The two teams were victorious in the NL Division Series (NLDS), with the Cardinals defeating the West Division champion and defending World Series champions Arizona Diamondbacks three games to none, and the Giants defeating the East Division champion and heavily favored Atlanta Braves three games to two.
The Giants won the series in five games but were defeated by the Anaheim Angels in seven games in the World Series.
The Giants struck first in Game 1 off of Matt Morris with two on via Benito Santiago's RBI single to score Kenny Lofton from second. Next inning, Morris struck out David Bell and Kirk Rueter, but then gave up four runs before finally retiring Reggie Sanders. Lofton singled, stole second, and scored on Rich Aurilia's RBI single. After Jeff Kent singled, Barry Bonds's two-run triple scored Aurilia and Kent before Bonds scored on Santiago's RBI single, giving the Giants an early 5−0 lead. The Cardinals got on the board in the bottom of the inning off of Rueter on Fernando Viña's RBI groundout with runners on second and third, but solo home runs by Lofton in the third and Bell in the fifth off of Morris gave the Giants a 7−1 lead. Albert Pujols hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth off of Rueter cutting the Giants' lead to 7−3, but the Giants got those runs back in the sixth on Santiago's two-run home run off of Mike Crudale. The Cardinals cut the lead to 9−5 on Miguel Cairo's two-run home run in the bottom of the inning, then made it 9−6 on J.D. Drew's home run in the eighth off of Tim Worrell, but Robb Nen pitched a scoreless ninth for the save as the Giants went up 1−0 in the series.
In Game 2, the Giants went up 1−0 on Rich Aurilia's home run in the first off of Woody Williams. His two-run home run in the fifth made it 3−0. Jason Schmidt pitched 7+2⁄3 shutout innings before allowing Eduardo Pérez's home run in the eighth. The Giants added a run in the ninth on Ramón Martínez's groundout off of Jason Isringhausen with runners on first and third while Robb Nen pitched a scoreless bottom of the inning for his second consecutive save. The Giants went up 2−0 in the series heading to San Francisco.
In Game 3, the Giants loaded the bases in the second with no outs off of Chuck Finley, but only scored once on Rich Aurilia's sacrifice fly. The Cardinals responded in the third off of Russ Ortiz with Édgar Rentería's sacrifice fly and Jim Edmonds' RBI groundout scoring a run each after managing to put runners on second and third. They extended their lead to 4−1 on solo home runs by Mike Matheny in the fourth and Edmonds in the fifth, but Barry Bonds' three-run "splash hit" home run into McCovey Cove in the fifth tied the game, 4−4. This was the first (and, so far, only) time a Giants player had recorded a "splash hit" in the postseason. In the sixth, Eli Marrero hit a leadoff home run off of Jay Witasick to take back the lead for the Cardinals. In the ninth, the Giants were given the opportunity to win the game when Bonds walked with one out, representing the tying run, but this was followed by a strikeout and a flyout by Benito Santiago and Reggie Sanders, respectively, sealing the Cardinals' 5−4 win and cutting the Giants' series lead to 2−1.
In the first inning of Game 4, the Cardinals took an early 2–0 lead off Liván Hernández, scoring on Jim Edmonds' RBI groundout and Tino Martinez' RBI single. After being held scoreless for the first five innings, the Giants' bats would answer in the sixth, when J. T. Snow hit a game-tying two-run double to score Jeff Kent and Barry Bonds. In the eighth, Benito Santiago would deliver the key blow for San Francisco with a two-run home run following an intentional walk to Bonds. In the ninth, the Cardinals would threaten against Robb Nen, cutting the deficit to 4–3 with Edmonds' RBI single, which put runners at first and third base with one out for slugger Albert Pujols. However, Nen struck out Pujols and J. D. Drew to give the Giants a 3–1 series advantage.
Game5 was a pitchers' duel between Matt Morris and Kirk Rueter throughout the first six innings as the Giants looked for their first pennant since 1989. The Cardinals got on the board in the seventh with a sacrifice fly by Fernando Viña, but the Giants responded in the eighth with a sacrifice fly by Barry Bonds. In the ninth, Morris retired Ramón Martínez and J.T. Snow before giving up back-to-back singles to David Bell and Shawon Dunston. Steve Kline was then brought in to pitch to Kenny Lofton, who had yelled at the Cardinals dugout earlier after an inside pitch. On the first pitch, Lofton delivered a walk-off RBI single to right field, scoring Bell as J.D. Drew's throw was off-line, giving the Giants their first pennant since 1989.
In the Barry Bonds era (1993-2007), the 2002 postseason would be the only October where the Giants would experience a run of success, let alone win a playoff series (winning two). However, it still did not lead to an elusive World Championship for San Francisco. In the 2002 World Series against the Anaheim Angels, the Giants were eight outs away from winning the Series in Game 6, but late game home runs by Scott Spiezio and Darin Erstad, as well as a two-RBI double by Troy Glaus helped the Angels overcome a five-run, seventh-inning deficit to win.[6] A three-run double by Garret Anderson was the difference in the Angels' Game 7 win to clinch the series.[7] The two teams set a record for combined most home runs in a World Series (21), which stood until the 2017 World Series. The Giants did not win a World Series until 2010.
Despite Dusty Baker's success in San Francisco, he had an increasingly strained relationship with owner Peter Magowan, one that even the Giants' first pennant in thirteen years could not mend. Baker and the Giants mutually parted ways after the season. Baker was not out of work for long as he was quickly snatched up by the Chicago Cubs to become their manager. Baker's Cubs reached the 2003 National League Championship Series, but the team famously fell apart in Game 6 when the Cubs were up 3-0 and five outs from their first World Series appearance in almost 60 years.[8] He would experience success managing the Cincinnati Reds (2010-2013), Washington Nationals (2016-2018), and the Houston Astros (2020–present) in later years. In 2012, his Reds faced his former team the Giants in the National League Division Series. Unfortunately for Baker, his team would again fall apart after leading the series 2–0, eventually losing to the Giants in five games. Baker would finally win a World Series as a manager in 2022 with the Astros. He would retire the following season at the age of 73.[9][10]
The St. Louis Cardinals would continue to be a perennial playoff team until 2016, winning two World Championships in 2006 and 2011. Meanwhile, San Francisco would begin re-tooling their roster after losing a close NL West race to the Dodgers on the last weekend of the season in 2004.[11] They did not make the postseason from 2004 to 2009.
In 2021, Dusty Baker and Tony La Russa would face off again in the American League Division Series. By then, the two men were the oldest managers in MLB at a combined age of 149. Baker's Astros beat La Russa's White Sox in four games on his way to his fourth League Championship Series as manager. He proceeded to win that series, which made him at the age of 72 the second oldest manager to appear in a World Series, with the 19-year gap between pennants being the second longest for a manager in MLB history.[12]
The 2004 National League Championship Series (NLCS) was a Major League Baseball playoff series played from October 13 to 21 to determine the champion of the National League, between the Central Division champion St. Louis Cardinals and the wild-card qualifying Houston Astros. This marked the first time in either Major League that two teams from the Central Division met in a Championship Series.
The 2002 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB)'s 2002 season. The 98th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Anaheim Angels and the National League (NL) champion San Francisco Giants; the Angels defeated the Giants, four games to three, to win their first, and, to date, only World Series championship. The series was played from October 19–27, 2002, at Pacific Bell Park in San Francisco and Edison International Field of Anaheim in Anaheim.
The 1933 World Series was the championship series of the 1933 Major League Baseball season. The 30th edition of the World Series, it matched the National League (NL) pennant winner New York Giants and the American League (AL) pennant winner Washington Senators. The Giants defeated the Senators in five games for their first championship since 1922 and their fourth overall. Key to the Giants' World Series triumph was the pitching of aces "King" Carl Hubbell and "Prince" Hal Schumacher.
The 1987 National League Championship Series took place between October 6 and 14 at Busch Memorial Stadium and Candlestick Park. It matched the East division champion St. Louis Cardinals (95–67) against the West division champion San Francisco Giants (90–72), with the Cardinals winning in seven games. The Cardinals would go on to lose the 1987 World Series to the Minnesota Twins, also in seven games.
The 2005 National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of the 2005 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, October 4, and ended on Sunday, October 9, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. They were:
The 1996 National League Championship Series (NLCS) matched the East Division champion Atlanta Braves and the Central Division champion St. Louis Cardinals. It was the second NLCS meeting of the two teams and first since 1982. The Braves won in seven games, becoming the eighth team in baseball history to win a best-of-seven postseason series after being down 3–1, and first to overcome such a deficit in the NLCS. They outscored the Cardinals, 32–1, over the final three games. Also, Bobby Cox became the only manager to be on both the winning and losing end of such a comeback in postseason history, having previously blown the 1985 American League Championship Series with the Toronto Blue Jays against the Kansas City Royals.
The 2006 National League Championship Series (NLCS), the second round of the 2006 National League playoffs, began on October 12 and ended on October 19; it was scheduled to begin on October 11, but was postponed a day because of inclement weather. The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the heavily favored New York Mets in seven games to advance to the 2006 World Series against the Detroit Tigers.
The 2000 National League Championship Series (NLCS), to determine the champion of Major League Baseball's National League, was played between the Central Division champion St. Louis Cardinals and the wild card New York Mets.
The 2000 National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of the 2000 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, October 3, and ended on Sunday, October 8, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. They were:
The 2003 National League Division Series (NLDS), the first round of the 2003 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, September 30, and ended on Sunday, October 5, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. The teams were:
The 1985 National League Championship Series was played between the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers from October 9–16. It was the 17th NLCS and the first played under the new best-of-seven format. In previous years, the NLCS had been settled by a best-of-five format. This series is best known for Ozzie Smith's dramatic walk-off home run in Game 5. This is the second consecutive NLCS where a team overcame a 2–0 series deficit to win the series after the Padres did so in the best-of-five 1984 NLCS.
The 1996 National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of the 1996 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, October 1, and ended on Saturday, October 5, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. The teams were:
The 1997 National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of the 1997 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, September 30, and ended on Friday, October 3, with the champions of the three NL divisions along with a wild card team participating in two best-of-five series. They were:
The 2002 National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of the 2002 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, October 1, and ended on Monday, October 7, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. The teams were:
The 2002 season was the 120th in the history of the San Francisco Giants, the franchise's 45th season in San Francisco, and their third in Pacific Bell Park. The season ended with the Giants winning the National League pennant but losing to the Anaheim Angels in the World Series.
The 2012 National League Division Series were two best-of-five-game series to determine the participating teams in the 2012 National League Championship Series. The three divisional winners and a fourth team—the winner of a one-game Wild Card playoff—played in two separate series.
The 2012 National League Championship Series was a best-of-seven playoff pitting the San Francisco Giants against the St. Louis Cardinals for the National League pennant and the right to play in the 2012 World Series. The series, the 43rd NLCS in league history, began Sunday, October 14, and ended Monday, October 22, with Fox airing all games in the United States. In shades of the 1996 NLCS, a series where the Cardinals blew a 3–1 series lead where they were outscored 32–1 over the final three games, the Giants came back from a 3–1 deficit and outscored the Cardinals, 20–1, over the final three games to win the series, 4–3.
The 2014 National League Division Series was two best-of-five-game series to determine the participating teams in the 2014 National League Championship Series. The Washington Nationals, Los Angeles Dodgers, and St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants—played in two series. Fox Sports 1 carried most of the games, with two of the games on MLB Network.
The 2014 National League Championship Series was a best-of-seven playoff pitting the St. Louis Cardinals against the San Francisco Giants for the National League pennant and the right to play in the 2014 World Series. The series was the 45th NLCS in league history with Fox airing Game 1 and Fox Sports 1 airing Games 2–5 in the United States. Game 1 was simulcast on Fox Sports 1 and was hosted by Kevin Burkhardt, Gabe Kapler and C.J. Nitkowski, who offered sabermetric analysis of the game.
The 2002 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2002 season. The winners of the League Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
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