San Francisco Giants - Brief History
Since the late 1800s, the San
Francisco Giants called New York home until they moved to San Francisco,
California in 1958, playing in Seals Stadium. The team relocated to a
new stadium in 1960 to Candlestick Park. In 1962, the SF Giants were
led into the World Series by Skipper Alvin Dark but the team came just
short of winning the series. Over the next decade or two, the Giants
entered the World Series a few times, each time falling short of victory.
In 1981, Frank Robinson became the manager of the Giants, becoming the
first African American manager in the National League. Eight years later,
the Giants were back in the World Series for the first ever all-Bay Area
World Series featuring the Oakland A’s versus the San Francisco Giants.
A half hour before Game 3 was due to start in San Francisco; a 7.1 earthquake
hit the Bay Area, collapsing a section of the Bay Bridge, the symbol
of the 1989 World Series. Although Candlestick Park suffered only minimal
damage, Game 3 was postponed till further notice, then picked up ten
days later in which the Oakland A’s went on to defeat the Giants.
Later in 1994, the Giants became the first sports team to host an AIDS benefit
game, “Until There’s A Cure” Day. This event is repeated each year to
raise money for AIDS education, care, and research. The Giants relocated
to a new stadium in 2000 with the opening of Pacific Bell Park. The next
year, Barry Bonds beat the homerun record by hitting 73 homeruns that
season. In January, 2004 Pacific
Bell Park changed its name to SBC Park, then to AT&T
Park in March of 2006.
