As the San Francisco Giants surged late in the 2010 season, clinching the NL West on the final day of the regular season, my girlfriend and I decided to invest in 2011 season tickets. By doing so, we were able to secure 2010 playoff seats. We didn’t expect the Giants to go deep into the playoffs; after all, I can’t recall ever seeing a team with such a weak lineup win it all. But as the old saying goes, good pitching beats good hitting and wouldn’t you know it, the Giants bested the Braves and the heavily-favored Phillies, clinching the pennant and facing off against the hard-hitting Texas Rangers.
I’d waited a lifetime for my team to make it into the World Series. Being there at game 1, which was at home thanks to the National League winning the All-Star Game, was nothing short of surreal. The tricolor bunting, the bright lights, the cameras and then sellout crowd’s electric energy were like nothing I’d ever seen at a sporting event before. And to top it all off, we won!
We had no clue the Giants would win it all in five games. Being that games 3, 4 and 5 were in Texas, and being certain that if the Giants survived those games we’d be able to attend games 6 and, if necessary, 7, we decided to sell our game 2 tickets to pay for the rest of our playoff package. Turns out game 1 would be the last we saw of the 2010 World Series, as the Giants rolled through the Rangers and won it all in 5.
Little did we know that pretty much the exact same thing would happen again in 2012. We won it all in four games, sweeping the mighty Detroit Tigers. As we did in 2010, we had home field advantage after winning the All-Star Game. And as we did in 2010, we sold our tickets to the second game of the Fall Classic, sure that the Series would go six or seven games. So once again, we only got to see one game last year.
But oh, what a game! Pablo Sandoval had already homered twice by the time my girlfriend decided to grab some pulled pork nachos at a nearby concession stand. Realizing Sandoval was on deck, I ran after her to tell her to get back in her seat because something special might be about to happen. That’s when the ‘Kung Fu Panda’ swatted one deep to left field and out of the park, tying Albert Pujols, Reggie Jackson and the immortal Babe Ruth as the only players to ever hit three home runs in one World Series game.
If I never get to attend another World Series game as long as I live, it’ll be fine by me– I’ve already witnessed enough history in the two games I’ve been fortunate enough to attend to provide a lifetime of memories. Go Giants!