This Giants Win Feels Better Than 2002

Giants fans across the Bay Area are feeling a euphoria many would say they haven't felt since way back in 1989 when their team took on the Oakland As in the original Battle of the Bay.

Sure, the team made it to the World Series in 2002, but it was different then because the team was much ado about one man. His name was Barry Bonds.

This time it is a good old-fashioned team effort by a group that even their manager calls misfits and castoffs.

And its not like they are keeping the misfit title quiet. Bochy talked about it on national TV last night. "We had such a diversity of contributions from everybody. Not bad for a bunch of castoffs and misfits," Bruce Bochy said during a post-game interview on Fox.

That certainly wasn't the case in 2002 when Bonds was on the team. Those champagne showers were all about him and everybody knew it.   Remember the giant leather chair, personal trainers and big screen TV in the locker room?

Today, two of the team's top paid players weren't even a factor in the post-season win. Barry Zito didn't make the roster at all, and Aaron Rowand has spent the lion's share of time on the bench.

Instead of the players and the fans harping on the money players being gone, they seem to embrace the regular players stepping up and becoming the heroes of October.

We're talking about players like series MVP Cody Ross, who was picked up in August as a defensive move to keep him off the Padres Roster. Add Aubrey Huff to that list.  He said Saturday night he was sitting on his couch in late January with no prospects when he got the call to come join the orange and black.  And we can't forget a rookie named Buster Posey who didn't start on Opening Day because he was still in the minors.

Team president Larry Baer credits the good mix of good people, and not their athletic talent for his team's success. "They play 100 percent for each other and that's really the mark of this team," Baer told AP.

So here's to the group of misfits, the likes of which have not be so adorable since the debut of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer in 1964.

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