50 years

MVPosey · March 25, 2004

http://www.athomeplate.com/50years.shtml

Opening day. The beginning of a new season. Everything starts over and the teams all have a chance (well, most teams anyway). It's full of the hope and excitement of baseball finally being back.

For the San Francisco Giants, this year will be the 50th consecutive opening day without a World Series championship banner being raised. It's another year of heartbreak and disappointment of not reaching the goal.

50 years.

Since 1954, the Giants have moved to San Francisco. During this time the team has had ten hall of famers play for them (with a few more to come). They have had multiple ownerships, several ballparks, and eight MVPs. They have come close to winning it all numerous times. But the key word is close.

50 years.

Where to start off? With the heartbreak? Last year was a bad one. With the first 100 win season in a decade (which will be discussed later), the Giants were looking ahead to the later rounds. But a dropped ball in game 3 and a wide turn around third in game 4, as well as a bullpen collapse in game 2, cost the Giants the series against the Marlins.

50 years.

Just the year before that, there was the famous game 6. Up 5-0 in the seventh inning of the World Series and leading the series 3-2, with pitcher Russ Ortiz pitching a gem, Dusty Baker makes the most boneheaded move in recent World Series memory. He pulled Ortiz, put in the least reliable pitcher in the pen, Felix Rodriguez (next to Jay Witasick, of course), and the first batter he faces, Scott Spiezio, hits up a 3 run homer. The Angels go on to score three more in the eighth, and the win that game, the game the next night and the series.

50 years.

Oh, but it doesn't stop there. In 2000, the Giants had the best record in baseball, but were handled easily by the Mets, including a 1 hit shutout by Bobby Jones to lose the series. Bobby Jones! In 1998, the Giants make a great September run to come from behind to made a run for the wild card, but they blew a lead in the final game against the Rockies that would've clinched the wild card, and then lost to the Cubs in a one game playoff.

50 years.

In 1993, the Giants had the best record in 31 years and went 103-59, but missed the playoffs by one game to the Atlanta Braves. And to make it worse, the spoiler was none other than the hated Dodgers.

In 1989, the Giants won the pennant. But they shouldn't have bothered to show up, in a World Series where they were clobbered.

In 1987, the Giants were up three games to two against the Cardinals. They don't score the rest of the series.

In 1962, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, down 1-0, Willie McCovey hit a line drive into right center that won the World Series. At least that's what would have happened if Bobby Richardson was playing in position or if he had hit it a few inches in either direction. But instead it went right into Richardson's glove, only because he was accidentally out of position.

50 years.

50 years of numerous second half collapses and second place finishes. 50 years of heartbreak and disappointment. In those 50 years, 18 teams have won it. Seven of them didn't even exist the last the Giants won the World Series. There have been 14 new teams since then. The last time the Giants won the World Series, the Kennedy and Martin Luther King assassinations, the Vietnam War, the Summer of Love, and Watergate were not yet in the American vocabulary. The Korean War was still under current events.

50 years.

But the most heartbreaking of those 50 have been the last two years. In 2002, it was the biggest collapse in World Series history. In 2003, the destiny seemed to be a World Series ring. They had to overcome a complete overhaul of the team, injury after injury, and numerous players going on bereavement leave. Only 9 players were on the 40-man roster all year, and only two of them were pitchers, both relievers (the others were 3 bench players and 3 starters). They still won 100 games, and everyone with the exception of Robb Nen, who had been out the entire season, was healthy by the time the postseason rolled around. The series against the Marlins seemed automatic. But instead, they lost in four. In Game 2, Sidney Ponson blew a 4-1 lead, and the bullpen let the game get away. In Game 3, the game went 11 innings. The Giants scored a run in the top of the 11th inning. And in the bottom, with closer Tim Worrell in the game, Jeff Conine hit a routine fly ball to gold glove RFer Jose Cruz, a ball anyone could catch. But the ball fell out of the glove, and with two outs, Ivan Rodriguez hit a two run single to win the game. By then, we knew it was over.

50 years.

Luckily I have only been around for some of this heartbreak, but the history weighs upon me just the same. Maybe the Giants will win a World Series, but it doesn?t look like it will be in my lifetime. The only team that has suffered more is the Red Sox. I don't say the Cubs or White Sox because they don't tease their fans nearly as much.

50 years.

1954 was the last time the Giants won a World Series. Many Giants greats have retired without winning a World Series or they have gone elsewhere to win it. Many more generations of Giants fans and greats will come, but one thing will never change. The Giants fans will be heartbroken year after year.

50 years.

So many what-ifs. If only McCovey?s line drive would have gone an inch to the right or an inch to the left. If only the team had held on to all those division leads. If only Dusty Baker didn?t start Solomon Torres on the last day of the ?93 season. If only the Giants had held their lead in that game against the Rockies that forced a one game playoff in ?98. If only Baker had pinch hit for Mark Gardner in game 4 of the 2000 NLDS. If only Cruz hadn?t dropped that ball. If only Felipe Alou pinch ran for JT Snow. If only Snow hadn?t taken such a wide turn around third. If only Snow had knocked the ball out of Ivan Rodriguez? hands. There are so many what ifs from the 2002 World Series I won?t get into it.

50 years.

Every year, the Giants have a ceremony honoring one of the teams from the past, with an old-timers day and reunion. For the first time in a long time, a World Series championship team will be honored. On July 31st, it will be the 1954 teams. And what should be a joyous occasion will be more depressing than anything. To me, it will be a reminder that it has been half a century since the Giants last won a world series. Cepeda, McCovey, Marichal, Bonds, Perry, the list of Giants greats that never won a world series or that have moved on to win it elsewhere goes on. Like the Cubs and Red Sox, the Giants are cursed

50 years. And counting.

Heckeroo · March 25, 2004

i can't imagine what you would do if you were a cub fan

JBurque · March 25, 2004

50 years you say? That sucks

We should have another one roll around within the next 5 years or so.

QuickGold · March 26, 2004

This is what you get when you move away from NY...bring the Giants back to NY

FreshFish · March 26, 2004

A good example of why we should be bless and lucky for being Marlin's fans.

SorianoFanHFW · March 26, 2004

They deserve not to win as long as the most nortorious cheater in the sport plays with them.

as for the yankees, giambi looks like he's off and sheff I don't know, but they still piss me off too. At least they're not threatening Mays' record.

Phlub · March 26, 2004

Oh you poor thing.

Move to Boston, Chicago, or Minneapolis to be a Cubs, Red Sox or Vikings fan.

They all have had just as bad and sometimes worse of a wait then the Giants.

Plus with Bonds being the cheater he is, they don't deserve it.

March 26, 2004

Yeah what about the White Sox? They've been waiting longer then the other Sox and no one gives them absolutely any attention. If the Marlins don't win it this year I'd like for the Red Sox to win so they stop whining about the damn curse, but first let the White Sox win one. Their fans deserve it more.