Bay Bridge Series
Encyclopedia
The Bay Bridge Series is the name of a series of baseball
games played between—and the rivalry of—Major League Baseball
's Oakland Athletics
of the American League
and San Francisco Giants
of the National League
. The series takes its name from the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge which links the cities of Oakland
and San Francisco. Although competitive, the regional rivalry between the A's and Giants is considered a friendly one with mostly mutual companionship between the fans, as opposed to White Sox–Cubs, or Yankees–Mets games where animosity runs high. Hats displaying both teams on the cap are sold from vendors at the games, and once in a while the teams both dress in uniforms from an historic era of their franchises.
The series is also occasionally referred to as the "BART Series" for the Bay Area Rapid Transit
system that links Oakland to San Francisco. However, the name "BART Series" has never been popular beyond a small selection of history books and national broadcasters and has fallen out of favor. Bay Area locals almost exclusively refer to the rivalry as the "Bay Bridge Series".
Originally, the term described a series of exhibition games played between the two clubs after the conclusion of spring training
, immediately prior to the start of the regular season. It was first used to refer to the 1989 World Series
which the Athletics won and the first time both teams had met since they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
. Today, it also refers to games played between the teams during the regular season since the commencement of Interleague play
in 1997. Through 2010, the A's have won 42 games, and the Giants have won 38.
, Roger Bresnahan
, Christy Mathewson
, Joe McGinnity and Rube Marquard
took part on the Giants side while the Athletics had Connie Mack
, Chief Bender
, Eddie Plank
, Rube Waddell
, Frank Baker
and Eddie Collins
.
. This series was interrupted minutes before Game 3 on October 17, 1989 when the earthquake struck the San Francisco Bay Area
with a 7.1 on the Richter Scale. The resulting damage to both Candlestick Park and to a lesser extent the Oakland Coliseum, along with the emotional and economic damage to the area, delayed the resumption of the series for 10 days, the longest interval between games in World Series
history. The earthquake caused the collapse of a portion of the Bay Bridge, the centerpiece of many promotions for the "Bay Area Series."
The Athletics swept the Giants to win their most recent World Series championship.
The Giants' Barry Zito
started 0-4 against his former team, finally beating the Athletics on June 12, 2010 at AT&T Park.
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
games played between—and the rivalry of—Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
's Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
of the American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
and San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
of the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
. The series takes its name from the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge which links the cities of Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
and San Francisco. Although competitive, the regional rivalry between the A's and Giants is considered a friendly one with mostly mutual companionship between the fans, as opposed to White Sox–Cubs, or Yankees–Mets games where animosity runs high. Hats displaying both teams on the cap are sold from vendors at the games, and once in a while the teams both dress in uniforms from an historic era of their franchises.
The series is also occasionally referred to as the "BART Series" for the Bay Area Rapid Transit
Bay Area Rapid Transit
Bay Area Rapid Transit is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area. The heavy-rail public transit and subway system connects San Francisco with cities in the East Bay and suburbs in northern San Mateo County. BART operates five lines on of track with 44 stations in four counties...
system that links Oakland to San Francisco. However, the name "BART Series" has never been popular beyond a small selection of history books and national broadcasters and has fallen out of favor. Bay Area locals almost exclusively refer to the rivalry as the "Bay Bridge Series".
Originally, the term described a series of exhibition games played between the two clubs after the conclusion of spring training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
, immediately prior to the start of the regular season. It was first used to refer to the 1989 World Series
1989 World Series
†: Game 3 was originally slated for October 17 at 5:35 pm; however, it was postponed when an earthquake occurred at 5:04 pm.-Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1989 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California...
which the Athletics won and the first time both teams had met since they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. Today, it also refers to games played between the teams during the regular season since the commencement of Interleague play
Interleague play
Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues, introduced in . Before the 1997 season, teams in the American League and National League did not meet during the regular season...
in 1997. Through 2010, the A's have won 42 games, and the Giants have won 38.
History prior to Bay Area move
The Giants and Athletics met in the , and World Series as the New York Giants and Philadelphia Athletics. The Giants won in 1905, and the Athletics won in 1911 and 1913. Hall of Famers such as John McGrawJohn McGraw
John McGraw may refer to:* John McGraw , , New York lumber tycoon, and one of the founding trustees of Cornell University* John McGraw , , Governor of Washington state from 1893–1897...
, Roger Bresnahan
Roger Bresnahan
Roger Philip Bresnahan , nicknamed "The Duke of Tralee" for his Irish roots, was an American player in Major League Baseball who starred primarily as a catcher and a player-manager...
, Christy Mathewson
Christy Mathewson
Christopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...
, Joe McGinnity and Rube Marquard
Rube Marquard
Richard William "Rube" Marquard was an American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball in the 1910s and early 1920s...
took part on the Giants side while the Athletics had Connie Mack
Connie Mack
Connie Mack may refer to:* Connie Mack I , Hall of Fame baseball manager, player, owner* Connie Mack III , U.S. Representative , U.S. Senator from Florida * Connie Mack IV , U.S...
, Chief Bender
Chief Bender
Charles Albert "Chief" Bender was a pitcher in Major League Baseball during the first two decades of the 20th century...
, Eddie Plank
Eddie Plank
Edward Stewart Plank , nicknamed "Gettysburg Eddie", was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He is the first left-handed pitcher to win 200 games and then 300 games, and now ranks third in all-time wins among left-handers with 326 career victories and first all-time in career shutouts by a...
, Rube Waddell
Rube Waddell
George Edward Waddell was an American southpaw pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his thirteen-year career he played for the Louisville Colonels , Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Orphans in the National League, and the Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns in the American League...
, Frank Baker
Frank Baker
John Franklin "Home Run" Baker was an American third baseman in Major League Baseball from 1908 to 1922, and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955. As a member of the famed $100,000 infield, Baker helped the Philadelphia Athletics win the 1910, 1911 and 1913 World Series...
and Eddie Collins
Eddie Collins
Edward Trowbridge Collins, Sr. , nicknamed "Cocky", was an American Major League Baseball second baseman, manager and executive...
.
1989 World Series
The San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics met for the first time in the 1989 World Series1989 World Series
†: Game 3 was originally slated for October 17 at 5:35 pm; however, it was postponed when an earthquake occurred at 5:04 pm.-Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1989 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California...
. This series was interrupted minutes before Game 3 on October 17, 1989 when the earthquake struck the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
with a 7.1 on the Richter Scale. The resulting damage to both Candlestick Park and to a lesser extent the Oakland Coliseum, along with the emotional and economic damage to the area, delayed the resumption of the series for 10 days, the longest interval between games in World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
history. The earthquake caused the collapse of a portion of the Bay Bridge, the centerpiece of many promotions for the "Bay Area Series."
The Athletics swept the Giants to win their most recent World Series championship.
Interleague Play
Both teams met for the first time in the regular season in June of 1997.The Giants' Barry Zito
Barry Zito
Barry Zito is a Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher for the San Francisco Giants. He previously played seven seasons with the Oakland Athletics, where he won the 2002 American League Cy Young Award and made three All-Star teams....
started 0-4 against his former team, finally beating the Athletics on June 12, 2010 at AT&T Park.
Athletics Relocation Controversy
The A's have been considering relocating to San Jose, CA for thirteen years but have reportedly met resistance from the Giants. San Jose is located in Santa Clara County, which is considered to be the Giants "territory".Regular season
| Year | Series Winner | Athletics W | Giants W | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 1997 Major League Baseball season *American League Championship Series MVP: Marquis Grissom**American League Division Series*National League Championship Series MVP: Liván Hernández**National League Division Series... |
Tie | 2 | 2 | 2-game home-and-away format |
| 1998 1998 Major League Baseball season *American League Championship Series MVP: David Wells**American League Division Series:*National League Championship Series MVP: Sterling Hitchcock**National League Division Series*All-Star Game, July 7 at Coors Field: American League, 13-8; Roberto Alomar, MVP... |
Tie | 2 | 2 | |
| 1999 1999 Major League Baseball season The previous record of most home runs hit in a season, set at 5,064 in 1998, was broken once again as the American League and National League combined to hit 5,528 home runs. Moreover, it was the first season in 61 years to feature a team that scored 1,000 runs in a season, as the Cleveland Indians... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | Switch to 6-game home-and-away format |
| 2000 2000 Major League Baseball season The 2000 Major League Baseball season ended with the New York Yankees defeating the New York Mets in Game 5 of the World Series, known as the Subway Series because fans could take the Subway to and from every game of the Series. An all-time record 5,693 home runs were hit during the regular season... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | |
| 2001 2001 Major League Baseball season The Major League Baseball season finished with the Arizona Diamondbacks defeating the New York Yankees in a Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. The attacks of September 11 pushed the end of the regular-season from September 30 to October 7. Because of that, the World Series was not completed until... |
Giants 2000 San Francisco Giants season The San Francisco Giants, an American baseball team, won the National League West Championship. The team played their first season in newly opened Pacific Bell Park.-Offseason:... |
2 | 4 | First time season series doesn't end in a tie |
| 2002 2002 Major League Baseball season The Major League Baseball season finished with the Anaheim Angels defeating the San Francisco Giants in Game 7 of the 2002 World Series.-Major league baseball final standings:... |
Athletics 2002 Oakland Athletics season The Oakland Athletics' 2002 season involved the A's finishing 1st in the American League West with a record of 103 wins and 59 losses, despite losing three key players to larger market teams: 2000 AL MVP Jason Giambi to the New York Yankees, outfielder Johnny Damon to the Boston Red Sox, and closer... |
4 | 2 | |
| 2003 2003 Major League Baseball season *World Series MVP: Josh Beckett**American League Championship Series MVP: Mariano Rivera**National League Championship Series MVP: Iván Rodríguez*All-Star Game, July 15 at U.S... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | |
| 2004 2004 Major League Baseball season * Playoff MVPs** Manny Ramírez ** David Ortiz ** Albert Pujols * All-Star Game, July 13 at Minute Maid Park: American League, 9-4; Alfonso Soriano, MVP-References:* *... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | |
| 2005 2005 Major League Baseball season Click on any series score to link to that series' page.Higher seed had home field advantage during Division Series and League Championship Series.The American League champion had home field advantage during the World Series as a result of the AL victory in the 2005 All-Star... |
Athletics 2005 Oakland Athletics season The Oakland Athletics' 2005 season involved the A's finishing 2nd in the American League West with a record of 88 wins and 74 losses.The A's started 17-32, but went on a hot streak to find themselves battling for first place by mid-August... |
4 | 2 | |
| 2006 2006 Major League Baseball season In , the Major League Baseball season ended with the National League's St. Louis Cardinals winning the World Series with the lowest regular season victory total in history. The American League continued its domination at the All-Star Game by winning its fourth straight game; the A.L. has won nine... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | |
| 2007 2007 Major League Baseball season The 2007 Major League Baseball season, began on April 1 with a rematch of the 2006 National League Championship Series; the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets played the first game of the season at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, which was won by the Mets, 6–1... |
Athletics 2007 Oakland Athletics season The Oakland Athletics' 2007 season was their first since 2004 in which they defended a title. The A's were without Frank Thomas and ace Barry Zito , both players who the A's lost to free agency. They filled the space left by Frank Thomas by signing free agent catcher Mike Piazza to a one-year... |
5 | 1 | |
| 2008 2008 Major League Baseball season The 2008 Major League Baseball season began on March 25, 2008 in Tokyo, Japan with the 2007 World Series champion Boston Red Sox defeating the Oakland Athletics at the Tokyo Dome 6–5 in the first game of a two-game series, and ended on September 30 with the host Chicago White Sox defeating the... |
Athletics 2008 Oakland Athletics season The Oakland Athletics' season marked their 40th year in Oakland, California, after the franchise move from Kansas City, Missouri in 1968.-Potential free agents:... |
4 | 2 | |
| 2009 2009 Major League Baseball season The 2009 Major League Baseball season began on Sunday, April 5, 2009 with the Atlanta Braves defeating the 2008 World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies 4–1. The regular season ended on October 6, extended two days for a one-game playoff between the Detroit Tigers and the Minnesota Twins to... |
Giants 2009 San Francisco Giants season The San Francisco Giants are an American baseball team. The 2009 season was their fifty-second year in the city since their move from New York in 1958. After four consecutive losing seasons, the Giants finished 88–74. Following Peter Magowan's retirement, Bill Neukom served as general... |
1 | 5 | |
| 2010 2010 Major League Baseball season The 2010 Major League Baseball season began Sunday, April 4, when the Boston Red Sox defeated their long-time rivals, the 2009 World Series champion New York Yankees at Fenway Park, 9–7; the regular season ended on October 3. The 2010 All-Star Game was played on July 13 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | |
| 2011 2011 Major League Baseball season The 2011 Major League Baseball season began on Thursday, March 31, and ended on Wednesday, September 28. This marked the first time a season began on a Thursday since , and the first time a regular season ended on a Wednesday since... |
Tie | 3 | 3 | |
| Overall | Athletics (4-2-9) | 45 | 41 |
World Series
| Year | Series Winner | Athletics | Giants | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1905 1905 World Series - Game 1 :Monday, October 9, 1905 at Columbia Park in Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaA pitchers' duel took place between Christy Mathewson and Eddie Plank. Both pitchers got out of jams and were able to shut the offense down. In the Giants top of the fifth, Mathewson singled, but was forced by Roger... |
Giants 1905 New York Giants season The New York Giants won their second consecutive National League pennant. They beat the Philadelphia Athletics in the World Series. This team featured three Hall of Fame players -- catcher Roger Bresnahan, and pitchers Christy Mathewson and Joe McGinnity -- along with Hall of Fame manager John... |
1 | 4 | Philadelphia vs. New York |
| 1911 1911 World Series -Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1911 at Polo Grounds in Manhattan, New York-Game 2:Monday, October 16, 1911 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-Game 3:Tuesday, October 17, 1911 at Polo Grounds in Manhattan, New York-Game 4:... |
Athletics 1911 Philadelphia Athletics season The 1911 Philadelphia Athletics season was a season in American baseball. The A's finished first in the American League with a record of 101 wins and 50 losses, then went on to defeat the New York Giants in the 1911 World Series, four games to two, for their second straight World... |
4 | 2 | Philadelphia vs. New York |
| 1913 1913 World Series In the 1913 World Series, the Philadelphia Athletics beat the New York Giants four games to one.The A's pitching gave the edge to a closer-than-it-looked Series in 1913... |
Athletics 1913 Philadelphia Athletics season The Philadelphia Athletics season involved the A's finishing first in the American League with a record of 96 wins and 57 losses. The team then defeated the New York Giants in the 1913 World Series, 4 games to 1.... |
4 | 1 | Philadelphia vs. New York |
| 1989 1989 World Series †: Game 3 was originally slated for October 17 at 5:35 pm; however, it was postponed when an earthquake occurred at 5:04 pm.-Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1989 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California... |
Athletics 1989 Oakland Athletics season The Oakland Athletics season saw the A's finish in first place in the American League West division, with a record of 99 wins and 63 losses, seven games in front of the Kansas City Royals. It was their second consecutive AL West title, as well as the second straight year in which they finished... |
4 | 0 | First Oakland-San Francisco matchup |
| Overall | Athletics (3-1) | 13 | 7 |