A winning season

The regular baseball season is over for the Giants, who—surprisingly, improbably—were in the hunt up until the 158th game. They ended up with 88 wins, 74 losses, some of those wins spectacular, some of the losses crushing, all of them entertaining.

I had a winning season, too. I'll remember the 2009 season as the one in which I went from being an interested and engaged fan to becoming a passionate and more knowledgeable one. So, in no particular order, here's my season wrap-up:

I went to 10 home games, almost three times as many as I've ever gone to in one season. I began with Opening Day (a win against the Brewers) and ended with the last home game of the season (a win against the D'backs). In between, I saw the Giants win four other games and lose four, giving me a .600 season—definitely a winner!

I got to see those games with lots of old friends (Gishi, Wayne, Liese, Alison, Allan, Phil) and one new one (Heather). Thanks, guys; there's nothing like the company of friends at the ballyard, having a beer and a cha-cha bowl, talking baseball.

Opening Day in the bleachers, April 7, 2009

Gishi, Liese, Wayne and me

Heather and me, Jon Miller Bobblehead Night
Giants v. Cincinnati Reds, August 7, 2009

I learned to (more or less) keep score. Printed out scorecards for myself and scored the games as I watched them on TV. Doing this helped me to believe I wasn't just sitting lumplike in front of the TV, and it also gave me something to do with my hands other than tear my hair when the Giants once again hit a weak grounder into a double play. I still have trouble figuring out what to do with double-switches and pinch runners, and I almost never toted up the final results, but I'll work on that next year.

I figure I watched or listened to nearly every one of the 162 games the Giants played. I paid attention, I learned stuff I didn't know before, I got better at seeing a curve ball or a slider (though I'm still baffled most of the time at how the guys in the broadcast booth can tell a two-seam fastball from a four-seam fastball).

I collected five more bobbleheads to add to my small-but-growing collection . . .


Four of them I got on Bobblehead Days—Tim Lincecum on May 17 (a win vs. the Mets), Brian Wilson on July 12 (a loss to the Padres), Jon Miller on Aug. 7 (a loss to the Reds), and Randy Johnson on Aug. 30 (a HUGE win over the Rockies!)—and the fifth, Matt Cain, I got as a "mystery gift" for making a contribution to the Jr. Giants on Opening Day . . .


Thanks to "Watching Baseball Smarter," I learned that pitchers, when they're throwing their warm-up pitches, tell the catcher what's coming by signaling with their glove! Wow. I started watching for this, and I felt like I'd discovered a secret code that let me in to an exclusive "in the know" group. No doubt lots of regular fans know this, but it was news to me, who's been watching baseball since the age of 4. It took me a while to remember which gesture indicates which pitch, but I think I've got it now (I cemented it into my brain by actually practicing the gestures myself). It's interesting to see how different pitchers execute it; some are really subtle, others much more emphatic. Way, way, WAY cool, and possibly the most exciting thing I discovered this year.

I discovered Andy Baggerly's blog on the Giants, "Extra Baggs." Baggerly writes for the San Jose Mercury News, and I found his writing and his observations to be the best of those who write regularly about the Gnats. Good stuff; I hope he keeps it going next year.

Making good on an idea we'd had for a couple of years, Liese, Wayne, Gishi and I went to a San Jose Giants game, and I'm here to tell you, it was way, way more fun than any RiverCats game I've ever been to. Here's how good it was: If I ever found myself in the god-awful position of having to move to the San Jose area, the horror would be tempered, perhaps even alleviated, by the knowledge that I could go to SJ Giants games a lot more often. I could even be a host family to a young player (does a family of one count as a family?). Anyway, I hope to go to a few more of those games next year.

Mostly, I just learned a lot, absorbed a lot, read a lot, talked a lot about baseball. I discovered I could talk knowledgeably about my team, the players, back up my opinions with something other than, "well, I just like the guy!" comments. One big thing I learned is that I have a lot more left to learn. I'm not good at remembering stuff; things like batting averages, ERAs, who we were playing when such-and-such happened, seem to float into my head and out, whereas things about the players, themselves, sticks more readily and stays around longer. But I think my 2009 season may have sharpened my skills a bit. We'll see next year.

And speaking of next year . . . I think it's time for another visit to Scottsdale and a Spring Training trip. Last one was in 2005, and I want to go again. As for now, I'll watch the playoffs and the World Series, then refresh my skills at some neglected things—reading, listening to NPR rather than KNBR (THE sports leader!), inviting friends for dinner, getting myself to the gym. The end of the season is always bittersweet, but pitchers and catchers report to Scottsdale in February, and it's nearly the middle of October already. I can hardly wait. Yet as Tony Bennett always reminds us after every Giants home game win . . .

"I left my heart in San Francisco . . ."

I took me out to the ballgame

As wrapped up in the Giants as I've been this year, I wanted to finish the season off right, so a few weeks ago I bought myself a ticket for Thursday's 12:45 p.m. game against the Diamondbacks, the Giants last home game of 2009. Left home about 9:30, made excellent connections on BART and Muni, and arrived at AT&T Park right at 11 o'clock.

It was a gorgeous day, more like a day in July than the first of October. Most of the time when I go to a game, I'm with at least one other person, and we're usually goal-oriented—get to the park, get to our seats and/or get something to eat. On my own on Thursday, my goal was to take my time, really see and enjoy every bit of being there. I walked around to the McCovey Cove side of the ballpark and looked at all of the plaques embedded in the walkway, something I'd never done. The newest one commemorates Jonathan Sanchez's July 10 no-hitter against the San Diego Padres

and there are maybe 10 or 12 more, quite a few of them celebrating a Barry Bonds milestone, others commemorating last year's All-Star Game and the opening of the park itself.

After duly admiring the plaques, it was time to shop! Went into the Dugout Store and bought a spiral-bound book of scorecards (yes, I know the season was nearly up, but there's next year to plan for), a Giants license plate frame (installed on Friday; it looks swell), a Giants magazine, a Sharpie pen, and two postcards for sending to my granddaughters. Saw an orange shirt I liked but decided not to get any more clothing items yet (maybe hold out for Spring Training . . .).

Then it was time to head into the park. My seat was in the first row of Section 323 of the View Box level, right above the Giants dugout. Great seat except for two things: a) the railing in front of the seats bisected the view, so next time I'll choose either row C or row D, and b) the seat was in the sun the entire day, and because it was so danged hot, I did a lot of sweating. Luckily, I brought a lot of sunscreen, and I used it liberally.

Time to eat. And drink! I'd considered getting my usual Cha-Cha Bowl from Orlando's, but the stand on my level was closed (usher said due to the low attendance numbers—low compared to the earlier part of the season, that is), so I decided to go ballpark traditional and got a kielbasa (sp?) with sauerkraut and washed it down with a Stella. Yum. Around the 6th inning, I fell into the hands of the Ghirardelli hot fudge sundae people, for which I am not ashamed.

The ballgame was wonderful. Lincecum on the mound, Rich Aurelia's last home game as a Giant, Randy Johnson coming in as a reliever in the 9th inning, and Timmy getting his 15th win. Plenty of fans wishing the team well, feeling a bit (but only a bit, on my part) disappointed that we didn't make the playoffs but happy and thankful for the hours and hours of entertainment we'd been given over the course of the season.

As the players came off the field after winning 7-4, ballpark staff handed them baseballs and pens. The players signed the balls, then tossed them into the crowd. I was up too high for one to reach me (though Lincecum hurled one pretty darn close), but next year, I'll remember this fun bit and maybe get closer. Didn't matter; I didn't need a souvenir baseball to remind me of a terrific day and a terrific season. I lingered at my seat, watching the players drift into the dugout, watching the grounds crew begin their post-game work, wondering if they stay on over the off-season and work the football games or if the football folks bring their own crew (a new football league will be playing in AT&T this year; hope they don't trash it!). Walked slowly out and down the ramp, checking out the stretch black limo waiting for someone (a player? front-office type? the investors?) and the team buses that were waiting to transport the Giants to the airport for their flight to San Diego. The season had ended at AT&T, but it wasn't over; there were three more games with the Padres starting the next night.

So, au revoir, AT&T; thanks for lots and lots of good times this year. See you in 2010!

(More on the end of the '09 season coming in the next post . . .)