Absent a pennant race, a division sprint or wild card wackiness, the Giants wrapped their slog to the finish line of a disappointing season on a bright note Wednesday, in an 8-1 win over the San Diego Padres.
The win improved the Giants to 81-81, a .500 record, something they had not accomplished in 139 previous seasons.
Since falling eight games under water on Sept. 18, the Giants won 12 of their final 16 games, the first team since 1925 to avoid a losing record after falling into a hole that deep that late into a season. However, their record was the worst by any team coming off a 100-win season since the Phillies in 2012 and only the fifth time in major-league history a team has won 100 games and failed to finish with a winning record the next full season.
