987, losing the NLCS to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. In 1989, the San Francisco Giants advanced to the World Series against their across-the-bay rivals the Oakland Athletics, in the first-ever Bay Area World Series. Moments before Game 3, the Loma Prieta earthquake rocked the area and the series was suspended for 10 days. The Giants went on to lose that series in four games.

Notable Players

The franchise's identity has been shaped by a remarkable succession of Hall of Fame-caliber players across multiple generations.

Willie Mays remains the most celebrated player in Giants history. In 21 seasons with the Giants, Mays slashed .304/.385/.564 with 646 of his 660 career home runs. He was the 1951 NL Rookie of the Year, won MVP awards in 1954 and 1965, and participated in 23 All-Star Games in a Giants uniform. He is also generally considered among the best defenders ever in center field, which is reflected in his 12 Gold Gloves.

Willie McCovey, known as "Stretch," was another cornerstone of the franchise. McCovey was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1959 and would go on to make six All-Star teams in a San Francisco uniform. He was never better than in 1969, when he led the league with both 45 homers and 126 RBI — his second consecutive season pacing the NL in both power categories. McCovey was named NL MVP in that 1969 campaign, and he still remains royalty in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Juan Marichal anchored the pitching staff during the 1960s. With 2,303 career strikeouts (2,281 with the Giants), Hall of Famer Juan Marichal ranks second in Giants history and within the top 50 overall in Major League history.

Barry Bonds arrived in San Francisco on a then-record contract. On December 6, 1992, Bonds signed a then-record $43.75 million contract over six years with the Giants. Barry Bonds, whose father Bobby was a fixture in the San Francisco outfield in the late 1960s and early 1970s, came to the Giants in 1993 and began an assault on baseball's record books with his outstanding home-run hitting. He won four consecutive Most Valuable Player awards (2001–04) while in San Francisco and led the Giants to the World Series in 2002, which they lost to the Anaheim Angels in a dramatic seven-game series. On August 8, 2007, Barry Bonds joined the pantheon of the baseball gods by hitting his 756th homer, passing the legendary Hank Aaron to take over perhaps Major League Baseball's most hallowed record: first place on the all-time home run list.

Players inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum as members of the San Francisco Giants include CF Willie Mays, 1B Orlando Cepeda, P Juan Marichal, 1B Willie McCovey, and P Gaylord Perry. More than sixty former players, managers, and team officials associated with the Giants have been elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Championships and the Dynasty of the 2010s

Despite the efforts of Mays and Barry Bonds, regarded as two of baseball's all-time best players, the Giants endured a 56-year championship drought following the move west, a stretch that included three World Series losses. The drought finally ended in the early 2010s; under manager Bruce Bochy, the Giants embraced sabermetrics and eventually formed a baseball dynasty that saw them win the World Series in 2010, 2012, and 2014, making the Giants the second team in NL history to win three championships in five years.

In 2010, the Giants, behind a strong pitching staff led by young star Tim Lincecum, returned to the postseason for the first time since 2003. The team advanced to the World Series, where they defeated the Texas Rangers in five games to capture the franchise's first championship since its move to California. Two seasons later, the Giants won another World Series title with a four-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers. The 2014 championship completed the dynasty, with pitcher Madison Bumgarner delivering one of the most celebrated postseason performances in baseball history.

On June 13, 2012, Matt Cain pitched the first perfect game in the 130-year history of the franchise, against the Houston Astros.

The Giants won three World Series championships in 2010, 2012, and 2014, giving the team eight total World Series titles, including the five won as the New York Giants when they still played in New York.

Oracle Park

Oracle Park is a ballpark in the South Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Since 2000, it has been the home of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball. When it opened on March 31, 2000, the ballpark was the first MLB ballpark built without public funds since the completion of Dodger Stadium in 1962. The stadium cost $357 million to build and supplanted the Giants' former home, Candlestick Park, a multi-use stadium in southeastern San Francisco that was also home to the NFL's San Francisco 49ers until 2014, when they relocated to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara.

The stadium stands along San Francisco Bay; the section of the bay beyond Oracle Park's right field wall is unofficially known as McCovey Cove, in honor of former Giants player Willie McCovey. The most prominent feature of the ballpark is the right-field wall, which is 24 feet (7.3 m) high in honor of former Giants player Willie Mays, who wore number 24.

Oracle Park's address is well-known in the Bay Area: 24 Willie Mays Plaza, San Francisco, California. The "24" refers to the jersey number worn by the most legendary San Francisco Giant, Willie Mays. At the intersection of King and 3rd Streets, the home plate entrance is adorned with a statue of baseball legend Willie Mays.

Previously named Pacific Bell Park, SBC Park, and AT&T Park, the stadium's current name was purchased by Oracle Corporation in 2019. Oracle Park, with its breathtaking views and classic design, was chosen as the 2008 Sports Facility of the Year by Sports Business Journal and Sports Business Daily as part of the inaugural Sports Business Awards program.

Rivalries

The Giants' rivalry with the Los Angeles Dodgers dates back to when the two teams were based in New York, as does their rivalry with the New York Yankees. The Dodgers–Giants rivalry is one of the longest and fiercest rivalries in sports history. Given that the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco have long been competitors in economic, cultural, and political arenas, their new California venues became fertile ground for transplantation of the ancient rivalry.

In New York, the Giants developed fierce rivalries with the city's other MLB teams — the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers. The rivalry with the Dodgers was especially heated and culminated in a 1951 pennant race decided by one of the most famous home runs in baseball history. In 1951, the Dodgers had opened up a thirteen-game lead over the Giants by mid-August and seemed well on their way to a NL pennant. However, the Giants staged a furious comeback to catch the Dodgers on the last day of the season and force a three-game playoff for the NL title. In the deciding third game, the Dodgers held a 4–1 lead in the ninth inning when the Giants began a rally. Outfielder Bobby Thomson clubbed a three-run homer to win the game and send the Giants to the World Series. The home run was dubbed the "shot heard 'round the world" and is often recognized as the most famous home run in baseball history.