Madison Bumgarner Off To A Rough Start in 2015
Nearly half a year ago, Madison Bumgarner was wheeling and dealing through his opponents, as well as through the playoffs. Being the big dog of the San Francisco Giants‘ pitching staff, the ace put on a historical performance in the World Series and showed why he is one of game’s best. His performance in the 2015 postseason forced the media to include his name alongside, among others, Clayton Kershaw when discussing greatness.
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Essentially almost stealing the title of “Mr. October” last season, Giants’ fans are still waiting to see that version of Bumgarner in 2015. After having a solid Spring Training, a continuation from the 2014 postseason looked to be in the works. Early on in the regular season though, Bumgarner has struggled to find command with his pitches and is missing his spots.
Could it be a World Series hangover still kicking in? Or is it maybe that “Paul Bunyan” has been chopping too much wood in the offseason? Luckily, Bumgarner’s struggles have occurred early on, but as a team, the Giants haven’t been looking so hot either.
Matt Cain‘s replacement, Chris Heston, has been the only bright spot so far in 2015 for San Francisco. The offense isn’t clicking and the pitching is trying too hard to compensate for the lack of run support.
The Giants have scored the fifth fewest runs in baseball through the first 14 games, as they have scored an underwhelming 37 runs, or an average of 2.6 runs a game.
But, back to Bumgarner.
Because the rotation has had to deal with injuries and inconsistencies early on this season, Bumgarner may be pressing. He may be trying to do too much, conscious that he is now a Major League darling and is trying to live up to his World Series hype. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated consistency from start to finish, through both the regular season and the playoffs.
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Bumgarner generally likes to pound the inner part of the plate against right handed hitters, but his command has been inconsistent. As a result, he’s been pulling the ball back to the outside of the plate, which has allowed more contact.
He also put on a show with the bat in 2014, and showed that in addition to being a top pitcher, that he is one of the top hitting pitchers in the game as well. With Bumgarner’s early throwing issues, and the Giants poor start overall, he needs to focus on getting his pitching back on track and not rely so much on making a contribution with the bat.
Numerous times, his facial expressions have shown his angst in how his at bats have turned out. But Bumgarner would do well to remember that he is a pitcher and not a hitter.
These early days of 2015 have been full of growing pains for this Giants’ squad, but they have shown time after time that they know how to get out of the funk.
Apr 16, 2015; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner (40) throws a pitch against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
To this point in the season, Bumgarner is sporting a 1-1 record, 5.29 ERA, and 1.41 WHIP. Given his natural ability, Giants’ fans should know that those numbers will not stay the same. His last start was encouraging, despite the four earned runs Bumgarner gave up to the Arizona Diamondbacks. The NL West in 2015 has a new look on offense, as all of the Giants’ opponents are producing runs this year.
San Francisco has to keep up with their division rivals by supporting Bumgarner and the rest of the pitching staff, if they want to gain ground against the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, Colorado Rockies, and the Diamondbacks.
Bumgarner and the Giants rode a magical postseason all the way to a title in 2014. And it appears that they are still stuck there. The offseason was not entirely successful, and they missed out on some big names to add to the ball club.
With a bad start against the Padres — one of the worst in his career — Giants fans have to believe that it may be the only one Bumgarner endures all season. He didn’t even make it past the fourth inning. To show the rust now, early on in the season as the Giants are struggling as a team, while Hunter Pence remains injured, may be a blessing in disguise.
Sooner or later, the team will be healthy again, and driving in runs to help the pitchers and the team out. It has been frustrating for the fans, and for the World Series MVP as well. The team is pressing too hard and needs to take a step back and let the game come to them.
It is only a matter of time before Bumgarner rediscovers his postseason form and works himself into a groove. The mound will soon be decorated with “Snot Rockets”, and number 40 will be in control again.