Happy Giants Postseason Memories: The Sweet 16

Welcome back to the first annual Bracket of Happy Giants Postseason Memories. I hope. It sure would be delightful to have additions to the bracket every year. It's been too long since Giants fans caught a break, so here's hoping. Until then, here are the Sweet 16 of Happy Postseason Memories.

You have voted here, and these votes haven't come up with a ton of surprises just yet. This is the round, then. This is the round that one of your personal favorites will be sent away, and you will realize that everyone else has a favorite postseason memory than you. Today you will have to make tough choices. Some of them are exceptionally tough. And you know what the next round will be? Murder, simple murder. Then it's harder after that. Then turns into an impossible choice. I did this because I secretly hate you.

Here's a new bracket you can/should click to enlarge:

Happy voting!

Sergio strikes out Miggy vs. Juan sends everyone home happy

You might think this is an easy choice. One of them won a World Series. Another one was a game-winner, not even a series-winner.

Except don't forget that Uribe's was at home, and it was the first walk-off for the Giants in the postseason since Kenny Lofton singled home David Bell It was a huge deal at the time. Remember that overhead shot from the blimp, with everyone spilling out of the dugout and into your dreams? How many times did you watch that? It was a beautiful moment.

You're still voting for the backdoor two-seamer. Before you click on it, though, remember the feeling of Uribe's homer. Maybe this is the year the Giants ... you know ... I don't want to jinx it. But maybe this is the year!

The Double Play vs. Maybe next year, Ryan!

Perhaps the most perfect pitch in Giants history. If the strike zone were made out of piano wire, it would have sliced the baseball in half. Right on the outside corner. Right there. RIGHT THERE.

Perhaps the most memorable fielding play in San Francisco Giants postseason history. If Panik flips the ball too high, and everyone is safe, perhaps we're mumbling about how three pennants in five years is still impressive.

I'm not even going to pick. One, because it'll screw up the vote (probably with people picking the opposite), and two, because it's impossible. Do you remember how stressful that Phillies game was, how if Howard doubles the Giants will never ever ever win a World Series in your lifetime? Do you remember how stressful Game 7 was because Game 7s are automatically the worst/best/worst/best?

Wilson saves the first World Series victory vs. Morse ties a game you had already written off

The first one didn't have that much baseball-related drama, other than "Is this really happening?" There weren't runners on base. The Rangers were down three. Cruz could have hit it 500 feet, and the Giants probably still would have won.

The second one was impossible. The Giants, tying the game with a dinger? From a player who was hurt? It was first thing I was hoping for, and it was the last thing I was expecting.

Except, there's nothing like that first World Series. The Giants did it, everyone. Boy howdy, they actually did an entire postseason right, and here's the proof. I guess this is more of a question of if you prefer your moments to be stunning bolts out of the blue, or if you prefer them to be slow builds into euphoria.

Lemme watch them both 50 more times, just to be sure.

Pablo's third vs. Edgar's eventual game-winner

Pablo's third home run was about greed. Remember the days before the World Series, in which we heard over and over and over and over again about Justin Verlander and how he was going to eat our bones and wear our skins as a freaky skin-cape? Then Pablo hit two homers and knocked him out of the game. It was great. But there was no way he was going to ...

On the other hand, Renteria's home run is when you really thought the Giants were going to win. If they lose that game, it's not like the Rangers would have been guaranteed to lose one of the next two games. There was a chance that the Giants could still screw things up. This one probably won't be that close, so appreciate that third home run just a little bit more before moving on. There was that time the Tigers had double checkmarks for pitching, and then ...

Three in five vs. Madison Bumgarner enters the game

You don't get the World Series if someone else comes out of the bullpen. Probably. I mean, we'll never know that for sure. What we do know is that the Giants actually won the game, and they did it with the winning run at the plate.

Still, remember that feeling when Bumgarner came out? That nervous, itchy feeling. You should have been calm. He had that. You were not calm. That moment almost defines what it's like to be a baseball fan, for better and for worse.

Scutaro's game-winner vs. Ssory Mat

Rest in peace, Ryan Theriot's war cry. You will be the second Series-winning hit to get booted from the tournament.

It's Travis Ishikawa! vs. Crawford's grand slam

The way the season went, you probably had a vision of Edinson Volquez giving the Giants the ol' Bobby Jones. I know I did. And if Ishikawa doesn't hit the homer, maybe the next guy singles? I don't know.

(I think I have It's Travis Ishikawa! going all the way in my personal bracket. I'll have to figure that out ...)

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A wet Marco Scutaro vs. Brandon Belt wins it

One of them is a TV-created artifact. You were already gloating. You were already happy. The other one is a moment you were desperate for. Do you even remember what an 18-inning game feels like? It was the worst. So many missed chances, so many annoyances and cuss words.

And yet ... I can't pick. That it was Scutaro, that the Giants came back from a 3-1 lead, that he was even on the field at all, it's all too perfect. Belt's homer won a game, but Scutaro drinking Matt Holliday's tears had Scutaro drinking Matt Holliday's tears.

I just wanted to tell you good luck, and we're all counting on you. Enjoy this round of voting. The next one is even worse.