Madison Bumgarner Named NL Pitcher of the Month
For the second time this season, Madison Bumgarner has been named the National League’s Pitcher of the Month for the month of August.
In August, Bumgarner posted a league-best 1.57 ERA, and he finished with a 4-1 record. In six starts and 46 innings in August, Bumgarner struck out 56, walked just three, gave up 26 hits, and allowed opponents to hit just .164 against him. He also tossed three complete games.
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Overall this season, Bumgarner has gone 16-9 with a 2.97 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP while striking out 199 in 29 starts and 191 innings.
Bumgarner was also named the NL Pitcher of the Month back in May when he posted a 5-0 record and a 2.08 ERA, struck out 48, walked five, gave up 28 hits, and allowed opponents to hit just .203 off of him in six starts and 39 innings.
The San Francisco Giants are currently in a playoff race with the Los Angeles Dodgers for the NL West crown. The aces of the pitching staffs for both teams, Bumgarner and Clayton Kershaw, have switched off on who wins the NL Pitcher of the Month award.
As mentioned before, Bumgarner was named the NL Pitcher of the Month in May. Kershaw was named NL Pitcher of the Month in both June and July, and now Bumgarner has won again in August.
Alex Pavlovic of the Bay Area News Group pointed out this fact to Bumgarner:
"“That’s pretty amazing,” Bumgarner said, smiling. “It’s hard to see how anybody could beat him out of it with the way he’s been throwing. I’m thankful for the recognition. It’s crazy — it’s a huge honor. I couldn’t have done it without everybody. We’re playing really good ball.”"
These two pitchers are great friends off the field, and on the field, they’re two of the best pitchers in the game. It’ll be interesting to see if one of them wins the award in September and leads their respective team to win the NL West.
Bumgarner is thankful for winning this award, but he’s also focused on the the Giants’ playoff race right now, according to Andrew Baggarly of Comcast Sportsnet Bay Area.
"“We’ve got a chance to play for a division title,” Bumgarner said. “We’re not out of it by any means. It should be fun.”"
Bumgarner makes his next start against David Price and the Detroit Tigers on Saturday.