Hunter Pence Plays a Mean Ping Pong

After an inspirational postseason, Hunter Pence adopted a pretty unique training regimen to prepare himself for the upcoming baseball season.

More ping pong.

“Sounds crazy, right?” Pence told reporters. “It works your fast-twitch muscles. You react. I just got a bunch of different friends and we didn’t play games. It was just rallies, as hard and as long as we could.”

Apparently the San Francisco Giants outfielder has been a table tennis enthusiast for a while, but it wasn't until his brother Howie pointed out that the more Pence played in the off season...the better he did during the regular season.

And after batting a career low .253 while splitting time between San Francisco and the Philadelphia Phillies...Pence was down to try anything.

“It might be a coincidence,” he added, “but it was worth a try.”

Absolutely.
 

 

Giants to Host Metallica Night in May

I thought long and hard about how to work Metallica songs into this, but decided to just open with the obvious.

The San Francisco Giants have, without a doubt, one of the best marketing departments in all of the Majors.  Seriously.  If recent years have taught us anything it's this...they rock.

And on Friday, May 3...AT&T Park will as well.

When Giants take on the Los Angeles Dodgers that night, they'll be doing it with Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Metallica taking center stage. Yup, you guessed it, the World Champs will be hosting Metallica Night.

What say you, Gods of metal?

"We're psyched to be teaming up with the World Series champs for the first ever Metallica Night at AT&T Park," the band said via a statement.  "We'll be on hand that night to kick off the game with the national anthem and first pitch, joining the orange and black fanatics with Metallica vibes and shenanigans throughout the evening to cheer on the team."

Pretty sweet.

Perhaps sweeter...as fans enter the stadium, they'll be given a sweet "special edition" Metallica Giants hat. Also, throughout the game, there will be Metallica-themed entertainment.

And sing the National Anthem? 

If the video below is any indication, the legendary metal band's frontman James Hetfield is adept at getting the crowd fired up.

Ride the lightning.

 

Barry Who-to?

Given his successes on the mound for both the Oakland A's and San Francisco Giants, you'd expect Californians to know who Barry Zito is, right?

Well, after listening to Good Day L.A. host Steve Edwards introduce the former Cy Young Award winner before a recent show appearance...your expectations would be on point.

Then, naturally, the pitcher showed up and, well...the longtime host forgot everything he said three minutes prior.

The fun begins at about the three-minute mark.

***Thanks to Jimmy Traina.***

Korean Saves King Signs With Giants

Yes, it's true. 

And, yes, the title of this post was specifically written to make you think it WASN'T about Scott Proctor signing with the San Francisco Giants...but, alas, it is.

According to his agent, Mark Rodgers, the soon-to-be-36-year-old righty inked a deal to play for the World Champs late Monday night.

"For a veteran player like Scott, if he does what he is capable of doing, he will make the Major League club," Rodgers told the TC Palm.  "If not, he will start at Triple-A (Fresno), but San Francisco has a history of going to their veteran guys at the Triple-A level when the need arises.  (The Giants) contacted us once they understood that Scott was not going back to Korea or going to Japan."

Oh...and about those saves.

Last season, when Proctor was pitching for the Doosan Bears of the Korea Baseball Organization, he recorded 35 saves.  When he notched number 32 in September, the veteran hurler surpassed Brad Thomas' record for saves by a foreign player.

And for the record, in 307 big league appearances (including a league best 83 in 2006), Proctor saved only one game. And that was back in 2005...his second season in the Majors.

Pint-Sized Pence Is Just As Manic

Back-to-back Hunter Pence posts?  Yeah...I know.  And they've got the same picture.  For that...I apologize.

Full disclosure.  I was looking for embeddable video of Pence's homage to Ozzie Smith from Wednesday when I found some fresh clip of a young San Francisco Giants fan doing his best impression of the wild-eyed outfielder.

Looks like my boy Gar Ryness better watch his back, because this young buck (smart money is that his name is either Connor, Aidan or, yes, Hunter) has got Pence's on deck hysterics figured out.

Hunter Pence Flips Out

Hunter Pence was wasted in Houston.

Hear me out.

When you look at the stat line, the outfielder was pretty darn good during his five-year tenure with the Astros, but that's not what I'm talking about...dude was just a name.  We knew precious little about him. 

And in a game where character matters...he was wasted.

Seriously, think about it. Jeff Bagwell is only getting about half the attention of the Hall of Famers voters because of, well, PED uncertainty and where he played. This year, it's possible Craig Biggio and his 3000-plus hits might suffer the same fate. Both are more than qualified for Cooperstown, but both are being seemingly ignored, because, I'd contend, we know little about them.

So, yeah, I'm not about to put Pence on the same level as either one of the "Killer Bs"...it wasn't until recently that we have been able to crack the nut that is Hunter Pence.

First, there was the chatter about his inspirational speeches during the Playoffs.

Then, it was his appearance on "Conan".

And, most recently, the end credit roll from the San Francisco Giants World Series DVD.

But, now...well, now there's this.

Over at MLB.com, there's a video of Pence apparently celebrating Ozzie Smith's 58th birthday Wednesday by doing, you guessed it, an Ozzie-style backflip. But what is most impressive is this..."The Wizard" came in at 5'11" (many say shorter) and 150 pounds.

Pence is 6'4" and listed at 220.

I'll embed the video when I can, but until then...CHECK IT OUT HERE.

Hunter Pence's Teammates Must Love Him

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

Charles Caleb Colton

If Charles Colton's famous idiom is true...the San Francisco Giants must absolutely LOVE their teammate (and inspirational leader) Hunter Pence.

Just check out the end credits to the team's official 2012 World Series film.

 

***Tip o' the hat to Jimmy Traina.***

San Francisco Has a World Series Anthem

Two years ago, mega-fan Ashkon Davaran's rendition of "Don't Stop Believin'" became the San Francisco Giants official anthem as they went on to win the World Series.

As thanks, the team rewarded him with a place in their championship parade through San Francisco.

And now that they've won again...dude is back with another song and video.  Check it out.

Bruce Bochy's Ride Ran Out of Gas

It's probably a good thing that the San Francisco Giants themselves never ran out of gas.  Am I right?

Yeah, yeah, I know...but, seriously, gang, what else can you say about a car running out of gas during a World Serie parade?

 

***UPDATED:  Now with video!***

Hunter Pence Cracks Up Conan

San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence was labeled as plenty of things this postseason...an inspirational leader, the lead singer from Spin Doctors and, of course, a crazy eyed meme generator.

But if his recent appeance on Conan is any indication...dude is also pretty funny.

What a difference a World Series makes, huh?  Last week at this time, the 29-year-old Pence looked like a grizzled mountain man and now, well, he's clean shaven and recommending Katy Perry.

Giants World Series Sweep Gets Animated!

It's a good thing that Pablo Sandoval got the World Series MVP or else the team at Next Media Animation would have had a re-write on their hands.

Just hours after the San Francisco Giants completed their sweep of the Detroit Tigers, the video of Sandoval, er, a giant panda literally sawing off the head of a tiger while Sergio Romo is cheering him on hit the interwebs.

Now, I might be going out on a limb here...but that might be my favorite four seconds of Taiwanese video history.

Panda's Third Homer Costly to Fan

When Pablo Sandoval hit his third home run in Game One of the World Series the other night, he became just the fourth player in history to pull off the feat.

The woman who ended up with the ball...well, she's got an entirely different, one-of-a-kind story.

Giants fan Dawn Price says she was sitting in the outfield bleachers when the San Francisco slugger went yard for the third time, then, as the ball went over the fence, she fell over the bleachers into an area behind the center field fence.

“When I tried to get the ball, I went down over the railing,” Price said.

Or so she claims.

After retrieving the ball, Price says she put the ball in her pants and tried to climb back to her seat.  But, it was then when she was hauled off by AT&T Park security and arrested for trespassing since, well, they're not buying the claim she fell.

"It’s possible," Officer Gordon Shyy of the San Francisco Police Department said, "but it’s a pretty steep fall."

According to Shyy, the ball has since been recovered by the team.  But, as it turns out, Price said she would have given the ball back to Sandoval anyway.

That said, trespassing or not, I'm not sure giving the ball back to Sandoval is Price's best option.

You see, this past May, famed memorabilia collector Seth Swirsky sold Reggie Jackson's third home run ball from the 1977 Series for, wait for it, a cool $65,725.

Yikes.

Brian Wilson: "Beasts Will Rise"

So, you're covering the now-National League Champion San Francisco Giants and you're looking for perspective on the postseason and upcoming World Series...who do you circle?

The reliever with a 9.00 ERA that hasn't thrown a pitch since April 12, right?

Probably not.  But when the cat described is closer Brian Wilson...you absolutely do.

Since their championship run two years ago, Wilson (and his beard) have become quite the mouthpiece for the Giants.  And last night's postgame interview with San Francisco's KGO-TV was no different.

Oh, and the question NOT answered, what do you suppose a wet, sweaty Brian Wilson smells like?

Willie Mays Says "Play it Safe"

It's pretty safe to say that Tom Hanks is one of the cooler cats out there, right?

And given he's from the San Francisco Bay area, it's no surpise that his favorite baseball player of all-time is Giants superstar Willie Mays.  Now, if you've happened upon Hanks' recent appearance on the Nerdist podcast...you know exactly where this is heading. 

As the story goes, Hanks and his brother have an inside joke that stems from an old PSA "The Say Hey Kid" cut warning against, of all things, blasting caps and, the guys are right...the thing is sixty seconds of pure gold.

Enjoy.

Giants Plan Bruce Lee Tribute Night

There are some baseball giveaways that tie-in incredibly well with the team that takes the field.  Conversely, there are some baseball giveaways out there that make no sense whatsoever.

The San Francisco Giants marketing team has found a way to blend both ideas seamlessly...and the output is consistently superb.

Over the past couple of seasons, they've managed to capitalize on Brian Wilson's immense popularity and both encase him in carbonite and turn him into a garden gnome.  On September 4, they are planning on immortalizing another Bay Area icon...San Francisco-born Bruce Lee.

Yes, THAT Bruce Lee.

When the Giants take the field Tuesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks they'll be celebrating the "Year of the Dragon" by paying tribute to the original dragon.  Great seats are, more than likely, still available.

Now please, please, please watch the video below.  Wow.

Buster Posey Stars in New ESPN Promo

Is it just me or is the "This is SportsCenter" campaign getting a little tired?

I mean, I get the most recent offering featuring San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey...I just don't find it all that funny.

What do you think?

Baseball + Food Trucks = Good Times

This might just be my smalltown mentality, but food trucks are still those shady RVs that camp outside bars at two in the morning to feed creatures of the night day old pizza, right?

Yes?  No?!?

Okay, okay...I know they aren't.  But let's pretend they are.  Does that mean that the San Francisco Giants are marketing themselves to drunks and stoners now?

It sure looks that way.

This Wednesday, the Giants will be hosting a first food truck event prior to the team taking on the Houston Astros. 

It's really a cool idea if you think about it.  You get to sample some great eats (all for a good cause) before taking your seat in one of my favorite ballparks and watch the Giants beat the Astros.

And, hey, memo to sfist.com...there's no such thing as a "first annual" anything.

Greg Swindell on Brian Wilson: "He is done"

While it isn't yet official that he needs the surgery, Brian Wilson said Sunday that he was leaning toward having another Tommy John surgery on his ailing right elbow.

Wait, another surgery?

That's right, the San Francisco Giants closer went under the knife in 2003 while still in college and while he bounced back from that one...what are the odds of returning after a second such operation?

Well...that's a beard of a different color and it has many voicing their opinions.

And Monday night, former big league pitcher Greg Swindell hit the Twitters to voice his.

No maybe he will shave the beard and crawl into his shell. No way prob will make him feel more important. Which he is not. He is done. DONE

Now, I'm not sure what the one-time All-Star is basing his diagnosis on, considering he never had the surgery, but at least Wilson is a little more optimistic.

"It’s the mental part that can be overbearing, but you know what? I’ve done it once. Do it again. That’s the case," Wilson told reporters Sunday.

Something tells me this story is long from over...and that Wilson will keep his now-signature black beard.

Brian Wilson Has a Message for You

I'm not sure what evidence there was to support this previously, but I'm pretty sure Brian Wilson is officially turning his body into a college dorm room.

Yup, the San Francisco Giants closer now has a tattoo of Johnny Cash flipping the bid on his calf.  You know the picture...it's hanging on the wall of every rebelous hipster across the country.

Sure, it's said to be "in remarkable detail", but c'mon B-Weez, mix in a t-shirt or a poster...there's no reason to get Cash's finger flippage put on your body.

And now, a quick history lesson about Wilson's new ink.

The photo itself was shot during a soundcheck at Cash's iconic 1970 concert at California’s San Quentin prison by photographer Jim Marshall.  The pose was the result of Cash’s response to the request “John, let’s do a shot for the warden”.

Okay, okay...maybe the tattoo is a little awesome.

Brian Wilson to Open a Bowling Alley

Remember last year at this time when it seemed like around every corner lurked a new and different endorsement deal involving Brian Wilson?

Of course you do.

Thankfully, for some, it hasn't ended.  Apparently, the San Francisco Giants closer is partnering with Lucky Strike to open up a bowling alley across the street from AT&T Park.  And becuase the future failed business venture won't be named after The Bearded One (there are a bunch of other Lucky Strikes out there)...they're renaming one of the lanes.

Cue the outdated Big Lebowski reference!

"I am pumped to be in the Lucky Strike mix and am honored that lane 12 will be renamed lane 38," Wilson said about the partnership. "I love that number, and I expect to roll many massive strikes on that lane. See you there. The Dude abides."

Lucky Strike won't be your typical bowling alley though.  Nope...this joint is a 21-and-up spot that will feature a 40-foot bar, leather sofas, antique chessboards, a photo booth and artwork on the walls.

Oh, and according to their website...a dress code?

• Athletic wear of any kind including shorts, jerseys, sweats and hoodies
• Excessively baggy clothing (Tuck-ins not permitted)
• Work boots (Seasonal exceptions)
• Headgear (Exceptions for ball caps and stylish hats)

So, basically, you've got a bowling alley across the street from where the Giants play, co-owned by, arguably, the most popular member of the team that won't allow fans to hit the lanes wearing what fans wear?!?

Lucky Strike opens March 9.