Game One in McCovey Cove

The 2010 World Series is finally over and after 56 years of always being the bridesmaid, never the bride, the San Francisco Giants have finally won the Major League Baseball World Series.

Admittedly I have never been much of a baseball fan, yet on Oct. 27 I jumped at the chance to witness a piece of this highly anticipated history from McCovey Cove for game one of the series against the Texas Rangers.

McCovey Cove is the unofficial name of the area of the San Francisco bay located just over the right field wall of AT&T Park.  Boats, yachts, sail boats, paddle boards and kayaks flock to this area of the bay during games, in the hopes of fishing a “splash hit” homerun ball out of the water.  

I too, imagined myself catching a splash hit!

The large pontoon boat, my friend Mat owns, was difficult to maneuver through World Series fan traffic and chaos on the streets.  Dodging the rouge pedestrians and taking the tight corners of San Francisco's South Beach and Mission Bay streets is no easy task when towing 30 extra feet of a boat and trailer.

Luckily a few traffic cops helped clear the way and we finally made it to boat launch at pier 54.

McCovey Cove was packed, that’s an understatement, with hundreds of boats in every shape and size.  Flags of orange and black waved while misfits in Brian Wilson beards and pink wigs paddled by in kayaks, surfboards and dingys.  Even a pair of Speedo clad swimmers streaked by as we anchored.

The energy in McCovey cove was electric.  The roar from the 43,601 fans in the stadium reverberated throughout the cove as air horns and a distant trumpet blew in return.  Everyone was ready for the game; somehow the fans knew that this would be the year that the torture of losing was over.

A fly over of F-16s brought me chills as the singing of the Star Spangled Banner finished and fireworks marked the start of the game.

From where we anchored, the jumbo screen of AT&T Park could just barely be seen as it flashed statistics and occasional replays.  Luckily for us we brought our own TV, and after a few beer-can antenna adjustments the picture came in crystal clear.

McCovey Cove was informally named after the Giants first baseman and left-handed batter, Willie McCovey, who played for the Giants from 1959 to 1973.  Before the AT&T Park’s upper deck was extended, the area behind right field housed only a few benches.  Fans would gather there whenever McCovey was up to bat, hoping to catch one of his 521 career homeruns.  A bronze statue depicting McCovey now stands at the point of McCovey Cove.

After the Park's remodel, McCovey Cove became most popular for boaters and kayakers when Barry Bonds joined the Giants and began his homerun record chase.  Out of 55 recorded “splash hits” into McCovey Cove, Barry Bonds hit 35 of them.  A "splash hit" is only recorded when a Giants player hits a homerun over right field and into the water.

While there were no "splash hits" or even homeruns while we were anchored, the game and party on the water was still exciting.  The Giants went on to use the Rangers as batting practice and won the World Series opening game, 11-7.

A few tips for watching from McCovey Cove:  Check the tides, the boat lauch is trickey at low tide and can cause series damage to your vehicle and trailer.  Bring extra blankets and sweaters, although the weather was not too cold while we were there, the wind does sneak up on you!