Part 2 of the San Francisco Giants Article
That was posted on Friday September 12, 2025
Before the 2010 season, the Giants unveiled a new orange alternate uniform to be used on Friday home games. Initially, this design was similar to the home uniform save for a trim change to cream, but in 2011, the sleeve patch was changed to the one previously used on the team’s road uniform. In 2014, the orange alternate were tweaked slightly, adding black piping and a new sleeve patch featuring the interlocking “SF” logo, and returning to the script “Giants” lettering previously used in the late 1970’s. This design is usually paired with a black cap with orange brim featuring the “SF” logo.
Road Alternate
Between 2012 and 2019, the Giants wore a second gray road uniform. This design was similar to the primary roads, but with the “SF” in place of the city name (a nod to the 1983 – 1993 road uniforms).
City Connect
In 2021, Major League Baseball and Nike introduced the “City Connect” program, with teams wearing special uniforms that reflect the pride and personality of their community. The Giants’ version is a white base with orange accents, featuring the stylized “G” in an orange / white gradient. The gradient represents the San Francisco fog that envelops the Bay area many months per year. An orange silhouette of the Golden Gate Bridge is printed on the sleeves. The uniform is paired with an all – orange cap with the “SF” in orange with white trim. The uniforms are usually worn on Tuesday home games. In 2025, Nike announced they were making changes to the “City Connect” program, the Giants are confirmed to be changing their “City Connect” uniform for the 2025 Major League Baseball season.
On April 8th, 2025, the Giants unveiled their City Connect 2.0s. They are called a “remix”. The jerseys are a dark gray / black, and feature “Giants” in a script wordmark outlined in a purple and orange gradient. The sleeves will feature a special glove design which says “San Francisco Giants Est 1958” in a style which is very reminiscent of San Francisco rock music posters from the 1960’s. Also on the jersey are the waves which the team is calling “sound waves” which are “pressed like grooves on vinyl” that permeate the jersey. Front jersey numbers are orange, in a whimsical font. The hat highlights the “SF” in the same font, with a gradient bill. The pants are white with gradient piping.
Rivalries
The Giants’ rivalry with the Los Angeles Dodgers dates back to when the two teams were based in New York, as does their rivalry with the New York Yankees. The Dodger and Giants rivalry is one of the longest and fiercest rivalries in sports history. Their rivalry with the Oakland Athletics (now Athletics baseball club) dates back to when the Giants were in New York and the A’s were in Philadelphia and played each other in the 1905, 1911, and 1913 World Series, and was renewed in 1968 when the A’s moved from Kansas City and the teams again played each other in the earthquake – interrupted 1989 Bay Bridge World Series. The Giants share a divisional rivalry with fellow National League West member Arizona Diamondbacks. The 2010 NLCS inaugurated a Giants rivalry with the Philadelphia Phillies after confrontations between Jonathan Sanchez and Chase Utley, and between Ramon Ramirez and Shane Victorino. However, with the Phillies dropping off as one of the premier teams of the National League, this rivalry has died down since 2010 and 2011. Another rivalry that has intensified recently is with the St. Louis Cardinals whom the team has face four times in the NLCS.
The rivalry between the New York Giants and the Chicago Cubs in the early 20th century was once regarded as one of the most heated in baseball(22), with Merkel’s Boner leading to a 1908 season – ending matchup in New York of particular note. That historical rivalry was revisited when the Giants beat the Cubs in the 1989 National League Championship Series, in their tiebreaker game in Chicago at the end of the 1998 season, on June 6th, 2012, in a “Turn Back The Century” game in which both teams wore replica 1912 uniforms, and in the 2016 National League Division Series in which the Cubs won.(23)
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Giants – Dodgers rivalry is one of the longest – standing rivalries in team sports.(10)
The Giants – Dodgers feud began in the late 19th century when both clubs were based in New York City, with the Dodgers based in Brooklyn and the Giants playing at the Polo Grounds in upper Manhattan. After the 1957 season, Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley decided to move the team to Los Angeles primarily for financial reasons(24). Along the way, he managed to convince Giants owner Horace Stoneham (who was considering moving his team to Minnesota) to preserve the rivalry by taking his team to San Francisco as well(24). New York baseball fans were stunned and heartbroken by the move(24)(25). Given that the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco have long been competitors in economic, cultural and political arenas, their new California venues became fertile ground for transplantation of the ancient rivalry. In the wake the of Giants’ and Dodgers’ leaving New York, a new ballclub was born in 1962 in Queens: The New York Mets. The team’s colors (blue and orange) were an homage to the recently departed teams.
Both teams’ having endured for over a century while leaping across an entire continent, as well as the rivalry’s growth from cross – city to cross – state, have led to its being considered one of the greatest in sports history.(26)(27)(28)
The Giants – Dodgers rivalry has seen both teams enjoy periods of success at the expense of the other. While the Giants have more total wins and head – to – head wins in their overall franchise histories, the Dodgers have more total wins and wins since the two teams moved to California in 1958. The Dodgers have also won the National League West 14 more times than the Giants since the start of division play in 1969. Both teams have made the postseason as a National wild card three times. The Giants won their first world championship in California in 2010, while the Dodgers won their most recent world title in 2024. As of the end of the 2024 baseball season, the Los Angeles Dodgers lead the San Francisco Giants in California World Series triumphs, 7 – 3, whereas in 20th – century New York, the Giants led the Dodgers in World Series championship, 5 – 1. Overall, the two franchises are tied 8 – 8 in total World Series championships.
Oakland Athletics
A geographic rivalry with the cross – Bay American League Athletics greatly increased with the 1989 World Series, nicknamed the “Battle of the Bay”, which Oakland swept (and which was interrupted by the Loma Prieta earthquake moments before the scheduled start of Game 3 in San Francisco). This dates back to when the Giants were in New York and the Athletics in Philadelphia. They met in the 1905, 1911, and 1913 World Series. In addition, the introduction of interleague play in 1997 has pitted the two teams against each other for usually six games every season since 1997, three in each city (but only four in 2013, two in each city). Before 1997, they played each other only in Cactus League spring training.
Their interleague play wins and losses (63 – 57 in favor of the A's) have been fairly evenly divided despite differences in league, style of play, stadium, payroll, fan base stereotypes, media coverage and World Series records, all of which have heightened the rivalry in recent years(29). The intensity of the rivalry and how it is understood varies among Bay Area fans. A’s fans generally view the Giants as a hated rival, while Giants fans generally view the A’s as a friendly rival much lower on the scale. This is most likely due to the A’s lack of a historical rival, while the Giants have their heated rivalry with the Dodgers. Some Bay Area fans are fans of both teams. The “split hats” that feature the logos of both teams best embodies the shared fan base. Other Bay Area fans view the competition between the two teams as a “friendly rivalry”, with little actual hatred compared to similar ones such as the Subway Series (New York Mets vs. New York Yankees), the Red Line Series (Chicago Cubs vs. Chicago White Sox) and the Freeway Series (Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Los Angeles Angels).
The Giants and A’s enjoyed a limited rivalry at the start of the 20th century before the Yankees began to dominate after the acquisition of Babe Ruth in 1920, when the Giants were in New York and the A’s were in Philadelphia. The teams were managed by legendary leaders John McGraw and Connie Mack, who were considered not only friendly rivals but the premier managers during that era, especially in view of their longevity (Mack for 50 years, McGraw for 30) since both were majority owners. Each team played in five of the first 15 World Series (tying them with the Red Sox and Cubs for most World Series appearances during that time period). As the New York Giants and the Philadelphia A’s, they met in three World Series, with the Giants winning in 1905 and the A’s in 1911 and 1913. After becoming the San Francisco Giants and Oakland A's, they met in a fourth Series in 1989 resulting in the A’s last world championship (as of 2024).
New York Yankees
Though in different leagues, the Giants have also been historical rivals of the Yankees,(30)(31)(32) starting in New York before the Giants moved to the West Coast. Before the institution of interleague play in 1997, the two teams had little opportunity to play each other except in seven World Series: 1921, 1922, 1923, 1936, 1937, 1951 and 1962, the Yankees winning the last five of the seven Series. The teams have met five times in regular season interleague play: in 2002 at the old Yankee Stadium, in 2007 at Oracle Park (then known as AT&T Park), in 2013, 2016, and 2023 at the current Yankee Stadium, and in 2019 at Oracle Park. The team’s next regular season meeting will occur yearly, with the advent of the balanced schedule format introduced in 2023.
In his July 4th, 1939, farewell speech ending with the renowned “Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth,” Yankee slugger Lou Gehrig, who played in 2,130 consecutive games, declared that the Giants were a team he “would give his right arm to beat, and vice versa”.(33)
Baseball Hall of Famers
As of 2024, the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame has inducted 66 representatives of the Giants (55 players and 11 managers) into the Hall of Fame, more than any other team in the history of baseball.
Other
The following inducted members of the Hall of Fame played or managed for the Giants, but either played for the Giants and were inducted as a manager having managed the Giants, or managed the Giants and were inducted as a player having never played for the Giants:
* Cap Anson – inducted as player, managed Giants in
1898
* Hughie Jennings – inducted as player, managed the
Giants from 1924 to 1925
* Bill McKechnie – inducted as manager, played for
Giants in 1916
* Frank Robinson – inducted as player, managed
Giants from 1981 – 1984
* Casey Stengel – inducted as manager, played for
The Giants and A’s enjoyed a limited rivalry at the start of the 20th century before the Yankees began to dominate after the acquisition of Babe Ruth in 1920, when the Giants were in New York and the A’s were in Philadelphia. The teams were managed by legendary leaders John McGraw and Connie Mack, who were considered not only friendly rivals but the premier managers during that era, especially in view of their longevity (Mack for 50 years, McGraw for 30) since both were majority owners. Each team played in five of the first 15 World Series (tying them with the Red Sox and Cubs for most World Series appearances during that time period). As the New York Giants and the Philadelphia A’s, they met in three World Series, with the Giants winning in 1905 and the A’s in 1911 and 1913. After becoming the San Francisco Giants and Oakland A's, they met in a fourth Series in 1989 resulting in the A’s last world championship (as of 2024).
New York Yankees
Though in different leagues, the Giants have also been historical rivals of the Yankees,(30)(31)(32) starting in New York before the Giants moved to the West Coast. Before the institution of interleague play in 1997, the two teams had little opportunity to play each other except in seven World Series: 1921, 1922, 1923, 1936, 1937, 1951 and 1962, the Yankees winning the last five of the seven Series. The teams have met five times in regular season interleague play: in 2002 at the old Yankee Stadium, in 2007 at Oracle Park (then known as AT&T Park), in 2013, 2016, and 2023 at the current Yankee Stadium, and in 2019 at Oracle Park. The team’s next regular season meeting will occur yearly, with the advent of the balanced schedule format introduced in 2023.
In his July 4th, 1939, farewell speech ending with the renowned “Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth,” Yankee slugger Lou Gehrig, who played in 2,130 consecutive games, declared that the Giants were a team he “would give his right arm to beat, and vice versa”.(33)
Baseball Hall of Famers
As of 2024, the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame has inducted 66 representatives of the Giants (55 players and 11 managers) into the Hall of Fame, more than any other team in the history of baseball.
New
York Gothams/Giants
Ford C. Frick Award recipients
Other
The following inducted members of the Hall of Fame played or managed for the Giants, but either played for the Giants and were inducted as a manager having managed the Giants, or managed the Giants and were inducted as a player having never played for the Giants:
* Cap Anson – inducted as player, managed Giants in
1898
* Hughie Jennings – inducted as player, managed the
Giants from 1924 to 1925
* Bill McKechnie – inducted as manager, played for
Giants in 1916
* Frank Robinson – inducted as player, managed
Giants from 1981 – 1984
* Casey Stengel – inducted as manager, played for
Giants from 1921 to 1923
Broadcasters Russ Hodges, Lon Simmons, and Jon Miller are permanently honored in the Hall’s “Scribes & Mikemen” exhibit as a result of winning the Ford C. Frick Award in 1980, 2004, and 2010 respectively. As with all Frick Award winners, none are officially recognized as an inducted member of the Hall of Fame.
Broadcasters Russ Hodges, Lon Simmons, and Jon Miller are permanently honored in the Hall’s “Scribes & Mikemen” exhibit as a result of winning the Ford C. Frick Award in 1980, 2004, and 2010 respectively. As with all Frick Award winners, none are officially recognized as an inducted member of the Hall of Fame.
San Francisco Giants Part 3 will be posted on
September 19, 2025
