The 1981 San Francisco Giants season was the

Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) *Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...

' 99th season in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

, their 24th season in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their 22nd at

Candlestick Park Candlestick Park was an outdoor stadium on the West Coast of the United States, located in San Francisco's Bayview Heights area. The stadium was originally the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 un ...

. Giants manager

Frank Robinson Frank Robinson (August 31, 1935 – February 7, 2019) was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams, from to . The only player to be named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of bot ...

became the first black manager in the history of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

. Robinson was also the first black manager in the history of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

Offseason

* December 8, 1980:

Chris Bourjos Christopher Bourjos (born October 16, 1954) is an American former professional baseball player who played part of one season for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball. He has worked as an Arizona-based scout. Playing career Bourjos ...

and

Bob Knepper Robert Wesley Knepper (born May 25, 1954) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. From 1976 to 1990, he pitched 15 seasons for the San Francisco Giants and Houston Astros, earning two All-Star appearances as well as the 1981 NL Come ...

were traded by the Giants to the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

for

Enos Cabell Enos Milton Cabell (pronounced ), (born October 8, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman and third baseman from 1972 to 1986, most prominently as a member of the Hous ...

. * December 9, 1980:

DeWayne Buice DeWayne Allison Buice (born August 20, 1957) is a former professional relief pitcher. Buice played two seasons for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California Angels and half a season for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He ...

was drafted from the Giants by the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

in the 1980 minor league draft. * December 12, 1980:

John Montefusco John Joseph Montefusco Jr. (born May 25, 1950), nicknamed "The Count," is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played as a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1974 to 1986, most notably as a member of the Sa ...

and Craig Landis (minors) were traded by the Giants to the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

for

Doyle Alexander Doyle Lafayette Alexander (born September 4, 1950) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue J ...

. * December 12, 1980:

Joe Strain Joseph Allan Strain (born April 30, 1954) is a former a professional baseball player who was an infielder in the Major Leagues from to for the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs. Strain currently resides in the home rule municipality of Cen ...

and

Philip Nastu Philip Nastu (born March 8, 1955) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1978 through 1980 for the San Francisco Giants. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Nastu attended Bassick High School and the University of Bridgeport be ...

were traded by the Giants to the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

for Jerry Martin,

Jesús Figueroa Jesús Maria Figueroa (born February 20, 1957) is a Dominican former professional baseball player. He appeared in 115 games during the 1980 baseball season with the Chicago Cubs, mostly as a pinch hitter and defensive replacement. Figueroa als ...

, and a player to be named later. The Cubs completed the deal by sending Mike Turgeon (minors) to the Giants on August 11, 1981. * February 9, 1981:

Joe Morgan Joe Leonard Morgan (September 19, 1943 – October 11, 2020) was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Colt .45s / Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, ...

was signed as a free agent by the Giants. * March 23, 1981: Billy Smith was purchased by the Giants from the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

. * March 31, 1981:

Gorman Heimueller Gorman John Heimueller (born September 24, 1955) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Heimueller pitched parts of two seasons for the Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional bas ...

was released by the Giants.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Opening Day starters

Vida Blue Vida Rochelle Blue Jr. (born July 28, 1949) is a former American professional baseball player. He was a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball between and , most notably as an integral member of the Oakland Athletics dynasty that won thr ...

* Jack Clark *

Darrell Evans Darrell Wayne Evans (born May 26, 1947) is a former American baseball player, coach and manager. He played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), beginning his career as a third baseman with the Atlanta Braves (1969–1976, 1989), alternatin ...

Larry Herndon Larry Darnell Herndon (born November 3, 1953), sometimes referred to by the nickname "Hondo", is an American former baseball outfielder and hitting coach. He played in Major League Baseball in 1974 and from 1976 to 1988. Born in Mississippi and ...

Johnnie LeMaster Johnnie Lee LeMaster (born June 19, 1954) is a former Major League Baseball infielder. He played for four teams over a 12 year (– and ) MLB career, including 10 seasons with the San Francisco Giants. He batted and threw right-handed. Career On ...

Milt May Milton Scott May (born August 1, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player and coach. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from to for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, and San F ...

Billy North William Alex North (born May 15, 1948) is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1971 to 1981, he played for the Chicago Cubs (1971–72), Oakland Athletics (1973–78), Los Angeles Dodgers (1978) and San Francisco Giants (1979– ...

Notable transactions

* May 17, 1981:

Phil Ouellette Philip Roland Ouellette (born November 10, 1959) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in 10 games for the San Francisco Giants of the Major League Baseball (MLB) in . Ouellette was originally signed by the Giants as an a ...

was signed by the Giants as an amateur free agent. * August 3, 1981:

Mike Sadek Michael George Sadek (May 30, 1946 – January 20, 2021) was an American baseball player who was a catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). Originally drafted by the Minnesota Twins in 1969, he spent his entire major league career with the San F ...

was released by the Giants.Mike Sadek
at ''Baseball Reference''

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Awards and honors

* 1981

LF,

Willie Mac Award The Willie Mac Award is named in honor of Willie McCovey. It has been presented annually since 1980 to the most inspirational player on the San Francisco Giants, as voted upon by Giants players, coaches, training staff, and more recently, Giants ...

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...

, reserve

Farm system

References

External links

1981 San Francisco Giants
at ''Baseball Reference''
1981 San Francisco Giants
at ''Baseball Almanac'' {{DEFAULTSORT:1981 San Francisco Giants Season San Francisco Giants seasons San Francisco Giants Season, 1981 1981 in San Francisco San