1981 San Francisco Giants season

The 1981 San Francisco Giants season was the Giants' 99th season in Major League Baseball, their 24th season in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their 22nd at Candlestick Park. Giants manager Frank Robinson became the first black manager in the history of the National League. Robinson was also the first black manager in the history of the American League.

Offseason

December 8, 1980: Chris Bourjos and Bob Knepper were traded by the Giants to the Houston Astros for Enos Cabell.
December 9, 1980: DeWayne Buice was drafted from the Giants by the Oakland Athletics in the 1980 minor league draft.
December 12, 1980: John Montefusco and Craig Landis (minors) were traded by the Giants to the Atlanta Braves for Doyle Alexander.
December 12, 1980: Joe Strain and Philip Nastu were traded by the Giants to the Chicago Cubs for Jerry Martin, Jesús Figueroa, 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 was signed as a free agent by the Giants.
March 23, 1981: Billy Smith was purchased by the Giants from the Philadelphia Phillies.
March 31, 1981: Gorman Heimueller was released by the Giants.

Regular season

Season standings

v
t
e
NL West
Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Cincinnati Reds	66	42	.611	—	32‍–‍22	34‍–‍20
Los Angeles Dodgers	63	47	.573	4	33‍–‍23	30‍–‍24
Houston Astros	61	49	.555	6	31‍–‍20	30‍–‍29
San Francisco Giants	56	55	.505	11½	29‍–‍24	27‍–‍31
Atlanta Braves	50	56	.472	15	22‍–‍27	28‍–‍29
San Diego Padres	41	69	.373	26	20‍–‍35	21‍–‍34

NL West First Half Standings	W	L	Pct.	GB
Los Angeles Dodgers	36	21	.632	—
Cincinnati Reds	35	21	.625	1⁄2
Houston Astros	28	29	.491	8
Atlanta Braves	25	29	.463	9+1⁄2
San Francisco Giants	27	32	.458	10
San Diego Padres	23	33	.411	12+1⁄2

NL West Second Half Standings	W	L	Pct.	GB
Houston Astros	33	20	.623	—
Cincinnati Reds	31	21	.596	1+1⁄2
San Francisco Giants	29	23	.558	3+1⁄2
Los Angeles Dodgers	27	26	.509	6
Atlanta Braves	25	27	.481	7+1⁄2
San Diego Padres	18	36	.333	15+1⁄2

Record vs. opponents

1981 National League record v t e Sources:
Team	ATL	CHC	CIN	HOU	LAD	MON	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL
Atlanta	—	3–2–1	6–5	4–8	7–7	3–7	3–3	4–5	2–3	9–6	5–7	4–3
Chicago	2–3–1	—	1–5	1–6	6–4	4–7	5–8–1	2–10	4–10	3–3	5–5	5–4–1
Cincinnati	5–6	5–1	—	8–4	8–8	5–4	7–3	5–2	4–2	10–2	9–5	0–5
Houston	8–4	6–1	4–8	—	4–8	5–2	6–3	4–6	2–4	11–3	9–6	2–4
Los Angeles	7–7	4–6	8–8	8–4	—	5–2	5–1	3–3	5–1	6–5	7–5	5–5
Montreal	7–3	7–4	4–5	2–5	2–5	—	9–3	7–4	10–3	4–2	2–5	6–9
New York	3–3	8–5–1	3–7	3–6	1–5	3–9	—	7–7	3–6–1	2–5	2–4	6–5
Philadelphia	5-4	10–2	2–5	6–4	3–3	4–7	7–7	—	7–5	4–2	4–3	7–6
Pittsburgh	3–2	10–4	2–4	4–2	1–5	3–10	6–3–1	5–7	—	6–4	3–7	3–8
San Diego	6–9	3–3	2–10	3–11	5–6	2–4	5–2	2–4	4–6	—	6–7	3–7
San Francisco	7–5	5–5	5–9	6–9	5–7	5–2	4–2	3–4	7–3	7–6	—	2–3
St. Louis	3–4	4–5–1	5–0	4–2	5–5	9–6	5–6	6–7	8–3	7–3	3–2	—

Opening Day starters

Notable transactions

April 20, 1981: Mike Ivie was traded by the Giants to the Houston Astros for Dave Bergman and Jeffrey Leonard.
May 17, 1981: Phil Ouellette was signed by the Giants as an amateur free agent.
August 3, 1981: Mike Sadek was released by the Giants.

Roster

1981 San Francisco Giants
Roster
Pitchers 33 Doyle Alexander 14 Vida Blue 48 Fred Breining 43 Tom Griffin 40 Alan Hargesheimer 19 Al Holland 46 Gary Lavelle 38 Greg Minton 17 Randy Moffitt 45 Allen Ripley 28 Mike Rowland 17 Bob Tufts 32 Ed Whitson		Catchers 15 Bob Brenly 7 Milt May 3 Jeff Ransom 3 Mike Sadek Infielders 16 Dave Bergman 23 Enos Cabell 41 Darrell Evans 15 Mike Ivie 10 Johnnie LeMaster 8 Joe Morgan 2 Joe Pettini 21 Billy Smith 6 Rennie Stennett 18 Guy Sularz		Outfielders 22 Jack Clark 30 Chili Davis 31 Larry Herndon 26 Jeffrey Leonard 25 Jerry Martin 36 Billy North 49 Max Venable 1 Jim Wohlford		Manager 20 Frank Robinson Coaches 8 Vern Benson 9 Don Buford (First Base) 12 Jim Davenport (Third Base) 5 Jim Lefebvre (Hitting) 47 Don McMahon (Pitching) 42 John VanOrnum (Bullpen)

1981 San Francisco Giants

Roster

Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Manager

20 Frank Robinson

Coaches

8 Vern Benson
9 Don Buford (First Base)
12 Jim Davenport (Third Base)
5 Jim Lefebvre (Hitting)
47 Don McMahon (Pitching)
42 John VanOrnum (Bullpen)

Game log

Regular season Game log

First half

1981 regular season game log: 27–32 (Home: 13–15; Away: 14–17)

April: 9–12 (Home: 4–8; Away: 5–4)

#	Date	Opponent
5	April 13	Dodgers
6	April 14	Dodgers
7	April 15	Dodgers
19	April 27	@ Dodgers
20	April 28	@ Dodgers
21	April 29	@ Dodgers

May: 16–13 (Home: 8–5; Away: 8–8)

#	Date	Opponent	Score
—	May 1	@ Phillies	Postponed (Rain) (Makeup date: May 2)
22	May 2 (1)	@ Phillies
23	May 2 (2)	@ Phillies
24	May 3	@ Phillies
25	May 4	@ Phillies
29	May 8	@ Expos
30	May 9	@ Expos
31	May 10 (1)	@ Expos
32	May 10 (2)	@ Expos
33	May 12	Phillies
34	May 13	Phillies
35	May 14	Phillies
36	May 15	Expos
37	May 16	Expos
38	May 17	Expos
42	May 22	@ Astros
43	May 23	@ Astros
44	May 24	@ Astros
—	May 26	@ Reds	Postponed (Rain) (Makeup date: August 14)
48	May 29	Astros
49	May 30	Astros
50	May 31	Astros

June: 2–7 (Home: 1–2; Away: 1–5)

#	Date	Time (PT)	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Time of Game	Attendance	Record	Streak

Legend: = Win = Loss; = Postponement
Bold = Giants team member

Games canceled

1981 regular season game log

June

#	Date	Time (PT)	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Time of Game	Attendance	Record	Streak

July

#	Date	Opponent	Score
—	July 3	Dodgers	Canceled
—	July 4	Dodgers	Canceled
—	July 5	Dodgers	Canceled
—	July 10	@ Dodgers	Canceled
—	July 11	@ Dodgers	Canceled
—	July 12	@ Dodgers	Canceled
—	July 16	@ Phillies	Canceled
—	July 17	@ Phillies	Canceled
—	July 21	@ Expos	Canceled
—	July 22	@ Expos	Canceled
—	July 24	Phillies	Canceled
—	July 25	Phillies	Canceled
—	July 26	Phillies	Canceled
—	July 28	Expos	Canceled
—	July 29	Expos	Canceled
—	July 30	Expos	Canceled

August

#	Date	Opponent	Score
—	August 3	@ Astros	Canceled
—	August 4	@ Astros	Canceled
—	August 5	@ Astros	Canceled

Legend: = Postponement

Second half

1981 regular season game log: 28–23 (Home: 15–10; Away: 13–13)

August: 12–8 (Home: 5–2; Away: 7–6)

#	Date	Opponent
52nd All-Star Game in Cleveland, Ohio
58	August 10	Astros
59	August 11	Astros
60	August 12	Astros

September: 14–13 (Home: 9–6; Away: 5–7)

#	Date	Opponent
86	September 7	@ Dodgers
87	September 8	@ Dodgers
88	September 9	@ Dodgers
89	September 11	@ Astros
90	September 12	@ Astros
91	September 13	@ Astros
96	September 18	Astros
97	September 19	Astros
98	September 20	Astros
99	September 22	Dodgers
100	September 23	Dodgers
101	September 24	Dodgers

October: 2–2 (Home: 1–2; Away: 1–0)

#	Date	Time (PT)	Opponent	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Time of Game	Attendance	Record	Streak
—	October 2		Padres	Postponed (Rain) (Makeup date: October 3)

Legend: = Win = Loss; = Postponement
Bold = Giants team member

Player stats

= Indicates team leader

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

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
C	Milt May	97	316	98	.310	2	33
1B	Enos Cabell	96	396	101	.255	2	36
2B	Joe Morgan	90	308	74	.240	8	31
3B	Darrell Evans	102	357	92	.258	12	48
SS	Johnnie LeMaster	104	324	82	.253	0	28
LF	Jack Clark	99	385	103	.268	17	53
CF	Larry Herndon	96	364	105	.288	5	41
RF	Jerry Martin	72	241	58	.241	4	25

Other batters

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

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
Dave Bergman	63	145	37	.255	3	13
Billy North	46	131	29	.221	1	12
Jeffrey Leonard	37	127	39	.307	4	26
Rennie Stennett	38	87	20	.230	1	7
Jim Wohlford	50	68	11	.162	1	7
Billy Smith	36	61	11	.180	1	5
Bob Brenly	19	45	15	.333	1	4
Mike Sadek	19	36	6	.167	0	3
Max Venable	18	32	6	.188	0	1
Joe Pettini	35	29	2	.069	0	2
Guy Sularz	10	20	4	.200	0	2
Mike Ivie	7	17	5	.294	0	3
Chili Davis	8	15	2	.133	0	0
Jeff Ransom	5	15	4	.267	0	0

Pitching

Starting pitchers

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

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Doyle Alexander	24	152.1	11	7	2.89	77
Tom Griffin	22	129.1	8	8	3.76	83
Ed Whitson	22	123.0	6	9	4.02	65
Vida Blue	18	124.2	8	6	2.45	63
Allen Ripley	19	90.2	4	4	4.07	47

Other pitchers

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

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Alan Hargesheimer	6	18.2	1	2	4.34	6

Relief pitchers

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

Player	G	IP	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Greg Minton	55	84.1	4	5	21	2.88	29
Al Holland	47	100.2	7	5	7	2.41	78
Fred Breining	45	77.2	5	2	1	2.55	37
Gary Lavelle	34	65.2	2	6	4	3.84	45
Mike Rowland	9	15.2	0	1	0	3.45	8
Bob Tufts	11	15.1	0	0	0	3.52	12
Randy Moffitt	10	11.1	0	0	0	7.94	11

Awards and honors

1981 Larry Herndon LF, Willie Mac Award

All-Star Game

Vida Blue, reserve

Farm system

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Phoenix Giants	Pacific Coast League	Rocky Bridges
AA	Shreveport Captains	Texas League	Jack Mull
A	Fresno Giants	California League	Wayne Cato
A	Clinton Giants	Midwest League	Wendell Kim
Rookie	Great Falls Giants	Pioneer League	Ernie Rodriguez

References

Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p.198, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, ISBN 978-0-451-22363-0
Chris Bourjos at Baseball Reference
DeWayne Buice at Baseball Reference
Doyle Alexander at Baseball Reference
"Giants trade twice on final day". The Ledger. Lakeland, Florida. Associated Press (AP). December 13, 1980. p. 3D. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
Joe Strain at Baseball Reference
Joe Morgan at Baseball Reference
Billy Smith at Baseball Reference
Gorman Heimueller at Baseball Reference
"1981 San Francisco Giants Roster by Baseball Almanac".
Phil Ouellette at Baseball Reference
Mike Sadek at Baseball Reference

External links

1981 San Francisco Giants at Baseball Reference
1981 San Francisco Giants at Baseball Almanac

1981 MLB season by team

AL East	Baltimore Boston Cleveland Detroit Milwaukee New York Toronto
AL West	California Chicago Kansas City Minnesota Oakland Seattle Texas

NL East	Chicago Montréal New York Philadelphia Pittsburgh St. Louis
NL West	Atlanta Cincinnati Houston Los Angeles San Diego San Francisco

San Francisco Giants

Established in 1883
Formerly the New York Gothams and the New York Giants
Based in San Francisco, California (Bay Area)

Franchise

Ballparks

Polo Grounds Oakland Park St. George Grounds Hilltop Park Seals Stadium Candlestick Park Oracle Park
Spring training:	Bolton Street Park Payne Park Flamingo Field LSU Varsity Baseball Field Denison Field Al Lang Stadium Phoenix Municipal Stadium Scottsdale Stadium

Culture

Lore

Rivalries

Athletics
Los Angeles Dodgers
New York Yankees
- Subway Series (historically)

Retired numbers

Pre-World Series Champions (2)

1888
1889

Temple Cup Champions (1)

1894

World Series Champions (8)

National League
Championships (23)

Division titles (9)

Wild card (3)

Minor league affiliates

Triple-A: Sacramento River Cats
Double-A: Richmond Flying Squirrels
High-A: Eugene Emeralds
Single-A: San Jose Giants
Rookie: ACL Giants; DSL Giants Black; DSL Giants Orange

Seasons (143)
1880s	1880 · 1881 · 1882 · 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889
1890s	1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899
1900s	1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909
1910s	1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
1920s	1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929
1930s	1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
1940s	1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
1950s	1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s	1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000s	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010s	2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020s	2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

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