Last Stop - San Francisco
“Just Thinking"
With the start of baseball season, I found myself thinking back to an article I wrote last July. On July 25th, I reflected on Justin Verlander finally earning his first win as a Giant, he had gone winless through his first 16 starts, posting a 0–8 record during that stretch. On July 23rd he beat the Braves, he pitched 5 scoreless innings for a 9–3 victory putting an end to the longest winless streak of his career.
None of this, of course, diminishes Verlander’s Hall of Fame résumé: 266 career wins, nine All-Star selections, two World Series championships, the 2011 AL MVP, the 2017 ALCS MVP, three AL Cy Young Awards, and three career no-hitters. Revisiting that moment got me thinking about all the great players who have come to the Giants after establishing their names and their legacies elsewhere.
I know that the Dodgers have the deep pockets and have used them to secure top‑tier talent. Mookie Betts, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, and Freddie Freeman are all elite players who have been instrumental in the recent franchise success, including their World Series runs. At the same time, the Dodgers have also developed a steady pipeline of young talent through their farm system and seem to be more willing to trade them away before they are past their prime.
When I think of big money Giants, the story begins and ends with Barry Bonds. Once famous for developing talent under Sabien, like the nucleus of the three World Series Championships: Posey, Crawford, Bumgarner, Belt and Sandoval. But over the years we have gone to the well to try to milk some glory from once great athletes.
The first players who came to mind were the veteran pitchers who arrived in San Francisco near the end of their careers. Justin Verlander is one example, but perhaps the most iconic was Randy Johnson. Though he built his Hall of Fame résumé in Seattle, New York and Arizona, the Big Unit joined Cain, Lincecum, and Bumgarner as a mentor for a young Giants rotation. He pitched his final season in the Orange and Black, where he also secured his 300th career win.
Orel Hershiser also finished his career with the Giants in 2000 and yes, for many loyal Giant fans, he’ll always be a bum.
Vida Blue came to San Francisco with plenty left in the tank after winning three World Series titles, an AL Cy Young Award, an AL MVP, and earning six All‑Star selections. He pitched for the Giants from 1978 to 1981 before wrapping up his 17‑year career in Kansas City.
Steve Carlton became a Giant at age 41 in 1986. “Lefty” brought his 329 wins, 4,136 strikeouts, four NL Cy Young Awards, ten All‑Star appearances, two World Series rings, a Gold Glove, and a Hall of Fame résumé, he’d be inducted just five years after his final pitch as a Giant.
Gaylord Perry, who returned to the Giants from 1978 to 1979, had already earned most of his Hall of Fame credentials elsewhere.
Barry Zito spent seven seasons in San Francisco, but his legacy is forever tied to his clutch performance in the 2012 postseason. His Game 5 win in the NLCS against the Cardinals single‑handedly saved the Giants’ season and helped set the stage for another championship run.
And then there’s Tim Hudson, who played an essential role in the Giants’ 2014 postseason run. In Game 2 of the NLDS, he went seven innings and allowed just one earned run. He started Game 3 of both the NLCS and the World Series and ultimately made his final major‑league appearance in Game 7 of the Fall Classic.
Some of the notable position players who passed through San Francisco at the tail end of their careers form quite a list. Willie McCovey, after leaving the Giants for the Padres and A’s, returned home to finish his career from 1977 to 1980. Darrell Evans, wearing the old number 41, played in orange and black from 1984 to 1986. Joe Morgan spent 1981–1982 with the Giants and is best remembered for his iconic three‑run homer on October 3, 1982, the blast that knocked the Dodgers out of playoff contention.
Willie McGee the long time Cardinal brought his smooth game to San Francisco from 1991 to 1994. Shawon Dunston had not one, but four separate stints as a Giant (1996, 1998, 2001, and 2002). Omar Vizquel dazzled us at shortstop in 2005. Other veterans who passed through include Fred McGriff in 2001, Edgar Renteria from 2009 to 2011, and Carlos Beltrán in 2011.
And finally, this one surprised even me, in 1964, Duke Snider, one of New York’s legendary trio of center fielders alongside Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, played his final MLB season as a San Francisco Giant at age 38.
Let me know what you think.
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