2012 NL West Division Champs SF Giants

Yesterday, in the world of a Die Hard San Fransisco Giants fan, it was a day that I have been waiting for all year.  If you did not catch the Giants game yesterday then you did not know that the Giants not only clinched a playoff berth but also a National West Division title.  The final out was a line drive off the bat of Mark Kotsay, into the glove of Angel Pagan, who has touched the hearts of many Giants fans.  After the game was over the players celebrated on the field for about a half and hour, including a victory lap around the field shaking the hands of many Giants fans.  After they were done partying on the field they then went into the locker room to party some more with bottles of champagne in hand.  One interview that stood out to me was  when the man with the beard (Brian Wilson) was asked about what makes this team go even through untimely injuries?  He responded with a very eloquent answer of, it is about buying into the culture of the San Fransisco Giants baseball and remembering that you need every person in that locker room to give their all in order to win.  He then went on to talk about the fact that when Hunter Pence and Marco Scutaro came over mid-season they realized that all of these players just want to win and the culture is  Just Win, if I can quote the Raiders Slogan.

The Giants were not the only team yesterday as the Cincinnati Reds were able to clinch the NL Central Division with a dominating 6-0 win over the LA Dodgers.

Giants Game Friday

Friday is going to be another very important game for the Giants as they push closer and closer to securing another Division Title.  The starting pitchers for Friday's game are for the Giants Matt Cain (13-5 2.96 era) vs. for the Diamonbacks Tyler Skaggs (1-1 4.43 era).  Going into tonight the Giants are 7 games up on the Dodgers and 10 games up on the Diamondbacks.  The Dodgers host the Cardinals tonight as Lance Lynn faces off against Josh Beckett.  The Diamondbacks have the night off as they get ready for a series starting tomorrow against the Giants.  Although Tim Lincecum was a little shaky again last night he kept the Giants in the game so that the offense could find a way to pull off a win.  Another thing as well is that Tim Lincecum is likely to reach 200 strikeouts for the 5th time in his career, he is currently at 177K's.  The offensive attack last night was led by a 5 run first inning keyed by Scutaro, Arias, Sanchez and Crawford.  The final score was 8-3 Giants.  The bad news is that Hector Sanchez got hurt sliding into home plate in the first inning and may be out for a couple of days to rest the shoulder.