Emotional Will Clark has No. 22 retired by SF Giants: ‘This is my Hall of Fame’

Will Clark's No. 22 now hangs with 12 others in left field of Oracle Park after number retirement on Saturday.

SAN FRANCISCO — Will Clark seemingly always saved his best for when the lights were brightest. On Saturday at Oracle Park, a fitting 22 years since he hung ’em up and nearly three decades since his last game in orange and black, an emotional Clark was, once again, ready for the moment.

Fifty minutes into a pregame ceremony Saturday, the southern kid turned Bay Area icon punctuated his speech by punching the air with his left fist and declaring, “I am Will ‘The Thrill’ Clark. I am a part of San Francisco. And I am forever a Giant.”

Moments earlier, a black cloth draped over his number in left field dropped to reveal Clark’s No. 22 hanging between Monte Irvin’s No. 20 and Willie Mays’ No. 24, making his the 13th number retired by the franchise — more than any club but the Yankees — and a long time coming.

Clark, who became the face of a generation of Giants baseball in the late ’80s, said he had written the speech within a day or two after receiving the news that his number would one day go up in the rafters (or, more accurately, hanging from the third terrace in left-field foul territory). But he was forced to wait once the ceremony, originally scheduled for 2020, was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I had two years to practice it,” Clark laughed afterward, adding his most emotional moment came while addressing Mike Krukow, his former teammate and the current Giants broadcaster, whom he called his “best friend and mentor.”

Krukow and his wife, Jennifer, opened up their home to Clark for his first two seasons in San Francisco, where, Krukow said, they watched him eat sugary cereal and watch cartoons off the field before turning into an animal between the lines.

“Perhaps the most important thing he did was he made it cool to be a Giants fan again,” Krukow said, fighting back tears.

In retirement, Clark has continued to make an impact as a special assistant. In 2008, he got the call to rejoin the organization and began serving in the same capacity that he has to this day. The day he got that phone call from then-managing partner Bill Neukom, he said, was the “best day ever.” Current president Larry Baer said the Giants’ three World Series trophies “have his fingerprints on them.” This season, he has taken to mentoring the Giants’ highest draft pick since himself, catcher Joey Bart, during his transition to the majors.

Mays couldn’t attend in-person but needed only a couple penned sentences to send possibly the most validating message of the entire cast of speakers: “Welcome to the club. You earned it.”

After there was Mays and before there was Bonds, there was Clark. When he arrived as the No. 2 overall pick from the 1985 draft, then president and general manager Al Rosen told him, “We have to change this organization.”

The Giants drafted Clark second overall in 1985, and by Opening Day 1986, he was in the big leagues.

When Clark entered the organization, San Francisco had accumulated a dry spell of 15 straight seasons without a playoff appearance or even a finish higher than third place in the NL West. Within two years of Clark’s arrival, the Giants were back on top of the division and, by 1989, on top of the entire National League.

Krukow recalled his first spring training start from Clark’s rookie season. He was struggling to work out some kinks in his first exhibition, and Clark called timeout from first base. He came to the mound with a message: “Hey, if we’re gonna win this game, you’re gonna have to be better than that.”

“I absolutely hate to lose,” Clark said in his speech.

That was the attitude needed to take a team from 100 losses in 1985 to a postseason berth in 1987.

Clark’s first manager, Roger Craig, provided one of the ceremony’s more memorable moments in a short video message: “You were a great ballplayer, but you’d have been a lot better if you’d have listened to me,” he said to laughs from the crowd.

From 1986 to 1993, Clark:

• was voted an All-Star starter five straight seasons (1988-92), won two Silver Sluggers (1989, ’91) and a Gold Glove (’91)
• never batted below .280 (a mark matched by two Giants this season, neither of whom qualify for the batting title)
• accumulated more walk-off hits (11) than all but three players in SF-era history
• was named MVP of the 1989 NLCS, the highlight of a postseason résumé that boasts a .426 average and three home runs — one big one, a grand slam off Greg Maddux, in that ’89 series — in 16 games

  

Then came new owner Peter Magowan, who saved the franchise from an impending move to Tampa Bay. Then Bonds, overlapped for one season with Clark and ushered in a new era of Giants baseball. Then Posey and Lincecum and Cain and Bumgarner, who continued it and could be the next to have their numbers retired.

To Posey and Bruce Bochy, who were in attendance Saturday, Clark said, “I just have one favor to ask of you guys. When you guys get inducted into Cooperstown, I would like to be there to honor you guys.”

Despite Clark’s accolades, he garnered only 4.4% of the Hall-of-Fame vote in 2006 and fell off the ballot, ending his own dreams of Cooperstown. It took 22 years since his retirement for his number to hang in left field of Oracle Park, originally slated for 2020 but delayed by the pandemic.

Finally, on Saturday, Clark received what Krukow described as “validation,” in a ballpark he never played in but maybe had a hand in paving the way to.

“This, right here,” Clark said, pointing to the fans and his No. 22 hanging fresh in left field, “is my Hall of Fame.”