PROGRAMMING NOTE: NBC Sports Bay Area is looking back at the Giants' 60 Memorable Moments since the franchise moved from New York to San Francisco. Tune into SportsNet Central at 6pm to see the next two moments you can vote on! Then, after the Giants and Padres conclude on Saturday, tune into Postgame Live to see which moment will move on to the next round! Make your vote count!
1. Brandon Belt's 18th inning homer against the Nationals in 2014 NLDS (15-time winner -- Defeated Tim Lincecum's 13-strikeout, 148-pitch no-hitter against the Padres in 2013)
(From Alex Pavlovic)
By the end of an 18-inning win over the Nationals in Game 2 of the 2014 NLDS, the Giants were drained in every way. It would be understandable if some of them have few solid memories of the six-hour, 23-minute marathon game, but Brandon Belt will never forget the details. His solo shot off Tanner Roark in the top of the 18th was the difference in a 2-1 win. Four years later, the moment is still fresh in his mind, from his preparation for the at-bat to the emphatic bat drop:
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(From Brandon Belt)
"I remember chugging a Red Bull. It was late into the night and that's tough, it's mentally draining and physically draining to be in a game like that, where you're giving everything you've got to win a baseball game. I was drained at that moment to say the least. I remember chugging a Red Bull and going out there and thinking, 'I'm just going to try and get on base and see what happens.' I remember just not trying to do too much and he gave me a pitch that I could handle, that was kind of in my happy zone. It felt like one of the first home runs I ever hit. It's like you're in Little League and you hit a home run and it's like you're in a dream and it's not real life -- it was kind of the same way.
"We had just played so long and it was such a big moment in the game, and the fact that I was able to come through and help us win with such a big hit, it was surreal to me. I felt like I was floating around the bases. I think (the bat drop) was relief, more than anything. When I do that I don't really know I do it. It was really just relief. The way the game was going, we had to assume it was over after that. The bullpen had done so well and everyone was so tired. It was going to be tough for (the Nationals) to come back after that.
"We were just ready to go home. We had a long flight after that. We just put so much effort into it and all the guys did so great. Pablo came up with a big hit in the ninth inning and Petit throwing (six shutout) innings. For me, that was the pivotal game of that entire playoffs. We were playing the best team in the NL and to be able to come home up 2-0 was huge."
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San Francisco Giants
2. Kevin Mitchell's bare-handed catch against the Cardinals in 1989
(From Mike Krukow)
Mitch was beyond strong. He would regularly do things that would demonstrate his strength that would blow our minds.
An example, in the weight room (which was in its infant stages) we had a 33-gallon trash can that was full of rice. FULL of rice. We had no idea how much it weighed. We used it to dig into with our hands to exercise our hands and forearms. Bottom line it was heavy.
We had a doubleheader and in the first game Mitchell was horrible. I think he even struck out 3 or 4 times. When the game was over he went into the weight room and he got on the weight machine with all the plates on it and just started pumping iron. After about twenty reps, he realized that he was rubbing up against the bucket of rice and it was starting to piss him off. He realized it had to be moved. From the sitting position, he reached over to his left side and lifted up the rice and brought it over the bench to his right side and set it down gently on his right side like it was his 2-year-old nephew. He then went back to crushing the bench press. at least another 20 reps. We all looked at him like he was from another planet. Which come to think of it, he might have been.
In the night cap he had three hits. Just another day in the life. As was the catch in St. Louis where he cut a route to a fly ball a little short and adlibbed it with a bare-handed catch. It was just Mitch being Mitch and we had come to expect the Para- normal!!
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