San Francisco Giants

I have nothing against the San Francisco Giants—in fact, I don’t particularly care about them one way or the other. I’m sure they’re nice people, and they’re certainly a very good baseball team.

But, while San Francisco’s successes and failures don’t rouse my passions as an Indians and Red Sox fan, their victory Sunday afternoon irked me as a baseball fan because of the domino effect it had on the playoff scene.

The San Francisco Giants are going to the playoffs for the first time since the ill-fated 2003 campaign.

Officially.

And the tortuous 2010 regular season really couldn't have ended any other way.

When the Giants swept the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier this week, the clincher seemed like a formality.

It took until the last game of the season, but they did it.  Now, it’s the same as if they’d won the division by 10 games, so bring on the Braves!

It feels like it’s been more than six years since the last time the Giants made the playoffs.  We had to put up with some pretty bad seasons from 2005 through 2008, but it’s all worth it now.

Giants clinch NL West; A look back at the Giants season

San Francisco vs San Diego
With 2 strikes and 2 outs on Will Venable, Brian Wilson knew he couldn't give up a hit and the momentum. So he decided to pitch a high fastball. 

And it worked like a charm.

They're back. After a seven-year absence from the postseason, the Giants hosting the wild-card wining Atlanta Braves in an upcoming Division Series. It has been a roller coaster of a season for the team by the bay.

In early July the Giants were in fourth place in the NL West and 4.5 games back. Then, after taking a three game lead, they dropped two to San Diego (SD was 12-6 this season against SF) and had to go to the final game of the season to clinch their berth. But they did it—and hope to follow it up with a World Series ring.

The San Francisco Giants eliminated the San Diego Padres with their 3-0 victory today, which makes them the NL West champions for the first time since 2003.

The Giants finished the 2010 regular season with a 92-70 (.568) record, earning the third seed in the NL. The Atlanta Braves, in turn, claimed the wild card spot. 

Therefore, the official 2010 playoff seeding and schedule are finalized. 

So, without further ado, here it is.

In the 'Year of the Pitcher,' the batters never stood a chance.

There were five no-hitters thrown (but really six), including two perfect games. There were also nine one-hitters, and a major-league debut that featured 14 strikeouts by a certain Stephen Strasburg.

Several pitchers, among them Felix Hernandez, Roy Halladay, and Ubaldo Jiminez, have had so many jaw-dropping performances this year that they could populate this top 10 list all by themselves.

But 2010 was no ordinary year. It was the pitcher's year.

The San Diego Padres have been a thorn in the Giants side all year.

With the exception of the Giants winning three out of four against the Padres in San Diego last month, the Padres have an 8-2 record against the Giants in the other 10 games.

That's why it's not enough to just win the division and sit back while Atlanta drops three straight to the Phillies; letting the Padres sneak in as a wild card against a resting Giants.

Andres Torres has been one of the best stories around Major League Baseball this season. He has been a journeyman for his entire career, and was virtually unknown. 

Now, his name is most likely spoken in almost every home belonging to a Giants fan. He has been one of the best clutch players on the Giants, 

Tonight, a showdown in San Francisco could pop the top off of what up until now may have been this year’s most underrated story in sports: the San Francisco Giants clinching an MLB postseason appearance for the first time since the Barry Bonds era.