2010 San Francisco Giants season
In the first game of their NLDS against the Atlanta Braves, Tim Lincecum struck out fourteen in a 1–0 victory over Derek Lowe, setting a franchise postseason strikeout record.
The team then went through a rough stretch, losing two out of three to the Mets before getting swept by the NL West leading San Diego Padres.
They recovered a bit by sweeping the Astros, and splitting a two-game series with the Padres but then went on a five-game losing streak before snapping it with a win over the Washington Nationals.
On June 30, the Giants traded Bengie Molina to the Texas Rangers, clearing the way for Buster Posey to become the everyday catcher.
But the Reds came back to tie it in the top of the 9th after Drew Stubbs reached 2nd base on a throwing error by Pablo Sandoval, and Brian Wilson gave up a game-tying single to Paul Janish.
Though the Giants got the tying run to third base on singles by Sandoval and Mike Fontenot in the bottom of the inning, they did not score and lost the game 12–11.
The Giants pitching staff posted historic numbers for the month of September, going a record 18 straight games giving up 3 runs or less.
They lost the first two games by scores of 6–4 and 4–2 before clinching the NL West with a 3–0 win on the final day of the regular season, finishing with a 92–70 record.
Tim Lincecum tossed a complete game two-hit shutout and struck out a franchise postseason record 14 in the opener as the Giants won 1–0.
In game two, the Giants took a 4–0 lead behind Matt Cain's stellar pitching and Pat ("The Bat") Burrell's first inning three-run homer.
Right-hander Peter Moylan relieved Dunn and induced a grounder from Buster Posey which bounced through Conrad's legs, the second baseman's third error of the game.
He held the lead, giving up a single to Brian McCann but retiring Nate McLouth on a grounder to end the game and earn a clutch save.
Brian McCann answered with another in the bottom of the inning off Giants' rookie starter Madison ("Mad Bum") Bumgarner to take back the lead.
The first was a ball hit in the hole he didn't field cleanly with the speedy Andrés Torres running, earlier in the game.
With one out, Giants closer Brian Wilson walked Rick Ankiel and Eric Hinske to put the potential tying and winning runs on base.
Behind two home runs by NLCS MVP Cody Ross and a strong start from Tim Lincecum, the Giants won Game 1, 4–3.
Four pitches later, however, Sandoval lined a two-run double sharply into the left-center field gap, scoring Burrell and Ross and giving the Giants a 5–4 lead.
Juan Uribe, batting for Wilson, followed with a sacrifice fly to deep left field that scored Huff with the winning run.
Sánchez led off with a single, and took second when leadoff man Andrés Torres' long fly to the wall in center was dropped by Shane Victorino.
Freddy Sanchez sacrificed the runners to second and third, and Aubrey Huff hit a single up the middle, which scored Sánchez before Victorino nailed Torres at home.
Manager Bruce Bochy then called on starter Madison Bumgarner, who survived two rocky innings without allowing a run, and Javier López, who retired the side in order in the seventh.
He struck out Werth after falling behind 2–0, but then yielded back-to-back singles to Victorino and Raúl Ibáñez, prompting Bochy to bring in closer Brian Wilson.
First baseman Huff then atoned for a critical Game 5 error by gloving a sharp line drive from Carlos Ruiz and easily doubling off Victorino at second to end the inning.
In the bottom of the ninth Wilson got pinch-hitter Ross Gload to ground out, but then walked leadoff man Jimmy Rollins.
Lee wasn't sharp, though, and gave up seven runs, one of them unearned because Rangers manager Ron Washington had gambled on putting veteran slugging designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero ("Bad Vlad") in AT&T Park's super-spacious right field which he simply could not cover and misplayed more than one would-be single into extra bases.
Behind a solo home run by superstar slugger Josh Hamilton and an earlier three-run blast by rookie first baseman Mitch Moreland in support of a strong start by Colby Lewis, the Rangers defeated Jonathan Sánchez in Game 3, 4–2.
Designated hitter Huff in the third (with a man on) and catcher Posey in the eighth hit home runs, while Bumgarner pitched eight shutout innings as the Giants won 4–0, Wilson finishing up in a non-save situation.
Shortstop Édgar Rentería, who had hit a walk-off single in Game 7 off Cleveland's Charles Nagy to win the 1997 World Series for Jim Leyland and his Florida Marlins in extra innings, now came to the plate.
His two years with San Francisco had been considered a major disappointment, marred by injuries and slumps, but here in the World Series he became an unlikely hero by launching a three-run homer to left.
After Nelson Cruz answered with a solo homer in the seventh, Lincecum shut the door on the Rangers, giving up just three hits and striking out ten in eight innings of work.
