Playing in their beautiful ballpark at the edge of an urban marina, the San Francisco Giants have emerged as a baseball powerhouse in recent years. But looking back over the team’s complete history in the Bay Area, where it moved from New York in 1957, the history has probably had more valleys than peaks. In fact, author Robert Garratt emphasizes that it’s been a “turbulent” history, which has included two near-moves away from California and the Giants’ former stadium, often-cold and windy Candlestick Park. The story of the Giants in San Francisco is not only that of a leader in signing Latino players, and the first Japanese player in the Major Leagues, but of the owners, politicians, and businessmen who played roles in the franchise’s beyond-the-diamond history.
Here’s an excerpt from Home Team:
“While Candlestick Park fell considerably short of the stately pleasure dome that [team owner Horace] Stoneham had hoped for, his Giants prospered there during the 1960s. In their first ten years in San Francisco the team drew well at the gate, averaging 1.3 million fans a year. It was for good reason: the Giants were phenomenally successful on the field, winning more games in the decade than any other National League team. While they had only one pennant to show for their efforts, they were competitive in every pennant race during that period, finishing second five times. In consecutive years, 1965 and 1966, they lost out in the last days of the season – both times to their bitter rivals, the Dodgers – stoking fan interest but also frustration. During their first ten years in San Francisco, the Giants might have been termed the greatest team never to win a world championship.”
