How They Got Here: The San Francisco Giants is a
one-by-one look at how each member of the 2012 World Series Champion San
Francisco Giants found their way to the squad. We'll look at all of the
players on the roster, as well as notable players who did not make the
postseason roster for whatever reason and the coaching staff and general
manager. Part seventeen tells us of star pitcher Matt Cain.
Matt Cain was born on October 1, 1984, in Dothan, Alabama. He graduated from Houston High School in Germantown, Tennessee, and was drafted in the first round with the twenty-fifth overall selection by the San Francisco Giants in 2002. He was immediately assigned to the Rookie level Arizona League Giants, where he played in eight games during the 2002 season, posting a 3.72 earned run average with twenty strikeouts in nineteen and one-third innings. In 2003, Cain moved up to the Class A South Atlantic League, where he played for the Hagerstown Suns of Hagerstown, Maryland. He pitched to a 2.55 earned run average, while accumulating ninety strikeouts over seventy-four innings. Cain split his 2004 season in half, beginning with the Class A Advanced San Jose Giants of the California League, posting a 1.86 earned run average, eighty-nine strikeouts, and seventy-two and two-thirds innings. Midway through the season, he was promoted to the Class AA Norwich Navigators of Norwich, Connecticut in the Eastern League. With Norwich, he pitched to a 3.35 earned run average while striking out seventy-two batters in eighty-six innings of work. The 2005 campaign was also a split season for Cain, beginning with the Fresno Grizzlies of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League. Here, his statistics read a 4.39 earned run average, with 176 strikeouts in 145 and 2/3 innings pitched. While not stellar numbers, he earned a call up to the San Francisco Giants, starting seven games, with a debut of August 29, 2005. In the audition stint, he recorded a 2.33 earned run average with thirty strikeouts over forty-six and one-third innings. The immediate major league level success is both rare and admirable for the then-twenty year old pitcher. Also prevalent in his time throughout the various minor leagues was Cain's aversion to injury, which earned him a label as a workhorse. This was evident, as in his third start, he pitched a complete game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. For 2006, Cain was inserted into the rotation for a full-time role, and he delivered an average level of production, with a 4.15 earned run average, 179 strikeouts, and 190 and 2/3 innings pitched. He recorded his first shutout on May 21st of the season, and was in contention for Rookie of the Year throughout the season, but finished that race tied for fifth. In 2007, Cain pitched to a 3.65 earned run average, tenth best in the National League, while striking out 163 batters in 200 innings. However, a trend had started to develop: Cain received very little run support in his starts, as evidenced by the 7-16 record, as well as the team record of 9-23 in games Cain started. Twenty-one times during the season, Cain received two runs or less of support. He was able to help his own cause at times though, by hitting his first two career home runs in games against the Washington Nationals and Chicago Cubs. The 2008 season was very similar for Cain, who pitched to a 3.76 earned run average with 186 strikeouts in 217 and 2/3 innings pitched, but his record was only 8-14, again due to the failure of the offense behind him to give him run support. He also hit another two home runs in the season. His fortunes turned for the better in 2009, as he shaved his earned run average to 2.89 while striking out 171 batters in 217 and 2/3 innings pitched. His personal achievements in the 14-8 season included his first All-Star Game nomination, which he surrendered due to a minor injury that required rest over the break, as well as the Giants team award named for Willie McCovey. The Willie Mac award, as it's called, is voted on by the players and coaches of the Giants for the player who best exemplifies the spirit and leadership that McCovey was also known for. However, to the greater baseball world, Cain was a second thought to 2008 and 2009 Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum, and this theme persisted in 2010, leaving Cain in more of a secret weapon role in the rotation. He excelled under the radar, pitching to a 3.14 earned run average, with 177 strikeouts in a career-high 223 and 1/3 innings pitched. He pitched four complete games and two shutouts during the season, although despite sterling halfway statistics, was not named to the All-Star team. Cain was also a rock for the Giants' 2010 postseason run, his first appearance in the playoffs. He allowed only one unearned run in the postseason, against the Atlanta Braves in the National League Division Series, pitching twenty-one and one-third innings with a 0.00 earned run average. He is the fifth pitcher to pitch over twenty innings without an earned run. He also got the Giants started with seven innings of shutout ball in the National League Championship Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, and seven and two-thirds innings in Game 2 of the World Series against the Texas Rangers, helping the Giants to a World Series title. He improved his numbers slightly in 2011, although he still pitched in Lincecum's shadow. For the season, he had a 2.88 earned run average, 179 strikeouts, and 221 and 2/3 innings, although he was again a victim of a lack of run support often as evidenced by his 12-11 record. Overall, the quiet 2011 was a perfect contrast to a very exciting 2012 for Cain. He pitched in the home opener, throwing his third one-hit shutout of his career. In his next start, he pitched in one of the better modern-day duels against Cliff Lee and the Philadelphia Phillies, in which Cain's nine scoreless innings of two-hit ball were bested by ten scoreless innings from Lee. He was even more dominant on June 13, 2012, where he pitched the twenty-second perfect game in the history of major league baseball, against the Houston Astros. In this game, he struck out a whopping fourteen batters. This was the first perfect game in Giants history, the second perfect game of the season, the fifth no-hitter, and featured the most run support for a perfect game with ten runs scored. The day is now commemorated in San Francisco as Matt Cain Day. The dominance Cain possessed, as well as the status of de-facto ace, earned him the starting nod in the 2012 All-Star Game, his third nomination. He pitched two innings, and left with a lead that held up for a win, while teammate Melky Cabrera led the offensive attack in the 8-0 shutout by the National League team. Cain put himself in another piece of history when he hit his sixth home run off of Phillies' pitcher Cole Hamels, before giving up a home run in the bottom of the inning to Hamels, making July 21st the first time since 2003 that two pitchers hit home runs off of each other. Cain went into the postseason as a staff ace, although his second trip to the playoffs was not as individually impressive. However, he pitched in five games, including all three series clinching games for the Giants. He lost to the Cincinnati Reds in Game 1 of the National League Division Series, before besting them later in the series in Game 5. He repeated the trick against the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Championship Series, getting beat in Game 3 before exacting revenge in the decisive Game 7. This aligned Cain to pitch in Game 4 of the World Series against the Detroit Tigers, where he helped the Giants lock down a sweep for his second World Series Championship with the Giants in three years. His overall postseason earned run average was a pedestrian 3.60, but his ability to come up bug when needed further endeared him to the Giants faithful.
Follow me on Twitter @KipperScorpion.
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