Sure, we can talk about Texas Ranger Josh Hamilton’s inspiring personal journey from alcohol and drug abuse to MLB super-stardom. We can trade stories about several truly eccentric Giant players, notably closer Brian Wilson and first baseman Aubrey Huff. And there will be endless discussions around the amazing circumstance of Texas catcher Bengie Molina facing the same Giants’ team that traded him on June 30th to make way for rookie star Buster Posey.
But as we approach Game 1 of the 2010 World Series between the Giants and the Rangers, what about some raw, uncooked, organic numbers? Major League Baseball presents seemingly limitless reems of player performance archives, team records, and League histories, so how about some damn chewy stats?
Disdained by old school managers, coaches and fans, and alternatively touted and discarded by the media, baseball’s numbers are the fourth dimension of a wondrous universe. More indicators than predictors, MLB statistics are an intensely valuable window into the game. The following is a smattering, a mere scratching at the surface, a flirtatious taste, if you will. And I know you will…
Hitting:
| 2010 season | RS | RA | TB | HR | XBH% | BA | BB | OPS | RG | SB% SB-CS | GDP | SH/SF | W-L | SB3-CS3 |
| Giants | 697 | 583 | 2,241 | 162 | 7.8% | .257 | 487 | .729 | 4.30 | 63% 55/32 | 158 | 76/41 | 92-70 | 6-3 |
| Rangers | 787 | 687 | 2,360 | 162 | 7.2% | .276 | 511 | .757 | 4.86 | 72% 123/48 | 129 | 53/54 | 90-72 | 16-6 |
RS: runs scored/RA: runs allowed/TB: total bases/XBH%: percentage of all plate appearances ending with an extra base hit/BA: batting average/BB: bases on balls/OPS: on base %+slugging %/RG: runs scored per game/SB% SB CS: stolen base %, stolen bases, caught stealing/GDP: grounded into a double play/SH-SF: sacrifice hits, sacrifice flies/W-L: wins losses/SB3:CS3- steals of 3rd base, caught stealing 3rd base.
Pitching:
| 2010 season | ERA | CG | tmSHO | HR | BB | R | SO | WP | WHIP | HR/9 | BB/9 | QS | IPmult | 3pk | SV | BSv | Hold |
| Giants | 3.60 | 6 | 17 | 134 | 578 | 583 | 1,331 | 74 | 1.271 | 0.8 | 3.6 | 95 | 118 | 234 | 57 | 16 | 65 |
| Rangers | 3.93 | 7 | 8 | 162 | 551 | 687 | 1,181 | 56 | 1.310 | 1.0 | 3.4 | 76 | 126 | 193 | 46 | 20 | 82 |
ERA: earned run average/CG: complete games/tmSO-shutouts by a team, one or more pitchers/HR: home runs allowed/BB: walks allowed/SO-strikeouts/WP: wild pitches/WHIP-walks+hits per innings pitched/HR9: home runs allowed per 9 innings pitched/BB: walks per 9 innings pitched/QS: starter pitched at least 6 innings giving up 3 or fewer runs/IPmult: games in which a reliever pitched more than 1 inning/3pk: 3 pitch strikeouts/SV: saves/BSv: blown saves/Hold: pitcher entered the game in a save situation, did not get a save or a win, did not give up the lead.
Fielding:
| 2010 season | E | Ch | PO | A | DP | Fld% | CA | CDP | PB WP | SB-CS % | OFE | OFA | OFDP | PE |
| Giants | 73 | 5,941 | 4,383 | 1,485 | 110 | .988 | 103 | 11 | 6 74 | 115-49 30% | 7 | 33 | 5 | 17 |
| Rangers | 105 | 5,970 | 4,366 | 1,499 | 132 | .982 | 61 | 4 | 8 56 | 116-35 23% | 18 | 35 | 4 | 14 |
E: team errors/Ch: team fielding chances/PO: team putouts/A: team assists/DP: team double plays/Fld%: team fielding percentage/CA: catcher assists/CDP: catcher double plays/PB: passed balls/WP: wild pitches/SB-CS%: opposition stolen bases, caught stealing, percentage/OFE: outfield errors/OFA: outfield assists/OFDP: outfield double plays/PE: pitcher errors.
Most recent San Francisco Giants vs Texas Rangers regular season series (interleague play): June 19-20-21, 2009 @ SF
| W | L | R | HR | |
| Giants | 3 | 0 | 11 | 4 |
| Rangers | 0 | 3 | 7 | 3 |
|
Game 1 6/19/09 6-4 Giants WP S. Romo LP S. Feldman |
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