New York Giants (baseball)

The New York Giants were a Major League Baseball team that played in the National League from 1883 until 1957. They started as the New York Gothams and became known as the Giants in 1885. After the 1957 season, the team moved to San Francisco and became the San Francisco Giants, continuing their story there.

For most of their time in New York City, the Giants played at the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan. Many famous players, like Christy Mathewson, Willie Mays, and John McGraw, helped the team win many games and championships. Some of their best moments include winning the 1922 World Series and Willie Mays’s amazing catch in the 1954 World Series.

The Giants had strong rivalries with other New York teams, especially the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers. These exciting games were called the Subway Series. Over their years in New York, the Giants had a record of winning over six thousand games.

History

Early days

The New York Giants began as a baseball team called the Gothams in 1883. They joined the National League seven years after it started. The team was founded by John B. Day and Jim Mutrie. Players from another team, the Troy Trojans, joined the Gothams. After a big win, Mutrie called the team his “big fellows” or “Giants,” and the name stuck.

The team played in the Polo Grounds, a stadium built for polo. Later, they moved to another part of the Polo Grounds closer to Washington Heights. The Giants were very successful in the late 1880s, winning two National League pennants and two World Series championships. However, many players left to join a new league, the Players' League, in 1890, which hurt the team.

The John McGraw era

In 1902, John McGraw became the manager and led the Giants for many years. Under McGraw, the team won nine National League pennants and three World Series championships. Famous players during this time included Christy Mathewson, Mel Ott, and Willie Mays.

One famous moment happened in 1954 when Willie Mays made an amazing catch in center field during the World Series. The Giants won the series that year, sweeping the Cleveland Indians.

1930–1957: Five pennants in 28 seasons

In the 1930s and 1940s, the Giants won several more pennants under managers like Bill Terry and Leo Durocher. Willie Mays joined the team in the 1950s and helped them win the 1954 World Series.

1957: Move to California

By the mid-1950s, the Giants’ home stadium, the Polo Grounds, was old and not well kept. The team decided to move to San Francisco in 1957, along with the Brooklyn Dodgers moving to Los Angeles. This marked the end of the New York Giants, and the team became the San Francisco Giants.

Rivalries

Main article: Subway Series

Brooklyn Dodgers

Main article: Dodgers–Giants rivalry

The Giants and the Dodgers have had a strong rivalry for over 100 years. It started when they played each other in 1889, even before New York and Brooklyn became part of the same city. Later, both teams moved to California after 1957, continuing their rivalry between San Francisco and Los Angeles.

New York Yankees

Main article: Giants–Yankees rivalry

The Giants and the Yankees were also rivals because they both played in New York and shared the same field. They met in the World Series six times, with the Yankees winning most of those games. The last time they met in the World Series was in 1962, after the Giants moved to San Francisco.

Baseball Hall of Famers

Other

Some famous baseball players and managers who are in the Hall of Fame played or managed for the Giants. Some of them played for the Giants but were honored for managing other teams, or managed the Giants but were honored for playing on other teams.

• Cap Anson – honored as a player, managed the Giants in 1898.
• Hughie Jennings – honored as a player, managed the Giants from 1924 to 1925.
• Bill McKechnie – honored as a manager, played for the Giants in 1916.
• Frank Robinson – honored as a player, managed the Giants from 1981 to 1984.
• Casey Stengel – honored as a manager, played for the Giants from 1921 to 1923.

Retired numbers

See also: List of Major League Baseball retired numbers

The New York/San Francisco Giants have retired 11 numbers. Two numbers were retired when the team was in New York. After the team moved west, they retired three more numbers from New York players and honored two New York players who played before numbers were commonly used.

Every New York Giant whose number was retired is in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

In 1944, Carl Hubbell (#11) became the first National League player to have his number retired by his team. Bill Terry (#3), Mel Ott (#4), and Hubbell all played or managed their whole careers with the New York Giants. Willie Mays (#24) started in New York and moved with the Giants to San Francisco in 1958.

Also honored are John McGraw (3B, 1902–1906; manager, 1902–1932) and Christy Mathewson (P, 1900–1916), who played for the New York team before numbers were used; they have the letters "NY" instead of a number.

Broadcaster Russ Hodges (1949–1957) is represented by an old-style radio microphone instead of a number.

Team captains

The New York Giants had ten official team leaders over the years. These leaders included Jack Doyle in 1902, Dan McGann from 1903 to 1907, Larry Doyle from 1908 to 1916, Gus Mancuso from 1937 to 1938, Mel Ott from 1939 to 1947, and Alvin Dark from 1950 to 1956.

Season records

Further information: List of San Francisco Giants seasons

Home stadiums

The New York Giants played at several home stadiums over the years. These included Polo Grounds I, Oakland Park, St. George Cricket Grounds, Polo Grounds II, and Polo Grounds III. During a fire in 1911, they temporarily used Hilltop Park as their home field.