GIANTS, STORM MEET IN CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: The San Jose Giants play the Lake Elsinore Storm (Padres affiliate) in the best-of-three California League Championship Series. Lake Elsinore hosts Game 1 on Sunday before the series shifts to Excite Ballpark in San Jose for Games 2 and 3 on Tuesday and Wednesday (Game 3 if necessary).
HOW SWEEP IT IS: The Giants punched their ticket to the Championship Series after sweeping the Stockton Ports two-games-to-none in the North Division Series. The Giants hit four home runs in Game 1 on their way to a 10-5 victory over the host Ports. Andy Polanco, who hit only one homer in 364 at-bats during the regular season (an inside-the-park HR), went deep twice in the victory. San Jose then secured the North Division crown with a 3-1 home win in Game 2. Drew Smith drove in all three runs with a first-inning two-RBI double and an eighth-inning solo homer. The Giants never trailed during the series.
REGULAR SEASON REVIEW: The Giants finished the regular season with a league-best 80-52 overall record and won both the first half and second half North Division titles. It marked the first time since the 2009 season that the Giants won both halves in the North Division. San Jose went 37-29 in the first half and finished one game ahead of Fresno in the standings to clinch a berth in the postseason. The Giants then posted a 43-23 second half record – eight games of second-place Stockton for the top spot. It’s the third consecutive season that the Giants have notched the best overall record in the California League.
FINISHING STRONG: The Giants enjoyed a sizzling finish to the regular season with a remarkable 20-2 record in their final 22 games dating back to August 13. During the 22-game stretch, San Jose averaged a whopping 8.1 runs per contest and owned a +90 run differential (179-89) against their opponents. From August 13-27, the Giants achieved the longest winning streak in team history when they claimed 13 consecutive victories (previous record: 12 games).
RECORD-SETTING OFFENSE: The Giants established two significant team offensive records during the regular season. San Jose set a club record with 897 runs scored (6.8 runs/game) – shattering the previous mark of 836 runs set 38 years ago in 1988. The Giants led the California League in runs this season – just ahead of the 893 runs scored by the Ontario Tower Buzzers. Additionally, San Jose set their team record for home runs with 151 during the regular season – one more than the previous high of 150 from the 2021 championship season. The Giants set their home run record during the final day of the regular season on September 6.
PLAYOFF HISTORY: The Giants are in the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season (2019, 2021-26) – the longest active streak in the California League. Since 2004, the Giants have reached the playoffs an impressive 19 times out of 22 seasons. San Jose is playing Lake Elsinore in the Championship Series for the first time since meeting twice in three years during the 2005 and 2007 seasons. In both of those best-of-five matchups, the Giants lost the first two games in Lake Elsinore before returning home to win three straight games to take the championship. San Jose won the California League title last September sweeping both the Fresno Grizzlies (2-0) in the Division Series and Inland Empire 66ers (2-0) in the Championship Series to claim the crown. The Giants are attempting to win back-to-back titles for the first time since 2009-10.
TOP PROSPECT SHINES: Josuar Gonzalez, the consensus #1 prospect in the San Francisco Giants organization, has sparked the Giants from the leadoff spot in the lineup since joining the team on July 24. The 18-year old shortstop hit .357 in 31 regular season games for San Jose with six doubles, six triples, three home runs, 35 RBI’s and 13 stolen bases. Gonzalez, who hit all six of his triples over a 16-game stretch from August 7-28, posted a .444 on-base percentage and 1.010 OPS. Gonzalez hit a combined .351 in 228 at-bats between the Arizona Complex League (Rookie-level) and San Jose this season.
MARTINEZ GETS GAME 1 NOD, CAYAMA IN GAME 2: Keyner Martinez is scheduled to start Game 1 on the mound for the Giants in Lake Elsinore. Martinez made 22 starts for the Giants during the regular season and posted a 4.61 ERA. He ranked second in the California League with 134 strikeouts over 93 2/3 innings. The right-hander fashioned a sparkling 0.57 ERA (1 ER/15.2 IP) over his final three starts of the regular season, including a gem at Lake Elsinore on August 23 in which he twirled five shutout innings with only one hit allowed, no walks and eight strikeouts. Argenis Cayama is expected to get the ball in Game 2 in San Jose on what will be his 20th birthday. Cayama started Game 1 of the Division Series last week in Stockton and earned the win after tossing five innings with only one run allowed. During the regular season, Cayama logged a 4.87 ERA over 15 starts for the Giants with an excellent 73-to-17 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 57 1/3 innings. Cayama missed nearly two months in the middle of the season due to a stint on the injured list, but returned to fashion a 3.24 ERA over four August starts, including a spectacular outing at Lake Elsinore on 8/19 when he struck out nine over five scoreless innings (one hit allowed).
PITCHING IN: The Giants led the California League in ERA for a sixth consecutive season (2021-26) with a 4.79 team earned run average in 2026. San Jose showed notable improvement from the beginning of the year with monthly ERA’s of 5.78 in April and 4.94 in May before 4.68 in June and then consistent marks of 4.35 in July, 4.39 in August and 4.33 in September.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Lorenzo Meola has been named 2026 San Jose Giants Player of the Year. Over a team-leading 119 games played during the regular season, Meola hit .269 with a league-best 40 doubles, 15 home runs, 78 RBI’s and 17 stolen bases. In addition to leading the league in doubles, Meola ranked second in hits (128), fifth in RBI’s and ninth in homers. After batting .233 with a .714 OPS in the first half (58 games), Meola hit an even .300 with a .917 OPS in the second half (61 games, 9 HR, 50 RBI).
HEAD-TO-HEAD: The Giants were 9-3 against the Storm during the regular season winning the final nine meetings. The two teams last met August 18-23 in Lake Elsinore with the Giants sweeping the six-game set outscoring the Storm 61-13.