The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal has the details on Giants lefty Madison Bumgarner’s limited no-trade list, which, per the five-year, $35MM extension (plus 2018 and ’19 option years) he signed prior to the 2013 season, may contain up to eight teams. The four-time all-star may reportedly block trades to the Braves, Red Sox, Cubs, Astros, Brewers, Yankees, Phillies, and Cardinals at the upcoming trade deadline.
If the list seems curious for its contender bent, it’s by design: Bumgarner’s reps seem to have carefully selected the teams most apt to pursue the lefty for a pennant push later this season. High-profile players can often negotiate some sort of compensatory bonus if they’re moved to a team on their restricted list at any point during that contract, and the former World Series hero seems no exception.
Atlanta, it seems, is the dead giveaway here – Bumgarner grew up deep in the North Carolina hills, the nether regions of the far-reaching heart of Braves country, and was raised a die-hard Atlanta devotee. He’d surely jump at the opportunity to join a pennant-chasing Braves team, one that will likely have rising stars Mike Soroka and Max Fried on a strict innings limit as the season progresses, though whether the suddenly stingy Atlanta front office will have interest is an altogether different conversation.
As Alex Pavlovic of NBC Bay Area explains, there’s been no indication that Bumgarner will block deals to any of the teams included on his list, though explicit comments from the hurler on the matter are as yet in the dark. SNY’s Andy Martino tweets that the Yankees, Bumgarner’s most-connected suitor, are “not particularly high” on the lefty, an impression that could certainly shift with another couple months’ strong performance, coupled with a continued depletion of the team’s starting staff.
After two injury-riddled seasons, in which Bumgarner’s peripherals slumped considerably, the one-time ace has rekindled some of his mid-decade mojo: his 84 xFIP- and 91.8 average fastball velocity are his best marks in the categories since the 2015 season, and his 11.5% swinging strike rate has jumped to above his career average. He’s again striking out over a batter per nine, and his BB rate has swung back to barely-traceable levels, with the 1.45 mark actually the lowest of his career.
If there’s an area of concern, it’s the ground-ball rate, which has plummeted to a career-low 36.8%, leaving the 10-year vet more vulnerable than ever to the longball. There’s also, of course, his status as a rental: teams are more loath than ever to give up high quality talent for just two-plus months of even a star player, and Bumgarner, even during his heyday, was always closer to third starter than ace.
His postseason reputation precedes – no, surrounds – him, though modern front offices won’t fall prey to the blue ox beside his Paul Bunyan October lore, and are now much more likely to consider the sample in which it was done. Indeed, Bumgarner’s 93 career xFIP- in the postseason – interestingly a mark considerably worse than late-season whipping boy Clayton Kershaw’s 82 figure – is a fact which, if ever relevant at the outset, almost certainly won’t be dismissed in considerations.
There’s also the matter of Giants majority owner Charles Johnson, of whom Bumgarner is said to be a favorite, and an ownership group that’s always willing to shell out for hometown stars of seasons past. The Bumgarner saga may drag on well into the summer, but it’s still a distinct possibility the lefty will stay in San Fran for the long haul.
Stingy is putting it nicely..”Cheap, incoherent, and Dumb as rocks” is more fitting..
Sincerely,
Braves Nation
dont be so butthurt
Winners win and if you like losing thats your right.. In my world, when somethings not working it gets addressed, reprimanded, and corrected. I don’t do bandaids and/or participation awards.
It’s ok, not everyone has the passion of winning or being dominant.
Yes, 3-time World Champion and World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner doesn’t have the passion of winning and likes losing.
Do you f’n hear yourself?
You are not following, never mentioned him once and was never talking about him…
Do you f’n hear yourself or just like to make assumptions?! Move on..
Was referring to butthurt and simply saying many of us Braves fan that have watched the rebuild believe the time is now and already being wasted.
Hopefully you can follow now..
entitled much? grow up
Lol ok….
ill be honest chippahawk, i also thought you were referring to bumgarner. since it wasnt really clear who you were talking about, your comment seemed as if it was about the guy this article was written about
No sweat man, good mature response and hats off to you.. Let’s go get this one now Braves, time to start a streak. Acuna’s eye and timing is back. Let’s give the BP and my blood pressure a break from 2-1, 3-2 games for a few nights and blow some out..
Dear lord it’s just one player. Stop being such a homer and taking it personally, it’s not a big deal at all.
Soroka (our future ace), Bumgarner, Folty, Fried is one hell of a post season rotation. Just saying.
That’s what I thought too. (He was referring to the writer, NOT the commenter.)
He knows where he wants to go. He knows that those teams will give the best offers. If he doesn’t get traded to where he wants to go, he can veto it. It’s smart, not dumb.
@chippahawk you are the same type of idiot fan that wanted to trade Soroka, called Fried a bust, wanted to sign. Kimbrel to a 5 year deal during the off season. So please don’t sign your whiny, entitled, snowflake post as Braves Nation.
Thank you!
Maybe Albies will offer some of his jewelry collection to entice Bumgarner to join the Braves.
dont think he has any after that extention for pennies on the dollar.
Oh yeah, because no one can afford jewelry with only 35 million dollars.
It’s true. I make 35 million and I can only afford ring pops
with that paltry extension, he can probably afford to keep a Netflix and Hulu account open at the same time right?
He’s going to Oakland then lol
Probably not even if the price is right.
I would have thought most people would want to block trades to bad teams not playoff bound ones
Nope, it has to do with family and living situations mostly.
If it was for living conditions and especially.. Lowest taxes he’d want the 2 florida teams. and avoid a couple on his list and the 1 he’s currently on.
Everyone has different living conditions man, come on.
I believe hes from NC so the Braves has to be the closest to home ?
Did you read the article? He wouldn’t actually block trades to those teams it just gives him more leverage if one of those teams wants to acquire him
This just puts him in control of where he’s going. There’s maybe like 1 or 2 teams who might be interested him who aren’t on this list. If one of these teams wants him, they’ll have to likely give him an extension or signing bonus or something.
Also: he doesn’t -have- to block any trade to those teams, he just has the ability. How many times have we seen no trade lists not matter and players waived it? All the time…
Did you read the article?
You guys have it all wrong. A common strategy is to put the teams that are most likely to trade for you on your list, that way when they want to trade for you, you can decide whether you want to go there and can even ask for additional compensation. It allows you to have a certain amount of control over your situation, not every player just wants to play for a winning team and doesn’t care what city or situation they’re being put into
His rental status already blocks trades to bad teams. He doesn’t need to put them on his no-trade list.
Read the post more carefully. The writer indicates that Bumgarner’s agent SPECIFICALLY put in contending teams so that Bumgarner could get a little extra $$ on his way out. MadBum and Atlanta are a perfect match. But there are several others.
With a lifetime 3.06 if that isn’t an ace I don’t know who one would be. The guy was a horse until he was Injured. Rosenthal is straight up a HACK. Had he played on the East Coast Rosendope would of had him in the HOF. I AM NOT EVEN CLOSE TO BEING A GIANTS FAN.
why care this much? cry some more, jeez
Yesh. BEFORE he was injured.
The ladt two years are a concern.
Unless you have a time machine, you get the present version.
Ding ding ding. But having him as our number 2/3 in the post season would be great news.
Its always about what you have done lately
I’m sure his teammate Pom is filling him on, on American League east teams, n frankly I’d like him to go to The a Evil Empire. Bumgarner I fear is over his prime, n is lucky to have a job, just ask the Panda.
curious with the no-trade list, but wise, given the fact that those are the teams he’s most likely to be traded to.
This is smart. He has to know that the Giants are unlikely to trade him to an NL West rival which takes out 4. They are also unlikely to trade him to the bottom 2 teams in all other divisions which removes 10 other teams. There are probably 6 more teams which either aren’t really in contention or have bigger needs than a starting pitcher. Factor in his 8 team list and you are pretty much left with just one team he is likely to be traded to without his consent, the Twins.
I’m not saying that is exactly where he will go, but it is likely the only place he will go without a say. When you just have an 8 team no trade list, getting it cut down to 1 is pretty good.
What about the Rays?
Would love the braves to get him, but not sure at what price point I’m ok getting him. Gut says he’d require some strong prospects and I don’t exactly have any in mind I’m ready to let go of. Gohara, allard? Are those guys even enough? Too much? Idk. Interesting talk for sure
Riley.
So he doesn’t want to win.
You don’t list reading comprehension as a skill, do you?
He probably went right to the no trade list and read nothing else
Oaklands still a legit contender 🙂
If our bats wake up, sure. You don’t fix the rotation when you aren’t scoring runs, though.
They just took the last 2 series, Olson back makes them so much better, but the A’s cannot afford to repeat last year, they absolutely need that ace for the WC game and I think either Bumgarner, Keuchel and Stroman are prime candidates. A’s have too many good position player prospects aka trade bait and probably will be in on Keuchel after the draft pick goes away.
I’d cry if he went to the Yanks but damn it please give us a power bat in said trade
Angels trade some minor prospects for him and SF eats some of his salary.
This is maybe the most uninformed comment I have seen on MLBTR.
He is a rental and he is on a very club-friendly contract.
Please get a clue or a win a single game in the ALDS. It would be better for all of us.
You mad bro?
this thread is full of very mad posts!!!
no, mad bum
He probably went right to the no trade list and read nothing else
I think it’s amusing how some people complain loudly any time a team uses a collectively-bargained mechanism in a way that breaks the spirit of the mechanism but is technically allowed…but those same people have no problem with a case such as this one, with a player using a partial no-trade clause in a way that is clearly not the intent. I’m not wagging a finger at him, just the people who have double standards. It’s just business!
Fanaticism is a legit form of mental illness. You can’t say ANYTHING about their fave team that can be perceived as bad, like being on a “no trade list”. It’s actually really sad how society just encourages this rather than prevent it.
1) in this case it’s a mutually agreed on contract clause. The player and the team both had a choice not to include it
2) the ‘intent’ of an NTC is more often than not for leverage and not to actually prevent trades, and has been basically since the concept originated
Hence your trying to make an apples to oranges comparison to accuse others of hypocrisy….
I like the Twins acquiring him for the postseason if they keep it up.
I am thinking he goes to a team not on the list. Not enough restrictions to block all avenues. I could see Mets twins and Indians getting good deals if needed
“Bumgarner, even during his heyday, was always closer to third starter than ace.”
This is essentially saying that at his best Bumgardner was less good than an average #2 starter. Poor wording or someone who knows nothing about baseball.
Nope, the statement is perfectly accurate. You can’t simply discount the fact that he’s pitched in what’s by far the most pitcher-friendly park in baseball
Can you prove that with his home/road splits? I’m too lazy to look it up plus I don’t know where to look.
Thanks Ty!
Here you have: baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=bumga…
Ty Bradley, you have ruined this website for me any many other commentators by throwing in unnecessary opinions into articles that should be fact-based. Saying Bumgarner was “at best” a third starter is an insult and is only trying to provoke Giants fans.
Lmao oh man if Mad Bum was only a 3rd starter id hate to know what you consider a legitimate 3rd starter like Masahiro Tanaka as. Bullpen fodder?
Sorry Ty.The statement about Madbum being no better than a third starter is by far the most idiotic one that I have seen in an article in MLBTR.
Ask the Pirates in 2014 about that.
Or the Royals.
To call Bumgarner a #3 is absurd. Maybe now he’s a #2-#3, but lifetime? Ballpark or no ballpark, this is simply not accurate, and I doubt any other baseball writer would post such a comment. Let’s see the stats that prove that your point.
2013-2016 Bumgarner cannot be classified as anything other than one of the games best starters. Definitely one of the few true aces over that time.
He may just want to stay on the west coast.
“Bumgarner, even during his heyday, was always closer to third starter than ace”
Sometimes no comment is best. .
Even as a dodger fan I’d agree Bumgarner is a better postseason pitcher than Kershaw. Whoever this writer is, he’s a clown.
Can’t understand why he would block a trade to some good teams that have a window to compete-Astros, Braves, Cubs, Cards, Brewers. I’m sure he has his reasons. Maybe he has figured he’s won enough and looking for his next gig to be low pressure, low expectations and go into semi retirement.
read previous replies and the article
That’s all speculation
Of course it’s speculation to some degree but it’s speculation that makes sense. You either believe he doesn’t want to get traded at all or you believe he’s using his NTC for leverage. I’ll go with the latter. Your explanation doesn’t really make any sense. A team out of contention isn’t going to trade for a rental player. That wouldn’t make any sense.
“A team out of contention isn’t going to trade for a rental player.”
I’ve actually heard that suggested on here before. But yeah, it wouldn’t be too bright.
Because those are the teams likely to trade for him. Bad teams rarely trade for veteran rentals, so blocking them is pointless.
He can still go to a good team if he wants, he just gets a choice in the matter this way
Bumgarner will jump at the chance to be traded to any team where he has a chance to record a WIN without having to throw a shutout to put himself in that position.
I hope they keep him. I’m a fan. I don’t see a lot of value in a trade anyway. Considering all the bad contracts on the team. It’s gonna be a slow rebuild in my opinion. Because not a lot of teams want Our Guys. And trading away your best pitcher. While still being stuck with the other players would make us worse. Not better. . . Might as well stay in contention. Build slow. Bring in more quality players as the seasons progress. While building up the minors. Thru draft and trades of a few.
A few years from now. Your gonna need a bumgarner to headline the rotation. And still be good at 31 32 years old. . .
-I see Belt as the first to go. The first base position can he used to shuttle guys around. Like how they’re using left for now. Belt is gone either this or next year midseason by the latest I think.
Belt has considerably less value than Bum.
Yes he does. . . But he’s blocking a move for Posey. And possibly a cheaper option for power down the road. Him and Crawford are on the bubble. . . But I’d keep Bum. Frontline starters are hard to find. I’m thinking over the course of a few years.
Cueto comes back next year. And Samdj will probably be traded at some point by mid season next season. It’s a rebuild
I’m a Giants fan. We are not now, or in the near future, a contender. Trade MadBum.
The Braves have lost 12 of 13 postseason series and recently got swept by the Dodgers. They have 2 options. Sit tight and hope they win with what they have OR make moves. What should be the play?
Make moves and start with the bullpen
Braves did not get swept…..
May 6th-8th. Wake up
He meant they got swept in the last regular season series in LA, not during the post season. It’s poorly written, that’s why it’s easy to misunderstand.
Obviously make moves.. The wheel should always be turning.
The Giants got away with murder by never paying Bumgarner. He’s been severely underpaid in my opinion.
Hope he pitches playoff baseball again.
I’d love to be a fly in the room of the front office that’s sitting there saying, “You know, Kershaw really has had a better postseason career than Bumgarner — I mean, c’mon, look at his xFIP-)
I’m sure Fahran Zaidi would be part of that conversation. That’s why when he left the Dodgers after being the GM for 4 years, they decided they could do fine w/o a GM.
Obviously written by someone who’s desperate to prove how much smarter and baseball savvy they are than everyone else. And just like when anyone else goes out of their way to desperately prove how they are the smartest person in the room and how much more knowledgeable they are….they prove just the opposite.
Oh great, more controversy about a thing (SP ranking 1-5) with no set rules or laws.
For me, a for-sure “ace” is a SP that has a 4+ fWAR, or the top 30 SP’s by fWAR. Cut n dry. Simple.
The main problem here is that too many people think “ace” means “elite” when they need to be straight up saying “an elite SP”, which is probably 5+ fWAR.
But thing is, no one has any rules like this written down anywhere, and MLB’s ever-changing gameplay and analytics, I feel like it’s the best way to put it, so there!
Basically trying to turn a limited NTC into a functionally full NTC. Knows a non-contender isn’t going to trade for him given his rental status and knows SFG isn’t going to trade him to a division rival so he doesn’t necessarily need them to be on his no-trade list. Still a couple teams not on this list who I could see being interested in him. Like the Twins.
Think it will come down to which contender he decides has the best chance. He has no incentives that he can ask to have guaranteed in exchange for him approving a trade and probably would prefer to test free agency come the offseason. This allows him to go to the contender that he feels is best set up for the postseason as opposed to just going to whoever offers SFG the best return.
If his agent was so cunning as to block trades to these contenders so as to improve his trade value, why didn’t they negotiate a better salary to start with? Very team friendly in 2013 as has been widely reported
Agents work for players, not the other way around.
When all was said and done, Bumgarner signed on the dotted line and there has been no indication whatsoever that he regrets that decision.
I didn’t know that he grew up in Appalachia. I grew up in Atlanta. I love everyone from Braves Country. I don’t know if he would be a good fit at the moment though. I would love to have him in the organization but considering our upper minor league situation and the potential of our Major League team, I don’t think starting pitching is a need. However… Alex Anthopolous has to hear all of the Braves fans shouting, “We want Kimbrel!” Every home game at SunTrust Park while the bullpen blows a save.
The Braves need pitching. Folty and Gausman both have ERA’s of 5 or higher. Teheran is Teheran. Soroka and Fried have been very good but other than that the other guys haven’t done much. And you can’t rely on them late in the season anyway as they’ll probably be real close to their innings limits. IMO the best way for the Braves to utilize the rest of their young pitching is in the pen like the brewers did last year with Woodruff and Burnes. Bumgarner fits and Kimbrel fits. They should be able to do both if they wanted to. Bum doesn’t make much.
Folty is gonna be fine, he is just suffering from a lack of spring training. Gausman has been pitching much better than his stats indicate, same with Teheran.
The bullpen needs help, but not Kimbrel.
Good GMs never listen to the fans for just this reason.
The fans assume it’s the Kimbrel who left, the GM is buying the Kimbrel of right now… Who ain’t cheap and hasn’t been that great lately…
The Braves will get Bum right after they sign Kimbrel !! Not going to happen.
“so what you are saying is….. there is a chance…” – Pirates fans.
could really use some starting pitching help to hold the line. plus hes got a bit of a bat too.
with being a rental and middleing performace “shouldnt” be overly expensive pick up for who ever goes for him.
It’s a fictional list! This is his way of telling SF I want an extension to stay!
Dude was in top 6 voting for CYA in three of those years in his “heyday.” To say “Bumgarner, even during his heyday, was always closer to third starter than ace” is probably the worst take I’ve come across on this site.
Arguing that Kershaw was a better postseason pitcher than Bumgarner based on some cherry-picked stat is even more egregious. Regardless of whether Kershaw has unfairly been the “whipping-boy” of the playoffs or not, let’s not overcompensate with this, Ty.
Maybe 8 years ago I’d say the Cubs should trade for him but not now.
Braves perennial losers.