[ Golden Gater Online - September 16, 1997 ]
It was October 3, 1993, and the San Francisco Giants entire season had come down to one game against the hated Los Angeles Dodgers. Just as it had October 3, 1962, when the Giants defeated the Dodgers to win the National League pennant. Just as it had on October 3, 1951, when an immortal home run by Bobby Thomson -- the storied "Shot Heard 'Round the World" -- beat the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Unfortunately, unlike the storybook endings of years past, the final Giants/Dodgers series of this season does not fall on the final weekend, but rather tomorrow night (7:35 p.m.) and Thursday afternoon (12:35 p.m.) at the park formerly known as Candlestick, in what ESPN has called "the most exciting series of the year."
That is because both the Giants, and their arch-nemesis Dodgers are involved in another pennant race this year, one that has every chance to finish on the last day of this season (Sept. 28). With the Giants and Dodgers locked in a dead heat for first place, and only 11 games remaining on the schedule, these two games could determine the division winner.
And you, dear reader, have a chance to attend one or both games and witness history. Of course all Giants fans worth the salt in their tears from past heartbreaks (and there have been many) inflicted by our beloved Giants will be there. But even if you're a casual fan, don't you owe it to yourself -- and to the Giants -- to support the home team?
In a season where nobody picked the scrappy Giants to finish above last in their division (particularly following the ill-perceived Matt Williams trade last November), the team has far exceeded the expectations of any rational thinking person. In a 162-game season, the Giants have spent 125 days in first place, including a remarkable run of 110-consecutive days between May 10th and August 28th.
Still, the Giants remain the Rodney Dangerfield of baseball. For a team on top of its division, the Giants are last in the National League in attendance. While the league average in attendance is 28,523, the Giants have only been averaging an embarrassing 19,439 a game. As contenders, the Giants are on pace for 1.6 million total attendance; a full one million fans less than their 1993 season. If the Giants win their division, they will have done it while being outscored by their opponents, and will have the dubious honor of having the lowest full-season attendance of any postseason participant since the '79 Pirates.
I mean, come on, even those smarmy, cheese-eating southern Californians known as Dodger fans -- you know, the same ones we guffaw at on television, as they seemingly always arrive to the park late, and depart early -- are packing their stadium with an astonishing 40,569 fans a game, more than double the Giants average attendance. All for a Dodgers team which has spent the majority of the season trying to catch up to the Giants, and who once trailed the Giants by as many as six games at the All-Star break.
Well, they have caught up now. So, you have no excuses. If you choose to do the right thing, and miss class, the ballpark is practically in our own backyard. When you leave campus, simply take Ocean Avenue to 280, and head over to 101 south. It takes all of ten minutes to get there, and tickets cost as little as $3 for a bleacher seat (sold the day of the game only) right behind three-time MVP Barry Bonds.
Just go there, and support your local team. If nothing else, go and blow the froth a couple of cold ones. With any luck, it is very probable that you will get the chance to see Bonds hit a game-winning homer off Wednesday's Dodger pitcher Hideo Nomo. Or maybe you will witness that dream showdown of mustachioed Giants closer Rod Beck (the NL saves leader with 35), staring in at the catcher, looking for the signs, as he faces the white-hot Mike Piazza (.365, home runs) with the game on the line. As the 1997 Giants marketing slogan has promised since day one: "Hey, it's Giants baseball...Anything can happen!"