2009 San Francisco Giants MLB Preview:
The San Francisco Giants will a team to watch in 2009. The Giants had a few issues in 2008 that kept the team from reaching its full potential. Now San Fran Manager Bruce Bochy must work some magic in '09 to get the Giants back into the National League playoffs. San Francisco will undoubtedly put a lot of their hopes on the talented pitcher, Tim Lincecum, who won the NL Cy Young Award in 2008 after going 18-5. If pitcher Barry Zito can return to form, then Lincecum and Zito will form one of the toughest 1-2 pitching combos in all of Major League Baseball.
San Francisco's batting order still seems off without slugger Barry Bonds, but 2009 marks the second full season without the home run leader. The Giants will count on players Aaron Rowand, Edgar Renteria and Bengie Molina to get hits and score runs for the team. If the Giants pitching comes together and they start hitting the ball out of AT&T Park again, then Giants fans may be in for a treat in 2009.
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS INFORMATION:
Founded: 1883 (in San Francisco since 1958)
Location: San Francisco, California
Stadium: AT&T Park
Conference: National League
Division: West Division
Rivals: Los Angeles Dodgers
Notable Players: Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, Will Clark, Willie McCovey
San Francisco Giants World Series Title: 7 - Last World Series appearance 1954
San Francisco Giants NL Championships: 20 - Last Championship appearance 2002
The San Francisco Giants play baseball in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Giants franchise has its origins in New York in 1883 first as the New York Gothams, then taking the Giants nickname in 1885. The team would win 5 World Series titles before making the move to the Bay Area. Who can forget the famous "Shot Heard Round the World" when the Bobby Thompson hit a walk-off home run to win the NL pennant against the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1951. Or "the Catch" when Willie Mays stemmed a Cleveland Indians run in the 1954 World Series and gave the Giants the chance to win. The Giants have won 3 NL Pennants and 6 division titles since moving to San Francisco. The current team looks to establish historic moments of its own this year.
The San Francisco Giants play their home games at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California. Opened in 200 and holding a capacity of over 41,500, AT&T Park has seen a good deal of baseball history since it opened. Visitors to the park have seen Barry Bonds break one record after another. AT&T Park is an incredible place to see a game and to bring the kids, with a giant coke bottle with slides in it that blows bubbles when the Giants hit a home run, as well as fountains, and a huge vintage style glove in the outfield. It's an unforgettable experience to see a game here. Buy San Francisco Giants tickets today and watch this storied franchise fight its way back to a World Series!
See Also:
San Francisco Giants playoff tickets
San Francisco Giants Season Preview History