San Francisco became the Valley of the Giants for the third time in five years Friday as hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets for a confetti and rain-soaked parade honouring the city's World Series champions.
Under grey skies where a steady drizzle mixed with clouds of orange, black and white confetti, players waved, snapped photos and mugged for the roaring crowds from the top of double-decker buses, a change from the classic convertibles and cable cars on wheels that had transported them along their now-familiar parade route in 2012 and 2010.
"These guys play together, they believe in each other, they play as one and they never give up," baseball Hall of Famer Willie McCovey said as he waited to greet the young members of his former team for a post-parade rally at San Francisco City Hall, the end of the 3.2 kilometre (two mile) route. "That's the way this team has been for years."
Elated fans of all ages, some of whom staked out viewing spots hours before the spectacle's noon PT start time, pressed against metal barriers, stood on rooftops and climbed onto street lamps festooned with orange, black and white balloons, to cheer their hometown heroes.
Many skipped work and pulled their children out of class against the pleas of local schools so they could catch what they described as a glimpse of history.
"I'm going to send them to school on Monday saying they had `orange fever,"' said Marcela Habash, 36, of San Francisco, who brought three of her four children to the plaza outside City Hall to see the celebration.
While other players doubled up on the buses, the day's undisputed giant among Giants, pitching ace Madison Bumgarner, was given his own flatbed truck to ride. It was adorned with a sign indicating his most valuable player honours from both the World Series and the National League championship. Deafening roars and chants of "M-V-P! M-V-P!" greeted the soft-spoken pitcher as he held both of his trophies aloft.
A second pickup carried the Giants' World Series trophies from 2012 and 2010, while manager Bruce Bochy beamed from atop a double-decker bus bearing this year's trophy.
Corporate sponsors livened up the parade with elaborately decked-out floats that included a panda-themed homage to slugger and 2012 World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval, whose nickname is Kung-Fu Panda. Former Journey lead singer Steve Perry stepped down from a float blaring his anthem "Don't Stop Believin"' to offer animated high-fives to fellow die-hard San Francisco fans.
Dignitaries such as Giants legend Willie Mays, team president Larry Baer, U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Mayor Ed Lee and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who was San Francisco's mayor when the Giants won the Series in 2010, rode in convertibles.
Elsewhere along the route, teenage girls with cellphones held high shrieked as shortstop and team heartthrob Brandon Crawford rolled by. San Jose high school senior Jessica Earnshaw snapped off several pictures of Crawford.
"He's my favourite," she said. "By far."
'There is absolutely no way we would be here without you guys. You make it so fun to come out and play in front of you every night.'- Giants SP Madison Bumgarner at World Series parade
At the rally, players and team officials offered inside glimpses of their season and what the repeat Series win, and the support of fans, meant to them.
Pitcher Jeremy Affeldt, who like most of his colleagues was sporting a sweatshirt with the slogan "Kiss the Ring," said that on the airplane back from their Series-clinching game in St. Louis, the players had joked about engraving their World Series rings with the words "Mad Bum" -- Bumgarner's nickname -- instead of their own names.
"This is the best moment of our lives, our baseball careers," Bumgarner told the crowd. "To be here standing right here on this stage is what we all play for. ... There is absolutely no way we would be here without you guys. You make it so fun to come out and play in front of you every night."
Neither city officials nor the police offered an official estimate of how many people attended the festivities, although Police Chief Greg Suhr said the number of officers on the streets Friday was at least 20 per cent higher than usual, with police dogs helping with security.
Although the weather undeniably kept a lot of people away, neither parade-goers nor the fans offered any sign they were taking the moment for granted.
Veteran pitcher Tim Hudson, who is in his first season with the Giants, twirled an orange towel over his head to wild cheers. Two buses later, right-fielder and unofficial team cheerleader Hunter Pence, wearing a replica wrestling championship belt, threw his hands up and lead fans in several choruses of "let's go, Giants!"
Closing pitcher Santiago Casilla, held a sign that said "Jesus Loves You."
Star reliever Sergio Romo lifted up his jacket several times to reveal a T-shirt that read, "I have issues." During the 2012 parade, Romo raised eyebrows and drew cheers with a T-shirt bearing the message, "I just look illegal."
The parade was a first for Ana Gonzalez, 43, who rose before the sun to drive to San Francisco from her suburban Bay Area home.
With the parade falling on Halloween, as it did two years ago, she and other parents had to choose between celebrating their team and attending school events.
"I asked the kids if they wanted to go to their Halloween parade or the Giants," Gonzalez said. "And they said, `Let's go see the Giants!"'
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