In late January my wife and I made the rather spontaneous decision to spend our April vacation in San Francisco. Flights were booked, AirBNB was sorted, and tickets to see the Giants were swiftly purchased (of course).
This was our second visit to the States, having been to New York City two years ago for our honeymoon. That trip
involved a game at Yankee Stadium, our first experience of live baseball, and it was everything I had wanted from my maiden ballpark adventure, after waiting close to a decade to get there.
California was our destination this time and we experienced what the West Coast had to offer for just over a week. Seeing a ballgame was obviously a huge motivational factor for me, and I was lucky that the Giants were in the midst of a long homestand whilst we were there.
Via StubHub, I opted for a pair of tickets a few rows behind the visitor’s dugout, for a Thursday night matchup against the Colorado Rockies, the first of a four-game set. We flew into the city late on the Tuesday, so waiting until the Thursday night gave us a day to acclimatize and get our bearings. The Giants were the hometown team so naturally earned our support but I was secretly excited to see Nolan Arenado and some of the other Rockies key players.
We began the day slowly, as first pitch wasn’t until 6:45, so we had all day to relax and take our time getting to the park. Before our flight I had reached out to Giants fans on Twitter for local recommendations and must-see elements around the recently renamed Oracle Park, and got a lot of great feedback.
One of the recommends at the top of my list was
The American Grilled Cheese Kitchen on South Park Avenue. I’ve always viewed the grilled cheese sandwich as a fundamental part of the American diet, so I wasn’t going to miss out on this opportunity. We enjoyed our grilled cheese outside as the weather was decent, and I spent a lot of time commenting on all the different Giants gear we were seeing as fans passed us by on their way to the park.
My wife tolerates my hobbies with a level of patience and engagement that borders on superhuman. She is amazing.
For many years I’ve had a soft spot for the Giants, and have always felt their colors, uniforms and stadium are among the best in baseball. I’m an Indians fan first and foremost but I’m also a huge admirer of the sport in general, so I have no reservations buying gear from other teams. This is why I can often be found wearing caps from teams like the Giants, but also the Mariners, Blue Jays, Padres and some others. I even have Yankees and Red Sox gear (but don’t tell anyone…)
After finishing lunch we crossed the street to grab a drink in
21st Amendment Brewery, a popular brewpub with a variety of craft beers and ales on offer, and another recommendation from the Giants’ Twitter community. With hours still to go before first pitch, we were able to get a seat relatively easily and I turned my attention to their board of beers on draft. Sticking with the baseball theme I opted for the Opening Day IPA and we took our time with our drinks, savoring the pre-game atmosphere beginning to build.
Before long we were back on the street and walking towards beautiful Oracle Park, home of the Giants since 2000. The 41,915 capacity stadium has been one of my bucket list ballparks since I first discovered baseball, and finally seeing it in the flesh was worth the wait (and on a gorgeous sunny day as well.)
The first order of business was a lap around McCovey Cove (named after
the late Giants legend Willie McCovey) to take in the surroundings and see the bay. We took a leisurely stroll but soon found ourselves at Willie Mays Plaza, the stadium’s primary gate, and I spotted a nearby wall plaque dedicated to McCovey.
I paused to take a picture and began telling my wife about his legacy in San Francisco, when an elderly security guard entering the stadium walked behind us. He must have heard me rambling because he paused to speak to my wife, and asked if I was a fan of McCovey. She said yes and the kind gentleman gave her a button pin adorned with McCovey’s famous 44 and his nickname “Stretch” printed beneath, and asked her to give it to me. I was busy taking a photo of the plaque so only half aware of this going on, but when I realized I waved to him down the street and shouted my thanks. It was such an unexpected display of kindness and I pinned the badge to my jacket immediately.
I proudly wore it the rest of the night. The little things can go a long way.
Thanks to a stranger’s generosity we were in high spirits when we stopped to marvel at the iconic Willie Mays statue, and took our photos together under the sculpture. Mays is rightly considered the most famous of all past and present Giants, the man most synonymous with the franchise, and his face and number 24 are found all over Oracle Park. I had packed his authorized biography for the trip,
written by James S. Hirsch, and have enjoyed learning about the legend’s career, considered one of the best to ever play the game.
With Mays fresh in our mind we entered the Giants Dugout, their official store set within the stadium. I was instantly drawn to a display featuring retro Willie Mays jerseys and shirts, but sadly they were either too expensive or not in my size. Together we slowly browsed the immense racks of merchandise and my wife came very close to buying a stylish top in the women’s section. She also had a lot of fun at the expense of Giants’ ace Madison Bumgarner and his unique surname. Overall the shop had everything you could ever want as a Giants fan and I had already spotted some items that I would return to for future purchasing.
By this time it was getting close to the gates opening and I was eager to start exploring the park. We queued up with a handful of others and before long we were inside, among the first group of fans to get in. We began by heading towards right field to view that luscious green lawn from Levi’s Landing, where
home runs occasionally travel overhead and splash into the bay behind, where keen kayakers are ready to pounce on the floating balls.
From right field we gradually headed toward the bleachers, and took in the sights and sounds of Oracle Park before the light of day disappeared. It was still very pleasant in the sun, and we enjoyed being inside the stadium so early, with barely anyone around us - it felt like we had the place to ourselves.
It wasn’t long before an usher remarked on my Indians cap, and they were astonished when I explained I wasn’t even from Cleveland. Every single person we met that night, fans and staff alike, could not have been nicer and were very impressed we had made the trip from England. Exactly why this Englishman chose to support Cleveland often confused them, and things were made more complicated with my wife beside me in her Yankees cap.
After our visit to see the Yankees play the Tigers
two years ago, my wife chose The Evil Empire as her team and it stuck. Ever since that day she’s been fiercely loyal to the Bronx Bombers and, like me, wanted to represent her team. I’ve always loved that baseball fans can comfortably represent their clubs even in stadiums their teams aren’t playing in, and it really adds to the community and family appeal of the sport - you would get sneers and concerned looks if you did the same thing at a football game in Europe.
One usher remarked that he’d never seen such a lost couple, a Clevelander and New Yorker in San Francisco for a Giants game. When we explained we were English and on vacation, it only went some way to reassuring him that we weren’t totally crazy.
We continued touring the grounds and browsed a few of the internal stores (“From the Clubhouse” behind home plate was filled with game-used memorabilia and I got to hold some splintered bats).
With the players busy on the field with their pre-game warm-ups, we ventured down to get closer to them. The Rockies were stretching and throwing at the time so we got to see Nolan Arenado, Charlie Blackmon and Trevor Story among others. We also had another friendly chat with an usher, who was unsuccessful in his bid to persuade the nearby ballboy to collect a foul ball beyond our reach. My wife was most disappointed at being so close, yet so far.
There were only a small group of Rockies fans hunting for autographs and selfies around the dugout so we had a relatively unobstructed view of the players, and I definitely got a kick out of being within touching distance of the field and seeing these guys pass us by in the flesh.
From field-level we journeyed upwards, to the upper decks where we could see the entire park and the picturesque views of Oakland and the bridge across the bay. It was a beautiful vista and worth travelling 5,000 miles to see. The walk to the top of the stadium had worked up an appetite so our attention soon turned to food.
San Francisco’s renowned garlic fries were quickly ordered, along with chicken tenders, and we located our seats. Before committing to our tickets I had considered all the other vantage points, including the upper decks looking down on the diamond (similar to our Yankees experience.) Ultimately I decided to treat ourselves and I spent a little more on section 106, close to first base, and once we sat down I instantly knew I had made the correct decision. We tucked into our food, spilled sauce on my jeans, and added another layer of clothing to combat the fresh breeze blowing in off the bay. It certainly brought the temperature down a notch.
First pitch was now just moments away and we got our first look at the Giants starting pitcher, Jeff Samardzija. The 34 year-old was making his third start of the season and still in search of his first win. The veteran got off to an impressive start by retiring the Rockies lineup with relative ease. Rockies starter Jon Gray was equally sharp, working around a pair of singles from Steven Duggar and Buster Posey to escape the 1st inning unharmed.
The game quickly developed into a pitcher’s duel and raced along at an incredible pace. Samardzija and Gray were frugal on the mound but the game was far from boring, as there were just enough hits and close plays to keep things interesting and maintain our attention.
By the 7th inning Samardzija was still pitching well, and set down the Rockies in order with minimal fuss. You felt he could have gone all the way but the big right-hander has only recently recovered from shoulder issues that plagued him towards the end of 2018, so it was understandable that Giants manager Bruce Bochy was protective. Samardzija’s day was done, with 7 innings pitched, 7 strikeouts, and just 3 hits and 1 walk given up, with the score still tied at 0-0.
If he had any hope at earning the victory, the Giants’ offense needed to put a run on the board that inning to break the scoreless tie.
Step forward Kevin Pillar.
Newly acquired from the Blue Jays just a week prior, Pillar stepped to the plate for his new team hitless that night. The San Francisco faithful had already taken to the Californian native, after he had collected a total of 9 RBI in the Giants’ previous three games, and Pillar was keen to break the deadlock and keep his scoring streak alive.
He didn’t have to wait long, turning on Gray’s first pitch of the inning, a loopy breaking ball left up in the zone and the perfect pitch for Pillar to crush. The ball shot off his bat and my wife and I were instantly on our feet.
“Go, go, GOOOOOOO!” we screamed, and the ball sailed into the night and over the heads of the Rockies outfielders, clearing the wall in deep left-center field; Just like that it was 1-0 Giants and we were on our feet in jubilation, as Pillar rounded the bases for his third home run of the season, and third in San Francisco. We must have looked quite a sight, a Yankees fan and an Indians fan jumping up and down for the Giants! I celebrated the end of the inning with hot dogs, this time avoiding any ketchup or mustard hitting my jeans.
The Rockies could not muster a response to the Pillar homer and went hitless for the rest of the game. Giants reliever Tony Watson entered the 8th inning in relief of Samardzija and had no issues retiring the side in order. Giants closer Will Smith took over in the 9th inning and only experienced one brief heart-in-mouth moment.
Charlie Blackmon led off the inning for Colorado and hit a sharp line drive headed for turf in right field. That was until Giants second baseman Joe Panik reached to his left with a spectacular dive and pulled off the catch of the night. Panik fully extended his body to snag Blackmon’s liner and my wife and I had the perfect view of it, completely unobstructed and just feet away. I was still stood applauding Panik for a long time after he had dusted himself off. It was a brilliant piece of play from the 28 year-old and my most memorable moment of the night.
Nolan Arenado was the Rockies’ last hope but the superstar slugger could only flyout to left field for the final out, securing Smith his fourth save of the year and the Giants win. Samardzija earned his first victory in almost a year (his last win came against the Angels on April 20, 2018!)
With the final out we departed our seats and cheered the Giants players off the field, before a short walk and a BART train back to our neighborhood. Overall the both of us enjoyed an unforgettable day and I can comfortably say Oracle Park is one of the most scenic stadiums I’ve ever been to.
We had such a great time that we actually returned a few days later to take the guided tour. We were able to walk through the clubhouse, batting cages, both dugouts and visit one of the expensive suites. The highlight was getting the opportunity to stand on the field and I was absolutely in my element - I certainly didn’t want the day, and the trip, to end.
All things must come to an end though, so I’ll leave you with some photos from the stadium tour, in the glorious San Francisco sunshine. If you ever get the chance to visit, I highly recommend doing so, it’s a ballpark every baseball fan will love.
Even Dodgers fans (there were two of these lost souls on our tour)
