“Fans jam downtown San Francisco to toast Giants' World Series title - CNN Sports Illustrated” plus 2 more |
- Fans jam downtown San Francisco to toast Giants' World Series title - CNN Sports Illustrated
- Fans give victorious Giants a heroes' welcome - KABC
- SF Giants: So many World Series heroes - San Francisco Gate
| Fans jam downtown San Francisco to toast Giants' World Series title - CNN Sports Illustrated Posted: 04 Nov 2010 01:40 AM PDT Confetti rained down as the Giants and other civic dignitaries passed through downtown San Francisco in motorized cable cars. AP SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Tens of thousands of baseball fans flocked downtown Wednesday to toast the San Francisco Giants' World Series championship and see their hometown heroes take a victory lap in a ticker-tape parade reminiscent of the one held when the team moved west from New York 52 years ago. "This is Christmas, New Year's and your first-born all rolled into one," said Steve Williams, 51, an usher at AT&T Park as he gathered with Giants employees at the start of the parade in the financial district. "I'm on cloud nine." Fans crowded the sidewalks and flooded Civic Center to salute a team of self-described misfits and castoffs. The die-hards showed up before dawn to stake out spots ahead of the festivity. Many skipped work and pulled their children out of school so they could catch what they said was a once-in-a-lifetime celebration. "I want to see all the hometown heroes and share the smiles of all the fans who've been waiting their entire lives for this," said Teddy Hutcherson, 31. Under a sunny sky, confetti rained on team members and civic dignitaries as they rode down the parade route in convertibles and cable cars on wheels. Street lamps were festooned with orange and black -- the team's colors. Large banners proclaimed the Giants as this year's World Series champions, as if the crowd needed to be reminded the team had won baseball's highest honor. City officials did not have a specific estimate of the crowd size. But Tony Winnicker, spokesman for Mayor Gavin Newsom, said officials "believe it is the largest parade and civic event turnout in the city's history." Marching bands, floats and costumed mascots added to the street party atmosphere as the parade moved from the financial district, then down Market Street to the Civic Center where Mayor Gavin Newsom presented the team a key to the city. "I've never seen anything like this is my life," center-fielder Andres Torres said as he greeted fans behind a barricade. "The parade has been amazing." Newsom was giddy as he described growing up a "fanatical Giants fan" and dreaming about playing for the team one day. "I thought I'd see [a World Series championship] in my lifetime, but never thought I'd see it as mayor," Newsom said. "It's incomprehensible that this happened." He swept aside talk of politics when asked about his victory in the state's lieutenant governor's race on Tuesday. "Nobody here cares about that, this puts it all in perspective," he said. Fans of Brian Wilson, the quirky reliever whose facial hair has become a local obsession, paid tribute to him by painting beards on their faces and wearing T-shirts that read, "Fear the Beard." He stoked the crowd by jumping up and down and giving people high-fives. Slugger Aubrey Huff, who threatened to unveil his lucky red thong at the parade, made good on his words by waving it at fans. They roared with deafening approval. He later pulled out the "rally thong" while addressing raucous fans at Civic Center. Fans climbed onto trees and streetlights to get a better view of the stage, the police unable to reach most of them over the crush of bodies. The scent of marijuana wafted in the air even though a ballot measure aimed at legalizing pot was defeated on Election Day. Wilson acknowledged the odor when he joked about having a heart attack. "I'm not sure where it's coming from, maybe from the electricity of the crowd or maybe from the smell of Prop. 19," he said, referring to the failed proposition. Giants greats Willie Mays and Willie McCovey were on hand for the ceremony, as was Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Former Journey singer Steve Perry, a Giants devotee whose hit song "Don't Stop Believin'" has become the team's anthem, waved from the stand as the song blared from speakers and the crowd sang along. It was the same spot beneath City Hall's orange-lit dome where fans gathered Monday night to watch an outdoor big screen television that captured the team's Game 5 win over the Texas Rangers. The Giants finally achieved World Series domination that eluded the team in 1962, 1989 and 2002. Giants President Larry Baer captured the fans' long anticipation for a victory after decades of game attendance at Candlestick Park and at the new home stadium, AT&T Park. "The triumph of this team allows us to flash back and connect to our past, to experience the beauty of our memories and shared experiences with unbridled joy," Baer said. "This day is a blessed reminder of a dream fulfilled for all of us," he said. Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Fans give victorious Giants a heroes' welcome - KABC Posted: 03 Nov 2010 03:18 PM PDT by Terry McSweeney and Leigh Glaser SAN FRANCISCO -- 2010 World Series champions, the San Francisco Giants, returned home to a heroes' welcome Tuesday morning in San Francisco. It is the first World Series title for the city by the bay since the franchise moved from New York in 1958. Fans lined up outside the Giants Dugout store at AT&T Park and at the Embarcadero, hoping to get some historic memorabilia. Some even stayed up all night. "I am going to get a Giants hat, a panda hat and a baseball cap," fan "Spike" said. They're after anything saying Giants are World Series champs."Get everything -- pennants, flags, anything they have with their logo I am going to get," fan Jasmine Suguitan said. Very early Tuesday morning at the ballpark, several hundred fans waited for hours to welcome home their heroes. At about 4 a.m. the buses loaded with players, coaches, managers and their families arrived. "Here we are in San Francisco, back home with the trophy," Giants managing general partner Bill Neukom said. Neukom paraded the trophy past the people he calls the best fans in baseball and the bone-weary players that touched off the celebration talked about the moment. "Words can't really explain it right now," Giants outfielder Cody Ross said. "We are having a great time, this is amazing," Giants pitcher Madison Baumgarner said. "To come back and have all of these fans waiting for us it's unbelievable. This is something we all dream about and right now we are living a dream," Giants Manager Bruce Bochy said. For all those thousands of players who played for the Giants since 1958 and never got a World Series win, this is closure. "We didn't get it done, we always dreamed about doing it. We always knew that the parade would be incredible and this is pretty special for all of us," former SF Giants pitcher Mike Krukow said. The MLB sticker is what makes the product authentic. If you are coming out to get some merchandise, give yourself some time because the lines are long as Giants fever sweeps the Bay Area. (Copyright ©2010 KGO-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Tags: san francisco giants, at&t park, world series, mlb, terry mcsweeneyThis entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| SF Giants: So many World Series heroes - San Francisco Gate Posted: 02 Nov 2010 12:31 AM PDT The beauty of the world champion San Francisco Giants - oh, do those words go well together! - was that heroes kept emerging at the most critical times from the most unexpected spots in the lineup. Pitching ace Tim Lincecum was masterful as usual in Monday night's climactic Game 5, but so was Texas pitcher Cliff Lee, and it was 0-0 in the seventh inning. Up came Edgar Renteria to assert himself as hero of the day with a three-run homer that put the Giants on their way to their first Series title since they moved to San Francisco from New York in 1958. Seasoned Giants fans, who had seen the team come so close but lose with its great teams of 1962 and 2002, knew not to celebrate until reliever Brian Wilson secured the final out. The Giants have had many superstars and pennant runs in San Francisco, but no ride quite as magical as this one, delivered by a cast that was unassuming, endearing - and uncanny in the clutch. The fans fed off the players' enthusiasm, and vice versa. The bandwagon filled and the drama built as the team kept coming back from the brink, time and again. By the time the Giants reached the playoffs, AT&T was the place to be, orange was the color of the season, and the exploits of Buster Posey, Pablo Sandoval and Juan Uribe became Topic A in dinner-party conversation everywhere. Rare was the e-mail in recent days that did not end with the cry, "Go Giants!" This was a championship that can be savored by all who did so much to build the San Francisco Giants tradition (Mays, McCovey, Marichal et al), those who worked so valiantly to save it in the 1990s, and this remarkable group of young players who gave us a season of thrills and, at long last, a World Series with a happy ending. This article appeared on page A - 15 of the San Francisco Chronicle This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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