Giant’s walk-off photo accidentally captures incredible Cepeda tribute originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but in the case of the Giants on Friday, it was two letters.
Beloved franchise icon and Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda passed away Friday evening, but he was still an incredible part of the Giants’ family celebration.
After San Francisco defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 on Friday night thanks to a walk-off home run by Brett Wisely at Oracle Park, the rest of the team met Wisely at home plate for an emotional celebration.
As if the satisfaction of beating their pesky rivals wasn’t enough, a photo taken by Getty Images photographer Thearon W. Henderson showed the magical moment that proved Cepeda was indeed there in spirit.
With the jumping and screaming came the inevitable water bottle sprays and all that X user @carokell As indicated, the water droplets miraculously formed the letters “OC” on top of the team’s celebration.
The Giants announced Cepeda’s death in the middle of Friday’s game as Logan Webb was warming up to continue his performance.
For Webb, Giants manager Bob Melvin and the rest of the organization, the news was a blow to the team and the city, which is still mourning the death of baseball icon Willie Mays, who passed away earlier this month.
But as they set out to do for Mays, they honored Cepeda with a sweet, sweet victory Friday night.
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