PADRES PITCHER MAT LATOS STILL BITTER TOWARDS THE SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS

Sorry buddy. :) Click here for the full story from Yahoo! Sports.

REALLY RENTERIA?!?!

Edgar Renteria, former shortstop for the San Francisco Giants, and World Series MVP, has signed a one-year contract with the Cincinnati Reds. He is set to make up to $3 million, versus the $1 million, one-year contract the Giants offered Renteria, which he called "a total disrespect."

As a Colombian and rabid Giant's fan, I'm upset that Edgar Renteria is leaving the team. I understand that more money is more money, but Renteria is a fool to walk away from such a powerhouse. Hopes are high for another World Series win, and it's likely the Giants can make it to another post season. I'm sad that the only Colombian has left, and the once hero is now looked upon with disdain. Where is his sense of loyalty?!?! What the heck am I supposed to do with my Renteria World Series MVP T-shirt now?!?!

BRIAN "FEAR THE BEARD' WILSON TO HOST SNL???

Brian Wilson did such a kick-ass job on "Jay Leno" that fans want him to host "Saturday Night Live!!!"



Two pages on Facebook prove thousands of fans want people to "fear the beard" on SNL. An earlier campaign got Betty White the hosting gig, and the faithful fans of the San Francisco Giants want just the same for Wilson. Do you agree? Then click on the links below to "like" the cause!!!

"Brian Wilson Should Host SNL"

"Brian Wilson should host SNL"

"LOVE THY NEIGHBOR...UNLESS THY NEIGHBOR IS A LAKER"

HAHAHAHA. Saw this on the BART today and thought it was a must-share.

SEEING DOUBLE: PAU GASOL AND A LLAMA

SEEING DOUBLE: MATT LEINART AND CHUCK WICKS

While watching Dancing With the Stars tonight, I saw country crooner Chuck Wicks and thought one thing: he really looks like Matt Leinart!!!

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE AT THE MLB.COM SHOP...

© 2008 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. All rights reserved.

because in this abysmal economy, nothing sounds better than "buy one get one free."

GIANTS SIGN COLOMBIAN EDGAR RENTERIA!!!

I'm so stoked that the Giants have signed Colombiano Edgar Renteria to a two-year, $18.5 million contract!!! I was bummed that of all three South Americans on the team--Vizquel, Sandoval, and Ochoa (all from Venezuela)--none were from Colombia. Renteria is the first Colombian to play in the World Series, winning it for the Marlins in 1997!!! Now here's hoping that he has a great first season with the Giants!!! 

For more information (from SFGiants.com) about Renteria and his signing, click here. For a look at his career highlights (and not so shining moments), check out his Wikipedia entry here.

CONGRATS TO TIM LINCECUM: 2008 CY YOUNG AWARD WINNER!!!

Congratulations to Tim Lincecum for winning the 2008 Cy Young Award, for being the best pitcher in the National League!!! You have made the Giants fans and San Francisco proud!!!

There will be a live press conference today at 2pm, which will air on sfgiants.com and Comcast SportsNet Bay Area (which will also re-air it at 6pm).

NINERS IN THE LEAD!!! (FOR NOW) :)

San Francisco 49ers Helmet Logo ©Photofile

You read correctly. The Niners won yesterday's game against the Detroit Lions (31-13!!!), which means we are tied with the Arizona Cardinals for first place in the NFC West Division, with two wins and one loss!!! Our next game is Sunday, September 28, 1:00 PM ET, against the New Orleans Saints. Our next home game is Sunday, October 5, 4:15 PM ET, against the New England Patriots (sans Serra High School alum Tom Brady). This may be our chance to hold onto the lead. See you there. Go Niners!!!

MICHAEL "MERMAN" PHELPS TAKES IT ALL

(OK, "Merman" is my nickname for him and it's sticking.) In no big surprise, Michael Phelps won his eighth gold medal in the Beijing Olympics, breaking Mark Spitz's record of most gold medals in a single game and making him arguably the greatest Olympian of all time. That's 14 career gold medals (the most of any athlete ever), 16 medals total and numerous world records broken. And he's only 23. For more information on Phelps' and his amazing career, check out his wikipedia page and his website. Congrats for showing us all what humans (or mermen) are truly capable of.

MICHAEL PHELPS IS A MERMAN.

Dude, Michael Phelps is not human. He's a super fishman or something. It can't be human to swim like that.

See, I have proof right here...

(photographed by Annie Leibovitz for the "Disney Dream Portrait Series")

In all seriousness, congrats on all the gold medals and here's to many more!!!

SF GIANTS- THE ORANGE & BLACK ATTACK: CELL PHONES

My mom, very stylish when it comes to fashion and home decor, can care less about the appearance of her cellphone, stating that she only needs it to make calls. I, on the other hand, see the cellphone as an extension of my style, and another random thing to customize the hell out of. I'm sure there are more than a few Giants fans that agree with me on this, so I have found the latest phones that are not only modern and full of gadget goodness, but also emblazoned in the iconic orange and black.



SAMSUNG A737 (AT&T)



Features include:


- 1.3 megapixel camera with 2.6 x zoom
- MP3 music player
- Cellular Video capable - watch streaming clips
- AOL®, Windows Live® and Yahoo® Instant Messenger
- Video Share capable - Share video while calling
- Rated for Hearing Aids: M3, T3




NOKIA 5310 (TMOBILE)




Features include:


- 2.0 megapixel camera
- AOL®, Yahoo!®, MSN®, and ICQ® Instant Messenger®*
- Music player with External Controls
- FM radio



MOTOROLA PBEL (TMOBILE)






Features include:


- 4x digital zoom camera
- Instant messaging: AOL®, Yahoo!® and ICQ®*
- Games included
- Quad band world phone (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
- Bluetooth® wireless technology
- Voice-activated functions
- External caller ID
- T-Mobile Internet ready (GPRS)*

And--in my personal opinion--the holy grail of orange and black phones...the

BLACKBERRY CURVE SUNSET(TMOBILE)





Features include:

- Voice activated dialing
- Bluetooth
- Picture messaging
- Multimedia player
- Sync with PC

*Since almost all these phones are available through TMobile, it is worth mentioning that my friend T.J. works at the TMobile store on 3rd Street in San Francisco and can give you a good deal on your phone and/or service.*

And finally, for those of you who love your current phone...and the Giants... there's skinit.com, which has three great Giants "skins" for your phone. There's also tego.com, where you can add colors, text, and more to the outside of your celly cell. Hard core fan??? Both companies also pimp everything from iPods to laptops.

SF GIANTS COLOR MATCH

Ever wonder what the exact colors of the San Francisco Giants are??? Afraid that T-shirt isn't orange enough??? Well, thanks to color master Pantone, you don't have to wonder anymore. An online member created a Pantone member palette for the Giants, where you can see samples of all their colors, from "Licorice" black and "Flame" orange, to the other colors used on uniforms and in ads.

Here is the "Palette Description":
"The current Textile color palette of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (National League). Using Pantone Textile color descriptions, the colors are as follows: Primary colors - 'Licorice', 'Flame' and 'Bright White'. Additional colors - 'Chipmunk' (used in logos, and home uniform dropshadow only) and 'Italian Straw' (used only in logos). Home uniforms are 'Whisper White', while road uniforms are 'Storm Gray'.

Click on the link above to see for yourself if you've been rocking the right colors!!!

PISSED OFF AT BARON DAVIS

Are you serious???!!! Baron Davis was my favorite Warrior and now he has decided to ditch his team to play for--get this--the Clippers. This is after he told Don Nelson that he was staying (per Nelson in the SF Chronicle). This is after he helped lead his team to the playoffs last year, after he wore matching headbands with his fellow players, and before I got to take a picture with him to add to my "Warriors and Me" photo collection. I am so upset about this, as I hope you can tell by the extensive use of italics. Davis, Monta Ellis, Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes were, as a group, the renegade badasses of the Warriors and the NBA, and now Davis has left his teammates to do his own thing. Part of me isn't mad at him because you always have to look out for number 1, but I know it was a slap in the face to Warriors fans, the Warriors themselves and coach Don Nelson. Well, at least he'll get to work on his acting skills in L.A. ...do your thing, bro. (Speaking of bros, I assume your look-alike brother with matching beard and Warriors hat will have to follow you to L.A. to try to score with the ladies.)

CONGRATS KEVIN GARNETT!!!

Congratulations to Kevin Garnett for FINALLY getting his championship ring!!! He broke down with emotion after the Celtics beat the crap out of the Lakers in game six of the NBA Championships to win it all. Garnett's one of the few players that play with heart, and according to what everyone has said, has deserved this ring for a long time.

BLACK AND ORANGE = REP YO' CITY!!!

Us San Franciscans are hard-core fans. Both the 49ers and the Giants aren't stellar teams, but we still love the crap out of them. (Double entendre!!! Note: We love the Warriors too, but they have been playing great lately, so there.) Frisco City natives live in hoodies, t-shirts and more emblazoned with odes to their town and teams. Black and orange are the colors of the San Francisco Giants, and in honor of the beginning of the season, and as a treasure trove for those rocking the colors year-round, here are some black and orange goodies.

This is where the Giants color hunt started for me--these bad-ass Halloween Adidas Superstars from 2006. These are great as basic black and orange tennie shoes (that's what I call 'em--tres preppy or perhaps Latino, I know, but I'm talking about sneakers). However, I'm a sucker for an added touch, like the Scream mask on the sole of the shoe, so these shoes are IT.

Not only is this great hoodie by locals FIFTY24SF ,with artwork by Grotesk, black and orange, but it represents every neighborhood in San Francisco in its intricate cartoon mash-up. If you click on the pic, you can truly admire the detail. Available at http://www.digitalgravel.com/.

What's better than rocking one SF institution on a T-shirt??? Rocking TWO. The Giants colors AND the Grateful Dead are represented on this shirt which also includes a skyline of the city. Available at http://www.allposters.com/. Rock on.

Unfortunately, like most of the tennie shoes I mention here, these beauties are limited edition and therefore probably out of your reach (sniff sniff), but they are definitely worth mentioning. The grey shoes are the Nike Air Max 90s, created for the 10th anniversary of Niketown, and the white ones are the Air Max 1 iDs, made in commemoration of the MLB All Star Game in San Francisco. Released in 2007 and limited to 120 and 150 pairs, respectively (actually it's probably less than that, since the Air Max 1 iDs where made for the Niketown SF corporate party and the leftovers were then released), consider it a major score if you can get these.

*Note: During my search for the black and orange, I found that a lot of tennie shoe companies, like Vans, Nike, and Adidas, come out with Halloween shoes, which would be perfect for any Giants fans to sport all year. Act fast, as these are usually limited edition. Sometimes you can get your hands on the rare sneaker find through Ebay or on some sneaker aficionado websites.*

Seriously, digitalgravel.com is a kick-ass website. This is the second time I've mentioned an item from the online store, where you can find the best urban clothing and you always feel that you've crept up on something you won't find everywhere else. They tout themselves as "the first site dedicated exclusively to selling gear from underground and independently owned brands." This includes Upper Playground, another SF company, which makes this cool "Paint Drip" hoodie. The thermal lining in the hood makes it perfect for braving the cold night games at AT&T Park.

And for those Diddy types that have to do it WAY BIG, the ultimate SF Giants fan collector's item...

The LE MANSORY Bentley Continental GT

*As a designer, I make custom clothing and accessories, including black and orange scarves, available at RAG CO-Op in San Francisco, or by emailing me at alex@alextheartiste.com.*

As you can see, the possibilities are endless when it comes to finding great gear to wear for Giants games or when you are just in a Giants-loving mood (God knows our team needs the love!!!) I didn't include actual Giants-licensed clothing because I wanted to think outside the box, but there are endless choices available everywhere. Touch by Alyssa Milano is a cute and very un-mannish choice for the ladies. So go out and REP YO' CITY, SAN FRANCISCANS!!! GO GIANTS!!!