(Reminder: BATSMEN stands for Birthdays, Appearances, Tune In, Sundry, Movement, Eavesdroppings, & News.)

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I can’t speak for all Giants fans, but speaking for me, the Comcast SportsNet Bay Area rebroadcasts of the 2010 Giants postseason run have been nothing short of…terrific. The tally of magical highlights grew so high, they admittedly became a little blurred in my mind as time passed—especially without television calls from Kruk, Kuip, Jon and Flem accompanying them. Thanks to CSN, KNBR and top-notch editing wizardry, those moments get second chances at permanent mental fusion. Hearing Kuip’s frantic, biased, cries in place of the generic, manufactured descriptions given by TBS/FOX makes a world of difference. 

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That’s not to say there aren’t…quirks. Remember, the KNBR guys were not seeing what FOX viewers saw—several times during NLDS Game 1 TBS’ Tom Verducci appeared on-camera moving his mouth, completely ignored by Kruk and Kuip. Then in WS Game 1, a replay of a critical double play was seen, but again ignored by the broadcasters. Later, Kuip made mention of Barry Bonds’ snagging a foul ball into the crowd, and we waited and waited for the camera to pan over…but it never did, of course. Overall, though, the mesh was seamless and not overly descriptive for TV viewers, as I feared it’d be.

Hilarious moment from said WS Game 1:

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KUIP: Casilla gets it in for strike one. It’s always good when that first pitch is a strike.
KRUK: I think they called it a ball.
KUIP: It’s always good when that first pitch is called a ball.

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Remaining games to air on CSNBA: WS Game 4 (aka the MadBum game) on December 23 at 7:30, and WS Game 5—the clincher—December 24 at 8pm. 

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Jon Miller was recently gifted with the Key to the City of Hayward, his hometown.

You’ve probably heard that the World Series Trophy is going on tour after a stint on display at AT&T Park last week (where season-ticket holders got their photos taken with it). On January 4, 2011, it will embark on its’ voyage through Northern California. Sacramento and even southern Oregon are among the stops, and it will also visit Scottsdale (their Spring Training home) New York (for the remaining New York Giants fans) and Cooperstown before landing back at AT&T for the 2011 home opener. KNBR’s Brian Murphy suggested adding the site of old Seals Stadium to the tour in a recent interview with Larry Baer, and Baer genuinely seemed warm to the idea. Stay tuned…

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The Giants have announced some upcoming 2011 promotions: on May 6 vs Colorado, the first 20K will get a replica Willie Mays statue, in commemoration of his 80th birthday. On May 20 vs. Oakland, an Orange Friday, “Wearable Blankets”—aka Snuggies—will be dispensed to the first 20K. And on June 4, also vs. Colorado, Cody Ross will be saluted with his very own Bobblehead (first 20K). He was similarly honored by his previous team, Florida, last May.

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Andres Torres, the 2010 Willie Mac Award winner, is the subject of a yet-to-be-titled documentary on Attention Deficit Disorder (from which he suffers) to be released in July.

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Eugenio Velez, the 2005 Rule V acquisition from Toronto who ended up spending parts of four years with the Giants, is now a Dodger. Unlike Juan Uribe, Velez’ “defection” is unlikely to garner much of a firestorm. Velez, who was non-tendered in November, signed a minor league deal for his trip down the 101.

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Edgar Renteria, as we know, was offered a $1M deal by the Giants recently, but he won’t be accepting it. The World Series MVP considers the offer “insulting”, according to ESPNDeportes, and would rather retire than play for those peanuts. The man is a 16-year veteran and entitled to his opinion and his pride, surely. I don’t fault him for feeling as he does. What I DO fault him for is taking a hammer to the goodwill he’d built up from a Giant fan base ready to run him out of town before his postseason heroics. After two nothing years, Renteria was a hero in The City and retiring quietly would have preserved that status. But if the LeBron James saga didn’t teach us anything, it taught us that leaving an organization with class is not addressed in Pro Athletes 101.
 
Recent and upcoming birthdays: 

Marcus Jensen turns 38 on 12/14; Ivan Ochoa reaches 28 while Matt Kinney reaches 34 on 12/16;  Jeremy Accardo celebrates his 29th on 12/18.
Barring a huge news break like AT&T Park being stolen or Freddy Sanchez becoming pregnant, this will likely be my last article before Christmas. I want to wish a blanket Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it and a blanket Happy Holidays to everyone who does not.