Giants Have Playoff Experience Edge

Everyone talks about postseason experience, but is it really that valuable?

If it is, the San Francisco Giants hold a big edge in the National League playoffs. If not, the Chicago Cubs aren’t in such bad shape.

“We’re a more mature team than they are, and that should help,” Giants second baseman Robby Thompson said. “We’ve been in these situations before.”

The experience-laden Giants will get another chance starting Wednesday night at Wrigley Field.

More than half of the San Francisco players have been in at least one playoff, and many were with the team in 1987 when it lost in seven games to St. Louis. Several of the players have been in more.

Kevin Mitchell, for instance, also played for the 1986 World Series champion New York Mets. Candy Maldonado made it to the playoffs with Los Angeles in 1983 and 1985, Don Robinson helped Pittsburgh win the World Series in 1979 and Craig Lefferts and Terry Kennedy were with San Diego in the 1984 World Series.

Of the Cubs, only Luis Salazar has played in a World Series, in 1984 with the Padres. Only a few other Chicago players have ever reached the playoffs, and none has been on the winning side.

“I don’t think that’s going to hurt us,” said Ryne Sandberg, who batted .368 in the Cubs’ 1984 loss to San Diego. “Our younger guys have been in big situations this season and haven’t been nervous.”

Besides, what good is postseason experience if the experience wasn’t that good?

Scott Garrelts, the Giants’ starter in Game 1, gave up two runs on two hits and four walks in 2 2/3 innings of the 1987 series. Mitchell is just 12-for-46 with one home run in postseason play, Rick Reuschel was tagged for 15 hits and seven runs in 10 innings in 1987, Robinson has a career 5.40 earned-run average, Maldonado is a .179 lifetime hitter in postseason play and Thompson was only 2-for-20 in 1987.

Some of the Giants have done much better. Lefferts has pitched 12 scoreless innings and is 2-0 with one save, and Will Clark hit .360 in the 1987 playoffs.

One of the best postseason performers is injured. Left-handed pitcher Dave Dravecky, sidelined by a broken pitching arm, gave up one earned run in 21 innings with San Diego in 1984 and the Giants in 1987.

With the exception of Sandberg, most of the Cubs’ postseason performances have bordered on bad.

Rick Sutcliffe won the Cy Young Award in 1984 but is still remembered for losing the deciding Game 5 of the playoffs. Andre Dawson, in his only postseason appearance, went 3-for-20 with Montreal in 1981. Vance Law was just 2-for-11 with the Chicago White Sox in 1983.

“I’m looking forward to getting another chance in the playoffs,” Dawson said. “Every player’s goal is to win the World Series, and I’ve never gotten to play in one. Maybe this will be the year.”