Giving Thanks

It seems as though we’ve had a flood of uninspiring performances and a rash of questionable behavior to comment on lately. Forgive me for being so critical.

So in the spirit of Thanksgiving, let’s take a moment to focus on the positive and list all the things we have to be thankful for in the Bay Area sports scene.

Buster Posey—12 years of class and excellence

Late-inning Lamonte Wade—Incredible run of game-winning and game-tying hits

Gabe Kapler's genius—Sent up 18 pinch hitters who hit home runs. Are you kidding me?

Logan Webb—Tough as nails, a budding superstar

Brandon Crawford—Michelangelo at shortstop. Should’ve been National League MVP

Steph Curry—Greatest shooter of all time?

Steve Kerr—What every coach should be

Draymond Green—One of the best defenders in NBA history

Gary Payton II—Where did he come from? Unbelievable defense and leaping ability

Joe Lacob—Whatever it takes

Tara VanDerveer—Can always be counted on to produce a top team

Haley Jones' hair—Her play is pretty good, too

The Hull twins (Lexie and Lacie)—Never say die, never give in

Chase Garbers—Steady, classy, big play performer

The Cal Band—Professional alternative to the tasteless idiocy at Stanford

Aaron Rodgers’ medical research and Jon Gruden's emails—Just kidding!

Kyu Blu Kelly—In the tradition of great Stanford DBs

Bob Melvin—Succeeded despite the A’s penuriousness, will thrive in San Diego

Mark Chapman and Mark Olson—Fun while it lasted. Likely to be gone too soon

Jimmy Garoppolo—Has handled team-manufactured QB controversy with class and grace

George Kittle—He blocks, he catches, he fights for extra yardage

Deebo Samuel—A threat to go all the way every time he touches the ball

Larry Scott’s departure—Former commish did serious damage to the Pac-12

An expanded CFP (college football playoff)—Coming soon

A less powerful and prominent NCAA—Hallelujah!

NIL compensation for athletes—At long last, a piece of the pie

Stanford baseball—A great ballpark, Sunken Diamond, and almost always a good team

Bruce Jenkins, Ann Killion and Scott Ostler—3 of the best sports columnists in America under one roof

Susan Slusser and John Shea—Make the Chronicle's baseball coverage unparalleled

Jon Miller, Kruk and Kuip, Dave Flemming—Announcers as good as this year’s team

Big Game—One of the great traditions and rivalries in all of sport. Congrats to the Cal Bears, who dominated this year, 41-11.

Happy Thanksgiving!