The San Fransisco Giants Defeat the Texas Rangers to Win Their First-Ever World Series

The Giants were more than an hour into their world-championship party, and it wasn't slowing down.

A baseball field in Texas had become their San Francisco. Hundreds of fans gathered behind the dugout, shouting and chanting in their orange-and-black garb. The players had all come out to greet them, showing off the massive gold trophy and hugging each other over a truly stunning achievement.

San Francisco Giants. Born, 1958. Blessed, 2010.

It was a mixture of tears and embraces and looks of childlike wonder. The players had been inside the clubhouse after the final out, spraying Champagne on each other like wild men, but the scope of their triumph was realized on this empty field, the clock approaching 11 p.m., without a sign of the Rangers, their fans or anything Texas.

The San Francisco Giants won their first World Series in over fifty years as a 3-1 defeat of the Texas Rangers in game five sealed a 4-1 overall victory.

Edgar Renteria's three-run homer in Arlington, Texas, clinched the triumph.

That gave the Giants their first World Series title since the franchise moved from New York to San Francisco in 1954.

Shortstop Renteria, later named the Most Valuable Player of the series, connected at the top of the seventh to help claim baseball's Fall Classic.

The 2010 World Series was the 106th occurrence of Major League Baseball's championship series. The best-of-seven playoff, played between the American League champion Texas Rangers and the National League champion San Francisco Giants, began on Wednesday, October 27, and ended on Monday, November 1, with the Giants winning the series 4–1 to secure their first World Series championship since 1954, and their first since relocating to San Francisco from New York City in 1958.

In their respective League Championship Series, the Rangers and Giants had eliminated the 2009 World Series teams, the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies. The Rangers' victory in the ALCS gave the franchise its first World Series appearance in its 50-year history, dating from the club's inauguration as the second Washington Senators franchise in 1961. Meanwhile, the Giants' victory in the NLCS gave the club its fourth World Series appearance since locating to San Francisco prior to the 1958 season; their most recent appearance had been in the 2002 World Series, when they lost to the Anaheim Angels in seven games. Coincidentally, the Giants and Rangers faced off in the first regular-season interleague game, on June 12, 1997, at the Ballpark in Arlington; current Ranger reliever Darren Oliver, in his first stint with the club, threw the game's first pitch.

The Giants had home-field advantage in the World Series, the first time the National League champion had home-field advantage since 2001, because the NL won the All-Star Game 3–1 on July 13. For the second consecutive year, Series games were scheduled for earlier start times in hope of attracting younger viewers. The first pitch was scheduled for 7:57 p.m. EDT for most games, with Game 3 starting at 6:57 p.m. EDT as part of a "family night" promotion and Game 4 starting at 8:20 p.m. EDT to accommodate the Fox network's NFL coverage.

San Francisco landmarks, such as Coit Tower, the Ferry Building, and San Francisco City Hall, were illuminated with orange lighting at night during the postseason and the World Series. An exclusive VIP party was held on the eve of the World Series at the California Academy of Sciences (in Golden Gate Park); most media were not even allowed near the event. San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom made a friendly wager with Arlington mayor Robert Cluck, agreeing that "the losing city's mayor will travel to the winning city and join the winning city's mayor in a day of support for local youth and community service initiatives, with both mayors wearing the jersey of the World Series Champion team."