As I write this, Pablo Sandoval has just broken the record for the most consecutive games with a hit to start a season in San Francisco Giants history. Who did he pass? The great Willie Mays, who did it in 1960.
Any time your name is mentioned alongside one of the greatest players to ever play the game, you are doing something right. In this young season, Sandoval has hit safely in all 17 of the Giants games. The only Giant to hit in more was Johnny Rucker for the 1945 New York Giants.
No one has hit in more games since the team moved to San Francisco, and Willie Mays’ record stood for an amazing 52 years before Tuesday.
Sandoval, who waited until his third and final at-bat against the Reds to get his hit, is batting .333 for the season with 3 HR and 13 RBI.
His hitting will be key to the Giants’ success all year, and it is showing right now as the Giants two-through-five hitters have been carrying them in recent games with the pitching not being up to its usual par. The Giants have scored 73 runs this year while allowing 70.
Melky Cabrera, Sandoval, Buster Posey and Nate Schierholtz are all hitting above .293, with Posey leading the way at .373 and Schierholtz a close second at .372.
The pitching will heat up eventually. If the run support can keep up, as it has, the Giants will be one of the better teams in the National League.
Sandoval has been one of the biggest reasons the offense is off to a fast start. After 17 straight games with a hit, there is no telling when he will stop. The Giants’ record hitting-streak, since 1900, is held by Jack Clark, who hit in 26 straight in 1978. No one knows when Sandoval will stop, but for now, all we know is he’s being mentioned with the likes of Mays and Clark, which can never be a bad thing.
