National TV Schedule for SF Giants

At the moment, the SF Giants will appear on national television eight times in 2013. Seven with FOX Sports, and one with ESPN Sunday Night Baseball. ESPN also has the right to schedule last minute Sunday games for the second half of the season, so depending how the Giants are playing, we might see an extra game or two of the Giants on ESPN.

National TV Schedule:
Saturday, April 6 (Cardinals @ Giants) FOX Sports
Saturday, April 13 (Giants @ Chicago Cubs) FOX Sports
Saturday, May 4 (Dodgers @ Giants) FOX Sports
Sunday, May 5 (Dodgers @ Giants) ESPN
Saturday, June 1 (Giants @ Cardinals) FOX Sports
Saturday, July 6 (Dodgers @ Giants) FOX Sports
Saturday, August 10 (Orioles @ Giants) FOX Sports
Saturday, August 17 (Giants @ Marlins) FOX Sports

2013 SF Giants Batting Practice Cap by New Era

Hey, baseball is a major business, and one of their revenue streams is merchandising. So it shouldn't be to anyones surprise that a new batting practice cap will debut during spring training this year. According to New Era, the BP caps will have a more structured look - similar to the regular season caps. However, they're also lighter and have a breathable material unlike the regular season caps. Caps should be made available for sale in late February, so get your wallets ready!

The 2013 SF Giants Batting Practice Cap

Ranking the 2013 SF Giants Stadium Giveaways (SGA)

First, let us extend our kudos to the Giants brass for FINALLY increasing the quantity amount for the bobblehead giveaways. Not sure what took so long, but those long lines where fans would lineup hours in advance were uncalled for and absolutely ridiculous, especially for those that had little young ones inline too.

Okay, by now the true die-hards have already reviewed the 2013 Giants promotional schedule, and I'm sure most of them have even penciled in their calendar which games they must attend. So, as we did last year we're gonna rank the ones that will probably have the most appeal and demand.


The Must-Haves: Put anything with Posey's name on it, and fans will want it! A replica World Series ring will also be in high-demand, the LA Kings recently had a replica ring giveaway and those are selling on eBay for around $100!!! Yup, the rings will be huge! A snow globe in April?! Slap on the World Champions logo, and those will be in demand especially when only 20K are available. Gnomes?  Those were probably more popular last year than the bobbleheads - expect long lines for the Romo and Lincecum gnome giveaways. And for the giveaway that started all of the hype related to promo events, the bobbleheads will always be popular. Especially for first-timer Ryan Vogelsong ... Zito will have his second Giants bobblehead (first one was in 2007) hard to believe that it's taken six years for his second bobble head, but he did have a rough start with the club, but after last year's NLCS game 5 performance he's a legend now. Kudos to Zito!

• Buster Posey NL MVP Bobblehead, First 40,000 fans (Saturday, April 6 v. Cardinals)
• Giants World Series Replica Ring, First 40,000 fans (Sunday, April 7 v. Cardinals)
• Giants World Champions Snow Globe, First 20,000 fans (Tuesday, April 9 v. Colorado)
• Sergio Romo Gnome, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, May 5 v. Los Angeles)
• Giants Announcers Bottle Stopper, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, May 11 v. Atlanta)
• Barry Zito Bobblehead, First 40,000 fans (Sunday, May 26 v. Colorado)
• Ryan Vogelsong Bobblehead, First 40,000 fans (Saturday, June 22 v. Florida)
• Tim Lincecum Gnome, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, Sept. 7 v. Arizona)

Cool, I want one: These items feature some of the standard items, shirts, towels, fedora and banner. However, a few new ones are on the schedule too, such as the license plate frame, headphones, and sombrero. Again, anything with the World Champs logo will be in demand, and then the intrigue of some new giveaways will also increase demand.

• Giants World Champions Banner, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, April 21 v. San Diego)
• Giants World Champions License Plate Frame, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, May 4 v. Los Angeles)
• Giants World Champions Beach Towel, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, June 23 v. Florida)
• Giants Headphones, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, July 20 v. Arizona)
• Angel Pagan Knit Beanie, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, July 27 v. Chicago)
• Marco Scutaro T-Shirts, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, July 28 v. Chicago)
• Giants Plaid Fedora, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, Aug. 24 v. Pittsburgh)
• Giants Orange Sombrero, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, Sept. 7 v. Arizona)

Eh, I'll take one, but I won't wait in line for it: These items are standard on almost every promo schedule, the calendar, magnet schedule, adjustable cap, cards and drawstring backpack. The umbrella sounds cool, but it's probably one of those small ones that will fall apart with one strong wind gust. The charm necklace ... ehh, not for us either.

• Opening Day Calendars, First 40,000 fans (Friday, April 5 v. St. Louis)
• Magnet Schedule, First 20,000 fans (Monday, April 8 v. Colorado)
• Giants World Champions Umbrella, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, April 20 v. San Diego)
• Giants World Champions Charm Necklace, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, May 12 v. Atlanta)
• Giants World Champions Cap, First 20,000 fans (Saturday, May 25 v. Colorado)
• Drawstring Backpack, First 25,000 fans (Saturday, July 6 v. Los Angeles)
• Giants Trading Cards, First 20,000 fans (Sunday, July 7 v. Los Angeles)
• Virgin America 2-for-1 Flight Voucher, First 40,000 fans (Saturday, Aug. 10 v. Baltimore)

So there you have it ... the 2013 Giants promo schedule. We were hoping they would list another statue giveaway ... it should be Juan's turn on getting one of those. Anyways, if they're any items that seem of interest to you ... get your tickets ASAP. If 2011 was any indication, tickets will be hard to come by so don't wait to get your tickets!!

Where Are They Now: Kurt Ainsworth (2001-03)

As much as we love baseball, there are times when baseball can show it's cruel side. The cruel side is when a player with a lot of talent is unable to compete because of injuries - we this happen every season. And without question, the Giants have had their share of players that showed flashes of brilliance only to be curtailed by nagging injuries. In our view, Kurt Ainsworth is on top of that list. Kurt was drafted by the club in 1999 amateur draft in the first round (24th pick) after playing collegiately at Louisiana State University. After signing, Kurt spent the '99 season with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes of the Class A Northwest League, where he started 10 games and accumulated a record of 3-3 and an ERA of 1.61.

In the 2000 season, Kurt played for the Shreveport Captains (AA) of the Texas League where he went 10-9 with an ERA of 3.30 and 130 strikeouts in 158 innings. The following year, he started with Class AAA Fresno Grizzlies of the Pacific Coast League where he went 10-9, with an ERA of 5.07 in 27 games. Later that season, Kurt was called up to the Big Club and made two relief appearances.

The following year is when Kurt's physical ailment started impacting his performance. He started the season in the starting rotation and went 5-4 in 11 stars with a 3.82 ERA, but started experience inflammation in his shoulder. He was placed on the DL on June 3, and made a rehab start on June 15 but was pulled after two innings. It was later determined that his shoulder blade was broken. As the Giants were making another run to the playoffs following their disappointing World Series performance, the club traded Kurt and Damian Moss to Baltimore for Sidney Ponson. At the time of the trade, Ponson was having a Cy Young Award year, he had a record of 14-6 with a 3.77 ERA. He appeared to be the strong arm the club needed at the time, but once he arrived to the City he floundered by posting a record of 3-6 in 10 starts.

Kurt didn't fare any better once he was in Baltimore, he made only 10 appearances in a two-year span before finally retiring from the game. His last Major League appearance was on May 10, 2004 after having a heralded amateur and minor league career. What we liked about Kurt was his competitiveness on the mound, he reminded us of Orel Hershiser. Clearly, he had the stuff to succeed on the Major League level, but his body simply wouldn't allow him to compete. Several other pitchers (Jesse Foppert, Noah Lowry) from the 2003 Giants club also suffered physically that limited their careers.

Where is he now? Though Kurt is no longer playing, he's still involved with the game. In 2002, Kurt was co-founder of Marucci Sports, and has maintained a leadership position with the company following his retirement. Marucci is manufacturer of premium baseball equipment, most notably metal and wood bats. Their wooden bats with the iconic slanted "M" logo is one of the most popular bats used by Major Leaguers today. In fact, several current Giants use Marucci, and Ryan Vogelsong often wears their hat during postgame interviews.

Marucci Sports: CBS This Morning Interview

Kurt Ainsworth: 2000 Bowman Rookie Card

Kurt Ainsworth pitching at AT&T Park

Network Baseball Theme Music

The other day, we saw a replay of the 1989 NLCS featuring our beloved SF Giants and the Chicago Cubs. In 1989, the NLCS was aired on NBC Sports, and for years they had a baseball theme music that started and ended every broadcast. Growing up, whenever we heard that music, we knew a baseball game was about to start on the television set ... it was baseball's version of Pavlov's dogs. When NBC lost their rights to broadcast Major League games, we grew up listening to the baseball theme music of other networks. 

Some of the other theme music were pretty good, but for our money the NBC baseball theme will always resonate with us as being the best. Listed below are the respective network baseball theme music ... take a listen, which one is your favorite?

NBC Sports - Baseball Theme

ABC Sports - Baseball Theme

CBS Sports - Baseball Theme

FOX Sports - Baseball Theme

ESPN - Baseball Theme

This Week in Baseball - Baseball Theme

CSN Bay Area - Giants/A's Theme

SF Giants and Football

On the eve of the NFC Divisional game featuring our hometown Niners v. Packers, we thought about past Giants that had a close link to football. We thought of one player in particular ... can you name the former Giant that played quarterback for his college football team?

Answer is available here.

2011 Blackout: Steelers v. 49ers

Matt Kemp Loves San Francisco

So as we wait for the NFC Divisional game (49ers v. Packers) that's slated for this Saturday, we couldn't help notice that the one and only Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers is a die-hard SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS fan.

We can't wait to hear Matt Kemp utter the words, "It's the San Francisco 49ers show so far."

Matt Kemp at a Phoenix Suns Game Last Year

Matt Kemp - San Francisco 49ers Die Hard

Where Are They Now: Joe Strain (SF Giants 1979-80)

Yeah we know ... Joe who? Joe Strain is not often mentioned in the same sentence as Jack Clark, Darrell Evans, Mike Ivie, et al from the 1979 and 1980 seasons, but for some odd reason his name has always resonated with us. Strain only played for three seasons, two of which with the Giants, and one with the Chicago Cubs. He was strictly a role player that played second base backing up Rennie Stennett, and his offensive numbers are not going to dazzle you by any stretch. In his two years with the Giants, Strain had one home run, 28 RBI, batted. 260 in 446 at-bats.

After the 1980 season, Strain was traded to the Cubs for Jerry Martin and Jesus Figueroa. Strain started the 1981 season as the Cubs second baseman, but his year in Chicago ended up with him being released on June 2, 1981.

One of the interesting tidbits about Strain is that he was in a punk-rock band with two other San Francisco players, and they were called the "Giants Prospects."  John Tamargo was on drums, Greg Johnston on bass, and Strain on vocals and guitar. From what we can gather, they weren't very good ... just a good way to blow off some steam on the road in the minors. A copy of their band flyer is included below, made to depict a baseball card.

It's unclear what Strain did after being released in '81, but he returned to the Giants organization and became the manager of the short-season class A team in the Northwest League in Everett, Washington from 1984 to 1990.

Currently, Strain resides in Colorado and is the West Coast Scouting Supervisor for the Giants and had a lot to do with putting together the 2010 and 2012 World Championship teams. In fact, he was the scout that signed Sergio Romo!

Strain Running the Bases During Spring Training

The Punk Rock Band - "Giants Prospects"

Where Are They Now: Marc Hill (SF Giants 1975-79)

Marc who? Yeah, you're not gonna find Marc Hill's plaque on the Giants Wall of Fame on the exterior wall of AT&T Park on King Street. However, he's one of those obscure players that we remember fondly while growing up following the Giants. Maybe its because of his 1979 Topps baseball card  (see below). We don't know where that photo was taken, but that field needs a huge John Deere lawn mower for a good cut.

Hill arrived to the Giants via a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals in October 1974 for Ken Rudolph (C) and Elias Sosa (RHP). Sosa actually ended up having a 12-year career as a middle reliever and had some solid seasons playing for the Dodgers and Expos.

Hill played six years for the Giants and usually split catching duties with Mike Sadek and or Milt May. His best year was in 1977 where he belted nine home runs and 50 RBI while batting .250. In 1980, he was purchased by the Seattle Mariners and played sparingly. After that year, as a free agent he signed with the Chicago White Sox, and would spend the next six years with the Southsiders as a backup catcher. He retired after the 1986 season.

In the subsequent years, Hill managed and coached at the following clubs and locations:

1987 - manager of White Sox's minor league team in Daytona Beach
1988 - coach with Houston Astros
1989-1991 - bullpen coach for New York Yankees
1992 - manager of New Port News (White Sox minor league club)
1993-1994 - manager of Seattle Mariners AA team
1995-1997 - manager of Carolina Mudcats (Pittsburgh Pirates minor league club)
1998-2002 - roving catching instructor for Pittsburgh Pirates
2003 - manager of the River City Rascals

After the 2003 season, Hill officially retired from the game and currently resides in Elsberry, Illinois. Hill lists Tony LaRussa and Dave Duncan as close friends, most notably because he played for LaRussa when he played in Chicago.

Marc Hill's 1979 Topps Card

Marc Hill Taking BP at Dodger Stadium

In Memoriam: Gary Carter, Pedro Borbon, Alexis Busch

This past year will go down as one of the all-time great seasons for the SF Giants ... that happens when you win the World Series. Who would have ever thought we would have two World Championships in a three-year span? We are still amazed. However, while we enjoy the fruits of this past season, it's important to remember those that were a part of the club at one time or another that are no longer with us. In our view, any one that puts on a Giants uniform will always be remembered, so with that, we honor three individuals that past away in 2012.

Gary Carter  - Catcher (SF Giants: 1990)

Pedro Borbon - RH Reliever (SF Giants: 1979)

Alexis Busch - Bat Girl (SF Giants: 1999-2002)

SF Giants Players Music Choices and Stadium Music List

We often receive inquiries from fans on a player's walk up music. Typically, they just want to know who sings it. So, with a little research we have compiled the music of choice for 2012 SF Giants, plus we gathered the songs that are typically played at the yard in between innings.

Enjoy!

Angel Pagan: Blue by Gemini
Aubrey Huff: Superstar by Saliva
Barry Zito: Doo Rags by Nas
Brandon Crawford: Writer's Block by Royce Da 5'9; Lord Knows by Drake
Brett Pill: I'm Broken by Pantera
Brian Wilson: Jump Around by House of Pain
Buster Posey: Hell on Wheels by Brantley Gilbert
Clay Hensley: Wherever I May Roam by Metallica
Dan Otero: Stop Science
Eli Whiteside: The Ocean by Led Zeppelin
Emanuel Burriss: Function by E40; Faded by Tyga; Untouchable by Rick Ross; Up! by Loverance
Freddy Sanchez: Black and Orange by Bailey
Gregor Blanco: Welcome to Jamrock by Damian Marley; Blue by Gemini
Hector Sanchez: Corazones by Daddy Yankee
Hunter Pence: A Warrior's Call by Volbeat
Javier Lopez: Coastin' by Zion I
Jeremy Affeldt: Fireproof by Pilar
Jose Milares: Lovumba by Daddy Yankee
Madison Bumgarner: Bad Company by Five Finger Death Punch
Marco Scutaro: Danza Kuduro by Don Omar
Matt Cain: Whistlin' Dixie by Randy Houser
Melky Cabrera: Crazy People by Pitbull; Right Above It by Lil Wayne
Pablo Sandoval: Dance by Big Sean; N**** in Paris by Jay Z and Kanye West; Wild Boy by MGK; The Motto by Drake
Ryan Theriot: I Wanna Rock by Luther Campbell; Push It by Salt-N-Pepa
Ryan Vogelsong: Metalingus by Alter Bridge
Santiago Casilla: Mi Roca Y Mi Castillo by Entre Mar Y Cordillera
Sergio Romo: El Mechon by Banda MS; Wherever I May Roam by Metallica
Tim Lincecum: Loud by Mac Miller

STADIUM SELECTIONS
Song 2 by Blur
Bye Bye Baby
300 Violins by Jorge Quintero
Don't Stop Believing by Journey
Lights by Journey
Twist & Shout by Isley Brothers
Summer Wind by Frank Sinatra
I Left My Heart in San Francisco by Tony Bennett
You Dropped a Bomb On Me by Gap Band
Fist Pump Song by HardKnox

Our Holiday Wish to SF Giants Nation

This holiday we want the lonely to find company; sick to gain health; sad to find levity, unemployed to find work; broken-hearted to endure; and another San Francisco Giants World Championship parade down Market Street in 2013.

Happy Holidays to you and yours. Go Giants!

The Sons of Johnnie LeMaster

Our Wish List of 2013 SF Giants Promo Items

Each season the SF Giants compiles a promotional calendar to entice the masses to attend a game and walk away with a nifty souvenir (aka the stadium giveaway) to take home compliments of (fill in the name of any sponsor). In recent years, the bobbleheads have been all the rage, and this past season the gnome giveaways leapt over the bobbleheads as the must-have giveaway items.

Now with the club fresh off a 2012 World Championship, it's safe to say we'll have a 2013 promo calendar themed around the World Championship. Sure, we'll get the good old standard giveaways: calendar, schedule magnet, cap, baseball cards, and few bobbleheads tossed in. But how about something different?

Here's our list of giveaway items that we would schedule if we were in charge of the promo schedule ...

• Inflatable replica of the Commissioner's Trophy ... fans could bring this to every home and ROAD games - especially down in LA. We could remind all opponents who the defending champs are!
• Replica National League MVP trophy - let's celebrate with Buster by having a replica trophy can we can hang on to.
• Continuing on the trophy theme ... have a replica World Series MVP trophy day in honor of Pablo.
• Again, with the trophy theme ... have a replica National League Championship Series MVP trophy day in honor of MARCOOOOOOOO ... SCUTARO!
• World Championship themed FatHead stickers that we can take to Kinko's and put on cardboard stock to bring them to the games.
• Juan Marichal replica statue ... you know this is gonna happen.
• Cow bells with the World Championship logo ... can you imagine the bleachers ringing the cow bells when Matt Holliday is playing LF!? "Holllllliday!" 
• Plastic batting helmet with the World Champs logo ... what happened to those plastic helmets?! They use to give them out a the 'Stick! Maybe some fans actually used them as a batting helmet in a game :-/
• Wrist bands with the caricature of Buster Posey, Mr. MVP! Remember when ball players had wrist bands with their likeness on them?!
• SF Giants World Champs Twitter themed shirt with #RallyZito #RallyVogey #RallyBum #RallyCain #RallyEnchiladas
• Another SF Giants shirt that says, "It's the San Francisco Giants show so far!" @therealmattkemp
• Hat clips with World Champs logo
• And finallllly ... World Champs logo thongs for the ladies (and for Aubrey Huff)!!!!

Whatcha all think? Awesome, right!? We should work for the promo department.

Our Fearless Offseason Predictions for the SF Giants

Well, it appears we have Jeremy Affeldt back into the fold after hearing that he had agreed to terms (3yrs for $18M) with the club. That's the market for middle relievers folks ... nice work if you can get it.

But we digress ... so how will the rest of the roster look heading into spring training of next year.

So here's the list of SF Giants that are either free agents or arbitration eligible:

FREE AGENTS:

• Melky Cabrera: He earned $6M this past season, but the club wants no part of this act or circus for 2013 ... he'll sign with another club for 2-yr deal worth around $8-10.
• Freddy Sanchez: He earned $6M this past season to essentially work out in Phoenix and then fly up to SF for some postseason games to watch from the dugout. Freddy, thanks for 2010, but adios!
• Angel Pagan: we think he's looking for "Aaron Rowand money" <gasp> ... we got chills just typing that. But coming off a World Championship he's looking to cash in ... we think he'll sign elsewhere for a three-year deal.
• Ryan Theriot: the man that Marco Scutaro replaced. I'm sure he's looking for a starting job somewhere, and SF doesn't appear to be a fit. If he's willing to return as a backup, the Giants will sign him, but that seems unlikely.
• Guillermo Mota: he earned $1M this past season ... even though he was suspended, he still has value as low cost alternative. Our guess the Giants will sign to another one-year deal just under $1.5M.
• Marco Scutaro: we expect the club to resign him to a two-year $17M deal, with a club option for a third year.

ARBITRATION ELIGIBLE:

• Brian Wilson, last year of arbitration: our guess is that BWeezy will be wearing a new uniform next season. He earned $8.5M in 2012, and take only a slight pay cut for 2013. The risk is too great for the Giants to resign him ... they'll let him walk.
• We expect the following guys to have some raises next season ... Santiago Casilla, Sergio Romo, Buster Posey, and Gregor Blanco.

FEARLESS AND BOLD HOT STOVE MOVES

• We expect the Giants to get a CF via trade, so this is our forecast ... drum roll please ... the Giants will trade Tim Lincecum to Boston for Jacoby Ellsbury.
• LF will be platooned by Blanco and Gary Brown.
• The club will look for an inexpensive fifth starter, think Jason Marquis or a return of Kevin Correia.
• The team will look for another middle reliever, think Joe Rauch on a two-year deal worth around $6-7M.
• A trade of one of the two Brandons will take place to bolster either the 1B or SS position.

So that's it! This is what we guess will pan out in the weeks and months to come. How close will we be, who knows, but you'll know changes are a coming. What are your guesses on what might happen in the offseason?

SF Giants Championship Parade Tips

Anyone else still in disbelief that we won our second World Championship in three years?! It's as if the baseball gods have parted the clouds, and said San Francisco it's now your turn to shine on the big stage. We are still speechless and in awe on what has happened in the past month. No one will ever forget this postseason run. Now, we get to all enjoy this great season by celebrating with World Championship parade ... this never gets old. So having said that, here are some parade tips for those of you that plan on attending the parade.

1. Time, time, time ... build in extra travel time to your schedule. We cannot stress this enough. In 2010, approximately 1 million fans lined the parade route, so get up early and arrive to the city as soon as possible.
2. Weather ... this time around it's going to be a bit chilly, so dress accordingly.
3. Shoes ... this sounds like a no-brainer, but please wear comfortable WALKING shoes, you will be on your feet all day. If you have a pair of running/walking shoes, wear those!
4. Pack a bag ... it's going to be difficult to navigate getting from one place to another once the parade starts. So bring a backpack that includes some drinks and snacks. Every Walgreens is going to be packed ... so don't rely on getting in and out of there in a few minutes.
5. If you live really far away ... we would even suggest getting a hotel room in the city for tonight. Sounds crazy, but it's totally worth it ... it will save you a lot of time and headaches.
6. Festive ... it's a time to celebrate, so bring a good attitude and a lot of patience, the city is going to be packed for everyone.
7. Have fun ... we hope there are more championships parades in our future, but enjoy this one!

Last add, for those of you that attended the parade in 2010, the parade route for this year has changed. They are NOT going down Montgomery Street like they did in 2010. Instead they will start at the foot of Market and Steuart streets (see map below).

Courtesy of the San Francisco Chronicle

World Series Game 4 - A Day of Reflection

Today has the chance of being a magical day for all SF Giants around the world, and while we wait for Game 4 to start. We can't help but reflect on those great SF Giants that are no longer around to enjoy what can be a tremendous day. So we ask that you take a moment and think about those Giants that tried valiantly to help us win a World Championship, but came up just a bit short. We can only hope they have a front row seats with the rest of the baseball gods.

Rod Beck
Jose Uribe
Miguel Del Toro
Chris Brown
Matty Alou
Alex Busch
Sue and Harmon Burns

NLCS Game Dates and Times

GAME DATE LOCATION TIME
NLCS Game 1 Sunday, October 14th AT&T Park 5:15 p.m. PT
NLCS Game 2 Monday, October 15th AT&T Park 5:07 p.m. PT
NLCS Game 3 Wednesday, October 17th @ STL 1:07 p.m. PT
NLCS Game 4 Thursday, October 18th @ STL 5:07 p.m. PT
NLCS Game 5* Friday, October 19th @ STL 5:07 p.m. PT
NLCS Game 6* Sunday, October 21st AT&T Park 1:45 p.m. PT
NLCS Game 7* Monday, October 22nd AT&T Park 5:07 p.m. PT 

61 Years Ago Today, The World Saw the Original Walk-Off Home Run

Perfect Storm: Planning Your Postseason Trip to AT&T Park

**UPDATED**

San Francisco will be the nexus of the "perfect storm" of sporting events, concerts, and other annual events this weekend as the Giants march towards the 2012 postseason.

As the number 3 seed, the San Francisco Giants will host the Cincinnati Reds for games 1 and 2 of the non-wild card National League Divisional Series, this weekiend on October 6-7. On the surface of things, that sounds great, two games over a weekend ... there is one problem, err, several other problems. It's also the same weekend of the following other events and activities scheduled in or around the city:

• AC World Series Regatta (Oct. 2-7) SF Bay
• Fleet Week (Oct. 4-8) SF Bay
• Hardly Strictly Bluegrass (Oct. 5-7) at Golden Gate Park
• Arizona v. Stanford football (Oct. 6 at noon) at Stanford Stadium
• UCLA v. Cal football (Oct. 6 at 7 p.m.) at Memorial Stadium
• Justin Bieber concert (Oct. 6 at 7 p.m.) at Oracle Arena
• Madonna concert (Oct. 6 at 8 p.m.) at HP Pavilion
• Bills v. 49ers  (Oct. 7 at 1:15 p.m.) at Candlestick Park
• Castro Street Fair (Oct. 7) at Castro District
• Italian Heritage Parade (Oct. 7) Fisherman's Wharf to North Beach
• Madonna concert (Oct. 7 at 8 p.m.) at HP Pavilion

Sooo, if you have tickets to the Divisional Series ... plan ahead, allow for extra time for travel. We encourage everyone to use BART, SF Muni, and other means of public transportation. It's gonna be a crazy weekend, so save yourself a headache and leave early! GO GIANTS!

Predict Which Game the SF Giants Clinch the NL West

Okay, we're gonna have a little contest here. The first individual to correctly guess which game the Giants clinch the NL West title will receive one of our coveted limited-edition shirts in 2013.

So, go ahead and guess ... when are the Giants gonna clinch the NL West?