Team colors: Giants

OK, let's get this out of the way.

This is the funny thing about orange. I actually like it. A lot. Love orange soda. Always have since I was a little kid. Cherry has since passed it as a personal favorite, but for the longest time orange soda was the best. There's some in my house right now.

I like orange flavor of any kind. Those chocolate oranges that emerge at Christmas time? Love them. Orange sherbet? Fantastic. Orange-flavored Chinese food? Yes, please. Creamsicles? I think the cafeteria ran out of them when I was in high school. Your common variety orange? Great stuff. I like all spin-offs, too. Tangerines, clementines, etc.

As for the actual color? I like that, too. The old Tampa Bay Bucs uniforms were amazing. Bring them back. The new Miami Marlins' orange jerseys? I don't know why people hate them. They fit perfectly with Miami. I'll never be a Dolphins lover, but whoever picked orange and aqua for colors was a smart boy/girl. Nice work. Even when the Mets wear orange, I like it. I know it's really a tribute to the old New York Giants. Still like it.

Here's where it gets really weird. I've always liked the Orioles' uniform colors. Orange and black just like an actual oriole! How delightful.

Yet, these are the same colors that the Giants wear and I hate them. Why is that? Well, I could say that unlike the Orioles, the Giants seemed to have pulled their colors out of a hat. They wore blue and red during most of the 1940s. Black was used periodically during the early part of the 20th century. But orange didn't emerge until the 1930s and then didn't stay until the late '40s.

But it's not that. I just don't like the colors on the GIANTS. The black and orange makes them seem even more evil than they already are, like Willie McGee up there. He's a delightful, happy alien as a Cardinal. But as a Giant, there's something sinister going on. Dark. Ominous. There might be some brain-sucking about to happen.

I really dislike the Giants on the '86 Topps set, a set that seems to have been made specifically for that team I hate. And I still don't like Hammaker for giving up that grand slam to Fred Lynn. Way to break up the All-Star dynasty, Atlee.

I much prefer the 1980 Topps set. Use every color but the Giants colors!!!! Yellow, Green, Blue, Red!! Isn't that fun?

Anyway, here is the rundown of which colors Topps attached to the Giants for sets in which the colors used were determined by the team featured:

1964: orange
1965: purple, yellow, orange
1966: green and yellow
1967: green
1968: green and yellow
1969: green and yellow
1971: orange and yellow
1972: yellow, orange and red
1974: black and orange
1976: green and orange
1977: orange, green and blue
1978: purple and orange
1979: yellow and green
1980: yellow, green, red and blue
1981: red, orange and black
1982: green and orange
1983: orange and brown
1984: brown and pink
1985: black and orange
1986: orange
1987: orange
1988: yellow, purple and red
1989: orange, gray and black
1991: orange, gray and black
1992: yellow, black and orange
1993: orange, black and gray
1994: gray and orange
1998: black and orange
2000: orange
2002: black and orange
2003: orange and black
2004: orange and black
2005: orange and gray
2006: orange and gold
2007: orange and gray
2008: orange and gray
2009: orange
2010: orange
2011: orange and black

Wow. You can make a lot of squash out of those cards.

Giants team colors: orange and black
What Topps considers the Giants' team colors: orange and black

Bleah.


(The tally: Orange-32, Black-13, Yellow-10, Green-8, Gray-7, Red-4, Purple-3, Brown-2, Blue-2, Pink-1, Gold-1)