October 8, 2026
October 8, 2026
2014 San Francisco Giants: Bumgarner
The San Francisco Giants are credited for having one of the most unique five-year runs in Major League Baseball history. They won the World Series in 2010 and 2012 while falling short in 2011 and 2013. The 2014 San Francisco Giants looked like a mixed bag up until the end of the regular season, when the team pieced everything together just in time to secure a Wild Card spot. The Giants went 88-74 in 2014, finishing in second place in the National League West division, six games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Giants went 9-10 against the Dodgers in head-to-head play.
Catcher Buster Posey batted .311 with 22 home runs and 89 RBIs off 170 hits and 28 doubles. Second baseman Joe Panik batted .305 with 82 hits and 10 doubles in 73 games. Center fielder Angel Pagan batted .300 with 115 hits, 21 doubles, and 16 stolen bases in 96 games. Third baseman Pablo Sandoval, nicknamed the “Kung Fu Panda,” batted .279 with 16 home runs and 73 RBIs off 164 hits and 26 doubles. Left fielder Mike Morse batted .279 with 16 home runs and 61 RBIs off 122 hits and 32 doubles.
Right fielder Hunter Pence batted .277 with 20 home runs and 74 RBIs off 180 hits, 29 doubles, 10 triples, and 13 stolen bases. Shortstop Brandon Crawford had 10 home runs and 69 RBIs off 121 hits, 20 doubles, 10 triples, and 5 stolen bases. First baseman Brandon Belt had 12 home runs in 61 games. Outfielder Gregor Blanco had 102 hits, 18 doubles, 6 triples, and 16 stolen bases in 146 games.
Finally having his breakout season, Madison Bumgarner was by far one of the most dominant starting pitchers in all of baseball in 2014. He went 18-10 with 219 strikeouts and a 2.98 ERA, recording 4 complete games and 2 shutouts. Tim Lincecum went 12-9 with 134 strikeouts, recording 1 complete game and 1 shutout. Jake Peavy went 6-4 with a 2.17 ERA. Tim Hudson had 120 strikeouts, a 3.57 ERA, and 1 complete game despite going 9-13. Ryan Vogelsong had 151 strikeouts, a 4.00 ERA, and 1 complete game despite going 8-13.
Sergio Romo was the definitive closer for the Giants, going 6-4 with 23 saves and a 3.72 ERA. Relief pitcher Jean Machi went 7-1 with 2 saves and a 2.58 ERA. Jeremy Affeldt went 4-2 with a 2.28 ERA. Javier Lopez posted a 3.11 ERA, and J.C. Gutierrez posted a 3.96 ERA.
The 2014 San Francisco Giants’ championship path began in October with a trip to face the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Giants traveled to PNC Park to play the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Wild Card Game on October 1, and San Francisco completely silenced the Pirates and their fans with an 8-0 shutout victory. Madison Bumgarner pitched a complete game, giving up 4 hits and 1 walk while recording 10 strikeouts. Brandon Crawford gave the Giants a thunderous start by blasting a grand slam home run in the top of the 4th inning. Brandon Belt had an infield RBI single in the top of the 6th, then added a 2-run single in the top of the 7th. Buster Posey had an RBI single in the top of the 8th.
The Giants then took care of the Washington Nationals in the National League Division Series, winning three games to one. The Giants won 3-2 in Game 1 on October 3 at Nationals Park. Joe Panik had an RBI single in the top of the 3rd inning, and Belt followed with an RBI single in the top of the 4th. Posey added an infield RBI single in the top of the 7th. Solo home runs from right fielder Bryce Harper and second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera were not enough for Washington.
The Giants then won 2-1 in Game 2 on October 4. Third baseman Anthony Rendon had an RBI single in the bottom of the 3rd inning. Fast forward to the top of the 9th, and Pablo Sandoval’s bat showed up with an RBI double. Fast forward again all the way to the top of the 18th, and Belt hit a solo home run to finally win it for the Giants. Game 2 lasted 6 hours and 23 minutes.
Back at AT&T Park for Game 3 on October 6, the Nationals beat the Giants 4-1. Catcher Wilson Ramos reached on an error after a bunt, which scored both shortstop Ian Desmond and Harper. Cabrera followed with an RBI single. In the top of the 9th, Harper hit a solo home run, and Crawford’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 9th wasn’t enough.
With a 3-2 victory in Game 4 on October 7, the Giants closed out the Nationals. Gregor Blanco drew a bases-loaded walk to score Crawford in the bottom of the 2nd inning, and Panik followed with an RBI groundout. Bryce Harper was the only offensive spark for Washington, hitting an RBI double in the top of the 5th and a solo home run in the top of the 7th. In the bottom of the 7th, Panik scored on a wild pitch, sending the Giants on to the next round.
The Giants then got reacquainted with the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Championship Series, but this time they took care of the Cardinals in short order, winning the series four games to one. In Game 1 on October 11 at Busch Stadium III, the Giants shut out the Cardinals 3-0. Madison Bumgarner pitched 7.2 innings and gave up 4 hits and 1 walk while recording 7 strikeouts. Travis Ishikawa had an infield RBI single in the top of the 2nd inning, and Blanco followed by reaching on an error to score Hunter Pence. Brandon Belt added a sacrifice fly in the top of the 3rd.
The Cardinals won Game 2 on October 12 by a score of 5-4. Third baseman Matt Carpenter hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 3rd inning, and right fielder Randall Grichuk followed with an RBI single. Pinch hitter Joaquin Arias had an RBI groundout in the top of the 5th, Pence had an RBI single in the top of the 6th, and Blanco had an RBI single in the top of the 7th, but pinch hitter Oscar Taveras hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 7th to start a St. Louis rally. First baseman Matt Adams hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 8th, and after Matt Duffy scored on a wild pitch in the top of the 9th, second baseman Kolten Wong hit a game-winning solo home run in the bottom of the 9th.
Two weeks later, on October 26, Oscar Taveras tragically lost his life in a car accident in the Dominican Republic. All of Major League Baseball mourned his loss.
Returning to AT&T Park for Game 3 on October 14, the Giants won 5-4. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Pence had an RBI double, and Ishikawa followed with a 3-run double. Wong had a 2-run triple in the top of the 4th, and shortstop Jhonny Peralta had an RBI single in the top of the 6th. After Grichuk’s solo home run in the top of the 7th, it took a bunt by Gregor Blanco, followed by his reaching on an error, to score the winning run — plated by Brandon Crawford.
In Game 4 on October 15, the Giants won 6-4. Adams had an RBI single in the top of the 1st, and Posey had a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 1st. In the top of the 2nd, catcher A.J. Pierzynski had an RBI single, and Peralta grounded into a double play in the top of the 3rd to score Matt Holliday. Wong then followed with a solo home run. In the bottom of the 3rd, Posey and Pence had RBI singles, and in the bottom of the 6th, Blanco grounded into a fielder’s choice to score left fielder Juan Perez. Panik added an RBI groundout, and Posey then had another RBI single.
The Giants put the Cardinals away with a 6-3 win in Game 5 on October 16. Jon Jay had an RBI double in the top of the 3rd, but Panik responded with a solo home run in the bottom of the 3rd. Matt Adams and catcher Tony Cruz both hit solo home runs in the top of the 4th, but pinch hitter Mike Morse answered with a solo home run in the bottom of the 8th, and Travis Ishikawa capped the series with a game-winning 3-run home run in the bottom of the 9th.
The 2014 World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the American League champion Kansas City Royals proved to be a classic encounter, as it took all seven games to determine the World Champions. In Game 1 on October 21 at Kauffman Stadium, the Giants won 7-1. Madison Bumgarner pitched 7 innings and gave up 3 hits, 1 walk, and 1 run while recording 5 strikeouts. In the top of the 1st, Pablo Sandoval had an RBI double, and Hunter Pence followed with a 2-run home run. In the top of the 4th, Mike Morse, as the designated hitter, had an RBI single, and Blanco drew a bases-loaded walk to score Brandon Belt. Panik had an RBI triple, and Sandoval had an RBI single in the top of the 7th. Catcher Salvador Perez’s solo home run in the bottom of the 7th proved meaningless.
The Giants suffered a pair of losses to the Royals, falling in Game 2 on October 22 by a score of 7-2, and then in Game 3 at AT&T Park on October 24 by a score of 3-2.
In Game 4 on October 25, the Giants came back to even the World Series at two games apiece with an 11-4 win. Pence had an RBI groundout in the bottom of the 1st, and Kansas City responded with RBI singles from first baseman Eric Hosmer, second baseman Omar Infante, and Perez in the top of the 3rd. In the bottom of the 3rd, Posey had an RBI single, and after Pence’s RBI single in the bottom of the 5th, Juan Perez followed with a sacrifice fly. Sandoval and Belt then had RBI singles in the bottom of the 6th. In the bottom of the 7th, Blanco had a bunt RBI single, and doubles from Panik and Pence followed.
In Game 5 on October 26, the Giants blanked the Royals 5-0. Madison Bumgarner once again dominated, pitching a complete game and giving up only 4 hits while recording 8 strikeouts. Brandon Crawford had an RBI groundout in the bottom of the 2nd, then returned in the bottom of the 5th with an RBI single. In the bottom of the 8th, Juan Perez had an RBI double, and Crawford followed with another RBI single.
The Royals then crushed the Giants in a 10-0 shutout win in Game 6 on October 28. However, in the deciding Game 7 on October 29, the Giants pulled out a 3-2 win behind the pitcher who had dominated the entire postseason. Madison Bumgarner came off just three days’ rest to pitch 5 innings in relief, giving up only 2 hits while recording 4 strikeouts and the save. In the top of the 2nd, Mike Morse and Brandon Crawford had sacrifice flies, and in the bottom of the 2nd, Alex Gordon had an RBI double and Omar Infante added a sacrifice fly to tie the game. Morse’s RBI single in the top of the 4th was all the Giants needed to complete a rare feat: winning three World Series championships in five years.
Named the Most Valuable Player of both the NLCS and the World Series, Madison Bumgarner firmly established himself as one of the best pitchers in postseason baseball history. The dominant run cemented the 2014 San Francisco Giants as one of the most memorable championship teams of their era.
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