Lefty starting pitcher Atlee Hammaker had an outstanding year for the Giants in 1983.  He pitched in 23 games (all starts) in 1983 for the Giants and he was 10-9 with a 2.25 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP.  Hammaker was an N.L. All-Star in 1983 and he led the N.L. in ERA for the Giants.  Hammaker pitched in 214 games (144 starts) in his 8 years with the Giants and he was 58-59 with 5 saves, a 3.51 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP.  Hammaker was a solid pitcher overall for the Giants, but he was outstanding for them in 1983.

Righty reliever Greg Minton was a solid pitcher for the Giants.  He pitched in 552 games (7 starts) in his 13 years with the Giants and he was 45-52 with 125 saves, a 3.23 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP.  His best season for the Giants came in 1982, when he made it to the onto the All-Star team for the only time of his career.  Minton pitched in 78 games (0 starts) for the Giants in 1982 and he was 10-4 with 30 saves, a 1.83 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP.  Minton worked 123 innings in 1982 and he only gave up 108 hits, 42 walks and he whiffed 58 batters.  Minton is still #3 in games pitched (552) and #5 in saves (125) in Giants’ history.

Righty starting pitcher John Montefusco was a colorful and solid starting pitcher for the Giants. He burst onto the scene in 1975 for the Giants, winning the N.L. Rookie of the Year Award and finishing 4th in the Cy Young Award Voting. He pitched in 35 games (34 starts) for the Giants in 1975 and he was 15-9 with a 2.88 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. He followed up his rookie season with another outstanding year in 1976, making the All-Star Team. Montefusco pitched in 37 games (36 starts) in 1976 and he was 16-14 with a 2.84 and a 1.18 WHIP. Montefusco couldn’t keep up the magic after his first two years with the Giants, but he has still an effective pitcher for them for the most part. He pitched in 185 games (175 starts) in his seven years with the Giants and he was 59-62 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP.

When righty swinging 2B Jeff Kent wasn’t fighting in the dugout with Barry Bonds, he was putting up outstanding numbers for the Giants. Kent played in 900 games in his six years with the Giants and he was 1,021 of 3,434 (.297 avg, .903 OPS) with 570 runs scored, 175 homers, 689 RBIs and 57 stolen bases. Kent won the N.L. MVP Award in 2000 with the Giants, when he played in 159 games in which he was 196 of 587 (.334 avg, 1.021 OPS) with 114 runs scored, 33 homers, 125 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. Kent made it to 3 N.L. All-Star teams and he won 2 Silver Slugger Awards in his six years with the Giants. He scored at least 100 runs twice, hit 30+ HRs 3 times and he knocked in at least 100 runs in all six of his years with the Giants. Kent is #5 in OPS (.903) and he is #10 in homers (175) in Giants’ history.

Righty swinging LF Kevin Mitchell was a powder keg with the bat for the Giants in his short time with the team. His best year with the Giants was in 1989 when he won the N.L. MVP Award. Mitchell played in 154 games for the Giants in 1989 and he was 158 of 543 (.291 avg, 1.023 OPS) with 100 runs scored, 47 homers, 125 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Mitchell led the majors in both homers and RBIs in 1989. He made it to the All-Star team and won a Silver Slugger Award in 1989. Mitchell played in 624 games in his five years with the Giants and he was 614 of 2,211 (.278 avg, .892 OPS) with 351 runs scored, 143 homers, 411 RBIs and 23 stolen bases. Mitchell was only with the Giants for five years, but he made his mark with them.

Righty swinging RF Jack Clark was a very solid player for the Giants. His best year with the Giants came in 1982 when he played in 157 games in which he was 154 of 563 (.274 avg, .853 OPS) with 90 runs scored, 27 homers, 103 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Clark finished 7th in the voting to the MVP Award in the N.L. in 1982. Clark played in 1,044 games in his 10 years with the Giants and he was 1,034 of 3,731 (.277 avg, .836 OPS) with 597 runs scored, 163 homers, 595 RBIs and 60 stolen bases. Clark only made it to two All-Star games with the Giants but he was a very consistent force with the bat for them.

Lefty reliever Gary Lavelle wasn’t the most dominating reliever in his time but he was pretty darn solid. Lavelle pitched in 647 games (3 starts) in 11 years with the Giants and he was 73-67 with 127 saves, a 2.82 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. His best season with the Giants came back in 1977 when he worked in 73 games (0 starts) in which he was 7-7 with 20 saves, a 2.05 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. He only gave up 106 hits in 118 1/3 for the Giants in 1977. Lavelle is the Giants’ all-time leader in games pitched with 647 and he’s also #4 in saves (127) in Giants’ history.

Lefty Hall of Fame starting pitcher Warren Spahn ended his career with the San Francisco Giants. He was released by the Mets in July of 1965. The Giants then swooped in and signed him. Spahn pitched in 16 games (11 starts) for the Giants in 1965 and he was 3-4 with a 3.39 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. The Giants then released Spahn after the season and it was the last time he pitched in the major leagues. Spahn won 363 games (#6 all-time in big league history), and his last 3 of them came with the Giants.

Smooth lefty swinging 1B Will Clark burst onto the scene for the San Francisco Giants back in 1986. Clark played in 111 games for the Giants in 1986 and he was 117 of 408 (.287 avg, .787 OPS) with 66 runs scored, 11 homers, 41 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Clark finished 5th in the Rookie of the Year voting in 1986. Clark’s best year with the Giants came in 1989. Clark played in 159 games for the Giants in 1989 and he was 196 of 588 (.333 avg, .953 OPS) with 104 runs scored, 23 homers, 111 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. Clark finished second in the MVP voting in 1989. Clark played in 1,160 games in his 8 seasons with the Giants and he was 1,278 for 4,269 (.299 avg, .872 OPS) with 687 runs scored, 176 homers, 709 RBIs and 52 stolen bases. Clark made it to the All-Star team 5 times with the Giants. He also won two Silver Slugger Awards while with the Giants and he also won 1 Gold Glove Award. Clark is #9 in Giants’ history in homers with 176 of them.

Lefty swinging 1B/LF Willie McCovey didn’t need steroids to put up huge numbers unlike some other players on the Giants. He was elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1986 and he was a six time All-Star with the Giants in his 19 years with the team. McCovey was the N.L. Rookie of the Year in 1959 despite only playing in 52 games that season. McCovey played in 52 games for the Giants in 1959 and he was 68 for 192 (.354 avg, 1.085 OPS) with 32 runs scored, 13 homers, 38 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. McCovey won the N.L. MVP Award in 1969 with the Giants when he appeared in 149 games in which he was 157 of 491 (.320 avg, 1.108 OPS) with 101 runs scored, 45 homers and 126 RBIs. He also walked 121 times that season while only whiffing 66 times which showed what a great eye he had that year. McCovey played in 2,256 games in his 19 years with the Giants and he was 1,974 of 7,214 (.274 avg, .900 OPS) with 1,113 runs scored, 469 homers, 1,388 RBIs and 24 stolen bases. McCovey is #3 all-time in Giants’ history in games played (2,256). He is also #4 in hits (1,974), #6 in OPS (.900), #6 in runs scored (1,113), #4 in homers (469), #4 in RBIs (1,388), #5 in doubles (308) and #4 in walks (1,168). Now you know a little bit more about the man that McCovey Cove was named after.