With the 2024 World Series starting up, unfortunately with the dreaded Dodgers in it, it is the 10 year anniversary of the San Francisco Giants last World Championship. A reunion was held at Oracle Park in August and  I started to reminisce about that team. I don’t know about you but that championship seems like only yesterday, never mind a decade ago. With the Giants having not won a world championship for their first 52 years in San Francisco,  suddenly the World Series was a bi-annual tradition on even years. Remember the term "BeliEVEN". To get a full picture of 2014, I wanted to look back at that year to set the stage of what it was like then and now.

2014 was almost a preview of what was still to come. Russia annexed Crimea which started hostilities with Ukraine. Hamas and Israel were engaged in hostilities. Ebola spread through West Africa and the world, with two cases reaching the United States. Rioting and looting after the police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson Missouri. Diplomatic relations resumed with Cuba and Barack Obama was in his 2nd term as President of the United States. Beloved San Francisco actor Robin Williams passed away. Ed Lee, who was a huge sports fan, was mayor of San Francisco. My wife and I were busy with 9 years old twins with all the events that come with young kids.  I was able to take my son to AT&T park during the World Series to soak up the atmosphere. While walking outside the ballpark we were able to get in a crowd shot behind the ESPN booth and get on T.V., A memory we will never forget. Retirement for me seemed distant. 

One thing I will never forget was the electricity around the city during those playoff runs. People always seemed happy and united during baseball, football and baseball championship runs. People actually communicate instead of looking at their phones. “ What’s the score”,  “ Go Giants”, “Go Niners”, and “Warrrriors” could be heard on the streets of the city and Bay Area. Baseball championship runs were special. In the city you couldn't pick a better time of year for a playoff run. Our true summer usually comes in October, with great weather. The Annual Fleet Week with the Blue Angels soaring through the air and rupturing eardrums. The Italian Heritage Parade and the smell of Italian food  in the air.   Everyone glued to the playoff games on  T.V.’ s in bars, phones or on radio’s. All of these things made these championship runs so special. 

After not winning a world championship for their first 52 years in San Francisco the Giants were on the verge of winning their third. World Series wins still were still not taken for granted. Nothing was routine during their 3 championships. They  were all scrappy teams. 2010 was the “torture” year. In 2012 they were the “come from behind kids” in the playoffs. 2014 was different, It was the year one Giants player put the team and city on his back for one final championship. 

In 2014 the The Giants backed into the playoffs losing 9 of their last 15 games but were able to capture the final wild card slot. I personally did not expect much in the playoffs, but The run was similar to the previous championship runs as they were not favored to win it all. The Giants defeated the favored Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals to get to the World Series. Pitching stalwarts Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain were out for the playoffs due to injuries.  The 2014 Giants won on the back of Madison Bumgarner with the help of Buster Posey. Bumgardner had an 18-10 record in the regular season with a 2.98 ERA. Mad Bum as he came to be known, had one of the most dominant runs in playoff and World Series history. He pitched 52 ⅔ innings with a 1.03 ERA, went 5-1 and had a 5 inning save in Game 7. His walk to the mound from the bullpen in the bottom of the 4th inning got into the heads of the Kansas City Royals. He had thrown a nine inning shutout against them in game 5. Bumgardner held the one run Giants lead for all five innings, despite a misplayed outfield hit that could have tied the game with two outs in the ninth. Mad Bum was able to get a pop foul to Pablo Sandoval to end the game for a tight 3-2 clincher. He was responsible for 3 of the Giants four World Series wins. The season ended on a rainy Halloween day in San Francisco. There was  wet confetti stuck to many people's clothes after a parade down Market Street to City Hall with Bumgardner as the World Series MVP and the Giants as champions again

After this review I changed my mind on it feeling like yesterday.  I realize now that the past ten years brought so much change to the city, the nation, and the world.  A one year Covid Pandemic and  lockdown, the turbulence of the Trump administration, the killing of George Floyd and the riots, protests and lawlessness that followed all turned the city, country and world upside down and  in retrospect seemed like a bad nightmare. 2010-2014  was a Golden Era of baseball in San Francisco. 2015-2022 wasn’t a bad run for the Warriors, but I am a baseball fan at heart and that is a subject for another blog.  My kids are now grown and in college, I am retired and my wife and I are empty nesters with more time on our hands. Although returning to part time work recently I have more time to focus on what I love, Art.  I have been blessed with a great family and  witnessed 12 world championships by the 49ers, Giants and Warriors and so many magical moments in San Francisco sports history. With this look back I believe the moral to my story is when those golden moments come around in life take a moment to smell the roses. Contrary to most Giants, 49ers and Warriors fans opinions, you can’t win it every year. Legendary performances only come around once in a lifetime. There is only one “The Catch”,  “Don Larsen's  perfect game”, “Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 point game”and only one dominant 2014 Madison Bumgardner. Thanks for reading