News
San Jose wins another division title
Giants add second-half crown to first-half pennant
By Daren Smith / MLB.com
08/29/09 2:50 AM ET
Andy Skeels is building an impressive managerial resume.Skeels and the San Jose Giants completed a season sweep of the California League North Division on Friday, clinching the second-half title when the Stockton Ports were beaten in dramatic fashion by the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, 8-7.
San Jose needed a win, coupled with losses by the Bakersfield Blaze and Ports, to add the second-half crown to its first-half title. The Giants did their part by pulling out a 6-3 victory over the Lancaster JetHawks. Bakersfield was beaten by Modesto, 6-2, but Stockton took a 7-1 lead over Rancho Cucamonga into the bottom of the eighth inning.
The Quakes scored twice in the eighth, then walked off with a win when Jeremy Moore's three-run homer capped a five-run ninth.
Skeels said there were some pretty excited folks in the San Jose front office when Moore homered, but he wasn't monitoring the game.
"It's a nice little feather in your cap, but it doesn't change the way we do anything tomorrow," he said. "Cliches are cliches for a reason. We literally come out and try to take care of business and win the game that day."
Skeels has been doing a lot of winning during his two seasons as a Giants Minor League manager. In 2008, he guided the Class A Augusta GreenJackets to a Minors-best .638 winning percentage on the way to the South Atlantic League championship.
In San Jose, he helped the Giants win both halves in the North Division for the second year in a row. Friday's victory was San Jose's team record-tying 49th at home, where the Giants have not lost a series since May.
"Sparky Anderson's from my hometown. He told me, 'Andy, wanna know the trick to being a Hall of Fame manager? Always have Hall of Fame players on your team. They make you look real smart.'
"I've been very fortunate to have the kind of players I've had the last couple of years," Skeels said. "On the whole, it's a credit to the organization -- [general manager] Brian Sabean, [vice president of player personnel] Dick Tidrow and all the player development people and scouting as well. Let's face it, I got handed a pretty good team at the beginning of the year."
That team included top pitching prospects Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson along with former first-round pick Buster Posey. None of those players was around for the second half, however.
"I lost about four-fifths of my rotation and a pretty good chunk of the middle of our lineup," Skeels said. "[Thomas] Neal and [Roger] Kieschnick made huge contributions. A lot of players have really stepped up, [Conor] Gillaspie, [Nick] Noonan, Darren Ford.
"I'd love to sit here and tell you I'm a genius, but I'm not."
Daren Smith is an editor for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
