Sunday became a simple equation for the Giants: Win and you're in. But San Francisco failed to make the 2020 MLB playoffs, with no help from home plate umpire Rob Drake, as the Giants fell 5-4 to the San Diego Padres in the final game of the regular season at Oracle Park.
Everything was set up for the Giants to make the playoffs. Instead, they lost four of their final five games and their season ended in heartbreak. One of baseball's biggest surprise teams should have made the playoffs, especially if you look at run differential.
The Giants finished the regular season 13th in run differential (plus-2) and were the only team with a positive run differential to not make the postseason.
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There are 16 teams in this year's expanded playoffs. Four teams -- the Miami Marlins (minus-41), Milwaukee Brewers (minus-17), Toronto Blue Jays (minus-10) and Cincinnati Reds (even) -- made the playoffs with worse run differentials than the Giants after the 60-game regular season.
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With Buster Posey opting out of the season, many expected the Giants' offense to fold. In reality, it exploded. The Giants finished the regular season fifth in batting average (.263), seventh in on-base percentage (.335), sixth in slugging percentage (.451), sixth in OPS (.785), fifth in hits (532), eighth in runs (299) and 12th in home runs (81).
San Francisco Giants
The Giants had a playoff-level offense, but they couldn't get it done when it mattered most. This was a season to remember, to be encouraged by and to be frustrated with.