Article about Moscone keeping the Giants in San Franciscohttps://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/mayor-moscone/1024/thumbnail.jp

Labash, Nick

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University of the PacificScholarly CommonsMayor Moscone The George Moscone Collection2-1976The Giants Will Stay - Now What?Nick LabashFollow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/mayor-mosconePart of the Political Science Commons, Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public AdministrationCommons, and the Sports Management CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the The George Moscone Collection at Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted forinclusion in Mayor Moscone by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact mgibney@pacific.edu.Recommended CitationLabash, Nick, "The Giants Will Stay - Now What?" (1976). Mayor Moscone. 26.https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/mayor-moscone/26o og The Giants Will Stay-Now What? Well, it appears that there is a Santa Claus. in this vast land, after all. He came a little late, but just in time to save the Giant's baseball franchise from being taken from the friendly confines of the Bay Area, U.S.A., and depo:ted to Toronto, Canada. by NICK LABASH be avoided, it would seem that the logical thing to do is accept the offer and get on with more important things. Like hiring a manager. Just because it looks as though the Giants There were plenty of helpers who will remain, is no reason to assume that prevented this disaster. (Yes, it is a attendance will improve or the quality of disaster when one of the most prominent play will change. The Toronto group, still cities on the face of the earth cannot house hopeful of luring the Giants away, were the a baseball franchise.) Most notable, and 1 first t_o point that out. one of the men who worked the hardest, · 'Don McDougall, President of Labatt's was George ~oscone, newly elected Mayor Breweries, has said that changing owner-of San Francisco. ship is not going to put people in the Moscone- who had barely been sworn in ballpark or pay the bills. The truth of it is, - was making hi9- presence felt early. He he is exactly ri~ht. flew to Phoenix last month to attend a meeting of baseball owners with two firm offers that equalled that of the Toronto group, headed by Labatt's Breweries. There was also City Attorney Thomas O'Connor, who issued the temporary restraining order on the proposed move that gave the city enough time to iron out the problems and come up with interested buyers. And, of course, the men themselves, Robert Short, one time owner of the old Washington Senators, and Robert Lurie of San Francisco. It was Mayor Moscone who convinced these two gentlemen to join forces on the deal as equal partners. It would appear that with two men in charge, the Giants have a chance to operate under a full head of steam for a change - instead o( having to sell players to pay the bills. In this case at least, two heads are better than one, as both men have expressed that they have the needed capital to purchase the team as well as funds to keep it operable. Therefore it is important that when selecting a manager the new owners make a positive step in the right direction and not hire another lackey out of the Wes Westrum, Charlie Fox, Herman Franks, Clyde King mold. You could line all four of them up on any given street corner in The City and I would venture to say that very few people could pick out one from the other, save their mothers . In fact, one game we were attending several years ago when King was manag-ing, and moving out to the mound to make a pitching change, a fan yelled "go back to the dugout Franks, you bum." Certainly all the people with imagination and character are not in Hollywood. Actually the Giants, or Horace Stoneham, to put things in proper perspective, let a real contender for manager, Jim Daven-port, slip right out of the organization. The one-time Giant third-base star had proved his ability as a manager in the Giant's farm system. He is also a name that old Giant fans will surely remember as · a link with the glory days of the local nine. The next step is for the National They draft favorite sons for president, so Exhibition Company, parent company of why not for manager of a baseball the Giants, to accept the offer. And, then, of franchise that needs help. Sure, it is a great course, the consent of at least nine National· day for the City of San Francisco that the League owners. Giants are staying. It would appear that there isn't much of a But on the same token, let us hope that problem here. Moving a franchise repre- the shortsighted, neglecting, inept regime sents failure in most cases, and if that can of Horace Stoneham is long gone. 

The Giants Will Stay - Now What?

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The Giants Will Stay - Now What?

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