The 1961 San Francisco Giants season was the Giants' 79th year in Major League Baseball, their fourth season in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their second season at Candlestick Park. The team finished in third place in the National League with an 85 wins and 69 losses record, eight games behind the NL Champion Cincinnati Reds. The Giants were managed by Alvin Dark. As of 2021, this remains the only Giants season in franchise history in which two players (Orlando Cepeda and Willie Mays) each hit 40 or more home runs.
Regular season Willie Mays had both a three home run game (on June 29) and a four home run game (on April 30)Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p. 258, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, during the 1961 season. Mays became the ninth player, and first Giant, in MLB history to hit four home runs in one game.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Opening Day starters Felipe Alou Ed Bressoud Orlando Cepeda Tom Haller Chuck Hiller Sam Jones Harvey Kuenn Willie Mays Willie McCovey
Roster 1961 San Francisco Giants Roster Pitchers Catchers
Infielders Outfielders
Other batters Manager
Coaches
Player stats
= Indicates team leader
= Indicates league leader Batting
Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pos. Player G AB H R Avg. HR RBI C 107 340 81 39 .238 13 51 1B 106 328 89 59 .271 18 50 2B 109 384 98 64 .255 2 23 SS 134 434 110 38 .253 5 46 3B 137 436 121 64 .278 12 65 LF 131 471 125 60 .265 5 46 CF 154 572 176 129.308 40 123 RF 132 415 120 59 .289 18 52
Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI 152 585 182 .311 46 142 70 240 57 .238 2 12 81 200 62 .310 6 24 59 114 24 .211 3 11 25 83 23 .277 4 12 43 71 17 .239 2 10 30 62 9 .145 2 8 38 38 8 .211 0 2 44 36 8 .222 1 7 13 20 2 .100 0 1 2 6 1 .167 0 1 3 1 0 .000 0 0
Pitching
Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 40 250.0 13 16 3.20 163 38 217.1 13 9 4.22 112 29 185.0 13 10 3.89 124
Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 46 130.1 7 5 3.59 110 37 128.1 8 8 4.49 105 26 114.2 6 5 4.24 55 27 83.1 3 6 3.56 54
Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO 63 14 5 17 2.66 89 37 2 2 5 3.19 48 24 5 1 1 4.23 37 15 0 2 1 5.35 16 8 1 0 0 3.95 11
Awards and honors
All-Star Game (first game) All-Star Game (second game)
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Tacoma, Springfield, Quincy
Rio Grande Valley club moved to Victoria, June 10, 1961; Pocatello affiliation shared with Kansas City AthleticsJohnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 2nd and 3rd editions. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 1997 and 2007
Notes
References 1961 San Francisco Giants at Baseball Reference 1961 San Francisco Giants at Baseball Almanac