Longtime Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner is staying in the National League West. He’s just not going to pitch in San Francisco anymore. Surprisingly, Bumgarner elected over the weekend to join the Diamondbacks – who haven’t made the postseason since 2017 or won a playoff game since 2011 – on a five-year, $85MM guarantee.
Although the Diamondbacks haven’t experienced much recent success on the sport’s biggest stage, Bumgarner – one of the greatest playoff pitchers in the game’s history – told reporters Tuesday that he targeted them entering free agency. Bumgarner even preferred going to Arizona than staying in San Francisco, where he won three World Series titles and cemented himself as a franchise icon.
“It was the No. 1 place for me,” the 30-year-old said of Arizona (via Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group). “I did tell (my agent) that. We talked about that often.”
Once the Diamondbacks showed serious interest, Bumgarner revealed that he “was done” looking for a team. Bumgarner entered free agency reportedly looking for a guarantee of $100MM or more. While he’s not going to reach that total in the desert, perhaps he would have had he signed elsewhere. He stated Tuesday that “we definitely left some money on the table. You can say that,” per Zach Buchanan of The Athletic (subscription link).
Now that Bumgarner’s officially in the fold for the Diamondbacks, he’ll be part of an impressive-looking rotation that’s also slated to include Luke Weaver, Robbie Ray, Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly. Moreover, because Bumgarner’s contract includes deferrals and is backloaded (he’ll make $6MM in 2020), the Diamondbacks still have the financial room to make other upgrades to a roster that won a respectable 85 games last season. By agreeing to such a team-friendly salary for next season, Bumgarner showed off “his commitment to winning,” general manager Mike Hazen observed.
D’backs hoping on Randy Johnson 2.0!!!!
Dream on
Maybe Randy Keisler 2.0 by Year 4.0.
Pay the starters and expect the relievers to win the games !
—- R. Darling
They won a playoff game 3 years ago. They beat the Rockies in the Wild Card game. Granted, I don’t really think of that game as the playoffs either, but MLB does. And that is what matters.
Isn’t it technically considered a play-in game? That’s what I always thought of it as but I digress…
@slim7180 No, it is a wild card one game playoff. Even if your team gets a wildcard, they are still considered to have made the playoffs. All stats are considered post season.
I thought i heard the term game 163 before . So game 163 would not be reg season ?
Whatever terms people may use for games and however they may feel, according to MLB the game is a part of post season play and not regular season.
Game 163 is if 2 teams are tied for either the division lead or the second wild card spot. Completely different scenario. We saw a pair of game 163’s when the Rockies and Dodgers and the Cubs and Brewers were tied for their respective division leads in 2018. Both pairs played a game 163 (which counts as the regular season) with the winner taking the division and the loser taking a wild card spot. Then the two wild card teams played in the wild card game (which counts as the postseason).
FWIW I don’t see the Wild Card game as a playoff game either, but I’m going off of what MLB classifies it as and it definitely does classify it as a playoff game.
you may have been thinking about a tiebreaker game that would be game 163, but the wildcard game is considered the post season, some people may call the wild card game 163 but it is not accurate
163 is a tie break to make wildcard. If needed, rare but happened 2018 brewers v cubs I believe. Brewers won to play Colorado in wildcard.
Me and my buddies have always called it the play-ins too! Def not playoffs
Same. I’m sure MLB makes more advertising money calling it a playoff game though.
Definitely affects ticket prices to call it that
They’ll be lucky to make it as a wild card once during his tenure
Probably win the division 3 times though
Hahahaha
We still dont know why he chose them. Location, coaches, teammates?
“He has horses there”
MadBum beats to his own drum. Hopefully the front office signs a bat or two for 2020
When you have 3 rings you can!
He just likes Arizona. If you can handle the heat, it’s a much better place to live than the ridiculously expensive/over crowded bay area.
Yeah I’m sure he’s worried about the high rents in San Fran
It’s the space and freedom. He can’t have a ranch with horses, hop on a freeway with cars going more than 5 miles an hour, or be left alone in the Bay Area.
Add in about a 10% difference in state income tax, though, if money is his concern.
But it looks like personal space and comfort were priorities for him.
If he wanted any sort of land to ride his horses on near SF he is probably looking at Woodside or Portola Valley. A nice house there with enough acreage for stables and to be able to ride is going to run you about 10 million bucks. Even then it’s not like it’s a ranch sized property. For a fraction of that he can get hundreds of acres in AZ.
*taxes
He’s as Duck Dynasty as they come. He can ride his dirt bike and shoot anything he wants in the desert, and nobody would say a thing.
Family has a home there, I believe.
Actually, we do. They were his #1 choice. It’s more than his horses and his lifestyle. He even said he might’ve taken less money to be there. Also, the Dbacks are a good team with good FO and management. Bumgarner even said it today, the past three years theyve had a good squad and talent, and it’s coming from a guy who has sat across the field 18 times each of the last three years.
You are out of your mind if you think that Arizona was his first choice. Atlanta was his first choice but they were not giving him 5 years. Once Cole Hamels was willing to do 1 year all communication stopped.
I am sure he did leave money on the table. The White Sox I could see having offered him more.
And I am sure he likes Arizona having spent spring trainings there and they may have been his 2nd choice but I believe more likely 4th or 5th.
I believe he was going to whoever offered him the most money and more importantly most years.
You are out of your mind if you think AZ wasn’t his first choice after he: 1.) Said it himself, 2.) Took a lower value contract to play there when he got the 5th year (although taxes make it a closer split than the numbers show), 3.) Took deferments and an EXTREMELY back-loaded contract to help the team navigate their (self-imposed) salary restrictions. I’m excited that he actually WANTS to play in the desert.
@Steelerbravenation except for the fact that Bumgarner said himself the D’Backs were his first choice. Did you choose not to actually read the article or are you too butthurt he didn’t want to sign with the Braves?
You’re right…just because he said it was his first choice, he already has a home there, and, again…he told his agent that Arizona was his preference and took less money…that all indicates that he indeed wanted to pitch in Atlanta.
I wonder how much of the ATL was chatter because he grew up in Western N.C. I may have missed it, but I don’t recall MadBum ever saying he made ATL a priority.
He said it was his first choice after he signed the contract what was he suppose to say ???
And no he lives in NC he only owns a house in Arizona. He basically lived there for spring training. He is in NC in the offseason and lived in the Bay Area during the season.
You really believe he would go up to the mic and say hey I am happy to be a Diamondback because they gave me the longest contract with the most money..
who does that ??? Nobody does that.
Keep believing he got offered more I would love to see what team offered him more. I have not heard anybody say they offered him more.
At least when the Yankees offer a player a bigger contract than he signs elsewhere for they come out and say they offered more.
He may have signed for the most years, but certainly not the most money. We get it, you’re salty that the Braves didn’t sign him, but we only know what’s reported and what he’s said. What you’re spewing is baseless conjecture.
For 5 years sorry I am not salty anybody on here that knows me knows that the minute Cole Hamels said he was open to a short term deal that is who I wanted. At this point in time he offers the exact same leadership qualities that I feel MadBum brings but won’t be hampered down the road with a burden of a contract and the young arms coming up being blocked.
Sorry your Braves did not land him. I don’t think a player would openly say time and time again, along with his agent, that this was his first choice if it wasn’t. There is no basis or sources to your claim the Dbacks were his 4th or 5th choice. This is classic baseball fandom; unwilling to acknowledge good baseball if it doesn’t come from their city and the sense of entitlement. Pretty clear he did not want to leave the West after last summers deadline when he said he didn’t want to leave SF for a team out East. If it was going to be any other team it was going to be the Dodgers probably. The Dbacks even brought on Herges as the new pitching coach and signed Vogt, two guys Bumgarner seems to like. Bumgarner, again, said that he loves the style of play the Diamondbacks play with. The Dbacks are in fact a good team, despite what people who only fantasize about crazy trades and improbably signings of their own squads on this site, and who only want to acknowledge decent baseball if it comes their team, seem to believe.
What do you think he would say about the team he signed with? Come on man, think about it. Of course he is going to say they were his first choice, he would look pretty stupid if he said, well, they werent my first choice, but my first choice didnt want to pay me for 5 years, so I took this offer.. Guess what buddy, had the Rangers signed him, THEY would have been his first choice. Give me a break, just because he said it, lol, come on. Of course he had to say it.
I think they offered him a case of PBR in their final meeting, and he signed on the dotted line.
Good dirt biking
Location. He has a home there and horses and likes the lifestyle there.
Hey, if he chose them and left money on the table to go there, more power to him. From a practical standpoint I still see AZ as a 3rd place team in the NL West for the foreseeable future. Where are they going? Where is the offense coming from? Just don’t see this team finishing ahead of the Dodgers or Padres any time soon even if they reel in Lindor and sign Donaldson. Somebody sell me on this team.
Not ahead of the Padres?? That is laughable. Padres a clueless GM who has no plan and a rookie Mgr and 2 sky high contracts that will hinder them until they are done in Hosmer and Myers. Drew Pomeranz ? Really.
LOL
You see the D-Backs finishing behind the Padres? Why?
The D-Backs are running a professional operation. Their FO, manager, and coaching staff have a record of accomplishment. Cannot remotely say the same for the Padres.
But the Padres do beat out not just the D-Backs, but at least 20 other teams in MLB in churning players and overpaying for free agents, which gets them a lot of pub. True to form, most don’t bother to look at what it is they’ve done the past 5 years…..not much….and the proof is that they’re now furiously trading off vaulted prospects for what are basically average to slightly above average (and overpaid) players.
The D-Backs are a quality organization. The moves they’ve made the past year or so have been solid.
DBacks are a quality organization. Love the stadium.
Agree. Diamondbacks are a fine organization and have a terrific front office
The Padres who finished last? 36 games behind LA, 15 behind AZ, behind SF, COL… those Padres? Hahaha thank you, I needed a good laugh!
Lots of hatred for the Padres in this comments section.
But yes, I would expect the Diamondbacks to finish 2nd in the division behind the Dodgers.
Solaris…Let’s see…2019 Dbacks finished ahead of the Padres. Then again, so did every other team in the NLW, so that’s not very remarkable. Padres finished dead last in the division. Seems to me, you’re the one who needs to sell people on the idea that a 70 win team, the Padres, can finish ahead of an 85 win team, the Dbacks, in 2020.
Where is the offense coming from? Let’s go down the list:
-C: currently have Carson Kely who played his first full season, but put up a 108 wRC+ with plus defense and have Vogt as an offensive-minded backup. Plus, Daulton Varsho has a projected ETA of 2021 and killed AA pitching while getting reps in CF.
-1B: currently have Christian Walker who played his first full season, but put up a 112 wRC+ with plus defense and currently have Kevin Cron (who among all MiLB hitters put up the most prodigious power line in the PCL and is MLB ready now) and Seth Beer, who is projected to be ready in 2021, waiting in the wings.
-2B: I shouldn’t have to tell you about Ketel Marte, who not too recently signed a team friendly extension.
-3B: still currently have Eduardo Escobar, who’s taken the odd career trajectory of adding more and more power after moving from SS to 3B and maintaining above-average defensive skills after being primarily a contact hitter.
-SS: Nick Ahmed has made year over year offensive improvements while maintaining his defensive excellence, and if he happens to reject a QO this offseason, Geraldo Perdomo (recognized as a plate discipline prodigy by multiple prospect writers) has an ETA of 2021 and Liover Peguero (who is most frequently comped to Jean Segura from a body and skills standpoint) has an ETA of 2022 (one might fill out and have to move to 3B, but who knows at this point).
-LF: Peralta will be a FA after the season, but Tim Locastro (the fastest sprinter in MLB and willing to do anything to get on-base) is still around and Alek Thomas (a Top 100 CF prospect who could be pushed off of the position because of a weak arm and the existence of Carroll) projects for a plus bat, speed, and defense (in CF, mind you) has a 2021 ETA.
-CF: still yet to be determined this season, but it’s looking more and more like they’re making a run at Akiyama for his 2-year ask and have Kristian Robinson (more on him in RF), Alek Thomas, and Corbin Carroll (who is projected for a plus bat and defense, plus-plus speed, above-average-arm, and average power) with an ETA of 2023.
-RF: yet to be determined this season, however, they have the money to take a run at Calhoun, and have any of the 3 Top 100 Prospect CF that can be transitioned there, of particular interest being Robinson (a behemoth that’s tortured almost every league he’s been in with plus-plus raw power, currently plus speed (he may lose a step as he gets bigger, so only above-average) and plus game power and arm.
I think the offense will be perfectly fine over MadBum’s contract.
Maybe the very underrated Marte in center and former Stro prospect/minor league breakout star Rojas at second?
Where is the offense coming from? MADISON “JED CLAMPETT” BUMGARNER HIMSELF!
They definitely need to sign Mr Ed, he’s a good base runner, hits for power, and perfect at sliding home.
youtube.com/watch?v=AVm-HwAkVp8
It’s all about the horses for this HOSS.
$6M in 2020. Yeesh. The D-Backs just got handed a (Wild Card) chance.
Looks like Mike Leake has leaked his way out of Arizona
You mean Ray is gone by trade
As I Giants fan, I’m happy for him. SF made his decision easy by offering him less money. They easily could have matched AZ’s offer, it was just an extra year and not a heck of a lot more money to a cash rich organization who would have had a lot of money off the books by the fifth year.
I mean think about it… what was the total difference like 10 million? You really think SF give a crap about 10 million bucks they would have to pay 5 years from now? Like THAT ONE YEAR would affect their playoff homes in five years?
All the best MadBum, I hope you’re happy and will always be rooting for ya, but not so much for when you’re playing SF… I’ll be hoping we win but only score runs off the relievers!
It appears that both Mr. Bumgarner and the Giants ownership / FO thought it was best for him to move on. Not hard to figure out. They have to rebuild the farm system and ML roster. He’s 30 years-old and slowly deteriorating. He’s going to a team on the rise, in an area of the country he and his family want to live in. Win / Win / Win.
Spot on! He knows Giants aren’t going anywhere any time soon and he knew during the season he wasn’t coming back!
If the Giants ownership/FO thought it was best for him to move on and they have to rebuild the farm system why didn’t they trade him back in July?
Exactly. It’s easy to claim things like “the Giants were ready to move on” after the fact. It’s just narrative riding.
Name the last time the Giants traded a franchise icon/face of the franchise. Maybe Matt Williams? It’s just something they don’t do. Sometimes they leave in FA, but most times, the Giants are the ones to overpay to keep them out of nostalgia. This time, I think they did the right thing on both ends, and ended up getting a comp pick or whatnot that probably is close to what they would’ve got by trading him. And it didn’t look like they were waving the white flag when the team was actually making a mid-season run. Not a terrible call. Could they have gotten more? Maybe, but it’s a tougher sell to the fan base to deal a super hero franchise guy away when you’re only a few games out of the Wild Card. We’re they going to win it? God no, but at least it looked like they tried and it doesn’t set the rebuild back at all anyway. Decent small wins for everyone all the way around and he gets treated like the hero he is when he comes back. All good man.
“Name the last time the Giants traded a franchise icon/face of the franchise. Maybe Matt Williams? It’s just something they don’t do.”
Letting said franchise icon/face of the franchise leave as a FA will have the same effect that trading him would have had.
“This time, I think they did the right thing on both ends, and ended up getting a comp pick or whatnot that probably is close to what they would’ve got by trading him.”
That comp pick is after the 2nd round ends. The Giants could have gotten a top 100 prospect for Bumgarner at the deadline: much better than a 2nd-3rd round sandwich pick.
“… but it’s a tougher sell to the fan base to deal a super hero franchise guy away when you’re only a few games out of the Wild Card.”
Once again, letting him leave as a FA will have the same effect.
“… but at least it looked like they tried and it doesn’t set the rebuild back at all anyway.”
What’s more important? Long-term utility or making it look like you tried?
Matt Williams was never the face of the franchise. The only face there has been was Barry Bonds over the last 20 years. And it’s self explanatory why he never was traded.
Giants have always done their players dirty at the end. You mean to tell me that you can look the fans in the eyes at their preseason luncheon and say yes we are paying Belt, Crawford & Shark but let MadBum who they robbed for years already walk.
It’s a shame and it’s the business side of it. So for all those people out there that knock players for a lack of loyalty or unwillingness to give a home team discount. Here you go. Just dropped the guy who singlehandedly brought 3 championships to your city.
Every big game there was he took the bill.
Not saying he deserves $100 million or 5 yrs from any team but from the Giants he did. And also even if they are rebuilding. Nobody knows exactly how that rebuild will go but what you do know is that Giant fans in year 5 of that contract no matter what the record is they will go out and support that guy.
Also they just traded for Zack Cozart to basically do nothing for $13 million. You mean to tell me they couldn’t come up with about $4 million more in 5 years from now for him to stay.
I think at that point in time SF was on a roll and they thought they had a shot at the playoffs?
jimthegoat:
You’re assuming something of greater value was offered than the comp pick. In letting Bum walk without much effort to keep him, and Zaidi, trading away several pieces at the deadline, suggests that keeping Bum was less about contending, and more about the underwhelming return that was offered.
steelerbravenation:
You’re wrong about Matt Williams. He was much more popular than Bonds at the time. In fact, he was the most popular guy on the team, and fans were outraged, and called for Sabean’s head when that trade went down. It was only the success of the following season that led to fans backing down on Sabean’s ouster.
The Cozart trade was not about Cozart. It was about taking on salary that the Angels wanted to dump, in order to buy a prospect, thereby strengthening the farm. SF can afford Cozart he’s gone next season, and they got a prospect that they like.
@tad2b13 I don’t believe for a second that no one was offering more value than a 2nd/3rd round sandwich pick for Bumgarner.
jimthegoat:
And I don’t believe for a moment that Zaidi had an offer of any consequence. If he had, Bum would have been traded. If it was all about contending for a playoff spot, they would not have traded away Melancon, Pomeranz, and Dyson, all valuable relievers. And if hey knew they weren’t going to re-sign Bum, as now seems to be the case, they would have traded him if they had a decent offer. Zaidi is neither emotionally attached to Bum, nor is he stupid.
I think it’s safe to say AZ and SD will finish ahead of the Giants. So why don’t you over zealous Padre and Dback fans be content that your teams are making an effort to get better.
Giants fans are facing a rebuild and although we’ve got 3 rings to keep us happy it isn’t fun knowing your team is throwing in the towel and letting iconic players walk away.
Prediction: if the Padres are able to unload Myers along with prospects to offset his salary I give SD the edge in 2020. If they can’t, AZ finishes ahead of them but still behind LA.
Not sure swapping out Eric Lauer, Hunter Renfroe and Luis Urias for Jurickson Profar, Zach Davies, Trent Grisham and Tommy Pham does make them better in 2020. Not to mention the guys they have now cost like $15m more.
And there’s not a single GM in the game that sees Myers as a positive contributor. Let alone worth $22.5m/yr.
That’s why I said Myers and prospects; SD would have to attach prospects with Myers to unload him. And yes, many GM’s would take on that trade. I’m hoping it’s the Giants as they have the money and need to jump start their rebuild.
As for the Padre additions, all save Profar are net positive adds. I also don’t think SD nor AZ are done with their off season work. They’ll both be fun teams to watch next year. Tatis Jr is the real deal and Marte is very good.
Zach Davies cost the Padres Eric Lauer who is basically a younger, left handed-Zach Davies. Then Urias > Grisham. Only trade that you could argue makes them better now is the Pham trade and that’s only if you think that Pham already being 31 (32 in march) and having a degenerative eye condition won’t cause his to incur a steep decline curve and that he won’t forget how to hit same-handed pitching once he comes to San Diego like Eric Hosmer and Manny Machado did.
“… if the Padres are able to unload Myers along with prospects to offset his salary…”
–
@ davemlaw
Not being sarcastic here……
How many solid prospects are needed to take on $67.6m over 3 years that can be replaced by a series of free agents OF’s over the next 3 years being paid under $1m a year?
And name a rebuilding team – or any team – that has $67.5m floating around to do something like that.
Giants. It’s hard for them to attract free agent bats but they can buy them in this way.
I think it’s safe to say that we have no idea how things will work out in 2020…
he is just tired of daylight savings.
As painful as it is for bumgarner to leave the giants, it’s pretty obvious the city and state didn’t agree with him. Despite playing in san Francisco madbum has two homes, one in Arizona near the spring training facilities, and one in North Carolina. It was pretty obvious he wanted nothing to do with the politics or lifestyle of California. We all knew he would leave when bochy did, because his loyalty was to his teammates and manager, not the logo or city, we just didn’t want to admit it. Still blessed he’s not a dodger!
His contract is bad but not as bad as people make it out to be.
Have you seen the contracts that pitchers (some with significant injury histories) are getting this offseason? No way Madbum doesn’t provide more value on this contract than the other pitchers will on theirs.
D-backs are going to be sneaky good. Hazen has been killing it.
Good for him. Most employees choose where they want to work for a variety of reasons. He’s getting paid really well to go to an area he enjoys and will be with his family.
He only took 6 million in 2020 in order to prove he wants to win! As a D-Backs fan, that fires me up! Hazen is brilliant, so it will be interesting to see what he does with that extra money.
so…what happens with Mike Leake now?
I’d say he battles with Kelly for the 5th spot in the rotation, assuming no injuries. It would be stupid to let him go as Gallen will most certainly be on an innings limit. If they plan on contending, they’ll need Leake down the stretch.
Both Gallen & Weaver will be on inning limits. Ray is likely to be traded before the season or by the trade deadline. So either the team goes with a pseudo six man rotation to save innings on the arms of Gallen & Waever, or Ray is traded, leaving both Kelly & Leake to fill out the back of the rotation.
Good for you Mad Bum. Nice to see a player going where he wants to be versus just going where the most money is.
Bold prediction – Bumgarner will get traded to a contender by year 2 of this contract
I wish it was New York. I would pay to see that reality show.
Uhm how about some more detail from Crowley? “It was the #1 place for me.” Ok, why?!
Not enough is being disclosed about the off-field reasons for this deal. As a Giant, MadBum spent spring training in Arizona. So, does he live there? Does he have a wife and family there? Does he have a girlfriend that is from there? Clearly he wants to be there. Six million for the first year is laughable (and to me, an insult to MadBum). HOW was this Arizona motivation MISSED BY ALL THE SO-CALLED “EXPERTS” ?? There must have been MULTIPLE other offers that money-wise blew this contract right off the table. With MadBum already having World Series rings, it is obvious his motivation IS NOT to accumulate ANY MORE or to rack up HOF credentials. He just landed a job in the place where he wants to live. Got to wonder about the level of dedication/motivation to EXCEL as well as the level of desire that MadBum will be putting into his craft over the next five years.. Probably good news for those teams that failed to sign him. I, for one, DO NOT see a bright future for the Arizona Diamondbacks over the next five years due to any performance from MadBum.. Odds are that at the conclusion of this contract that MadBum is no longer a Diamondback “darling” and is pitching elsewhere. Check back with me in five years, “EXPERTS”!
You should change your name to Morton Girl because you salty
I think it’s unfair to just assume that a player who almost single handily won a WS and then won two others, does not want to compete anymore. I think it’s unfair to assume that just because he signed with the Diamondbacks., who actually have a decent team and a promising future. You obviously wouldn’t think that if the Cardinals or Braves signed him. Also, the Dbacks are a WC contender and have been for the last three years. As we have seen multiple times this decade (two of which coming form a MadBum squad and the most recent champions), getting into the WC game can get you to the World Series; where at that point anything can happen. I think anyone who thinks the Diamondbacks are not a playoff contender, are truly ignorant to baseball.
The key statement there is “CONTENDER”. MadBum got a job close to home – or at least where he wants to live. I just don’t believe his heart is into winning anymore. And he isn’t seeking to pad his career statistics either. Check back with me in October 2020.
Doesn’t it seem odd that the a franchise’s iconic player left in such a cavalier way? Seems very detached and unemotional. Seems as if he didn’t even really like San Fran. No heartfelt goodbye or anything..
Could be a possibility.
I didn’t follow closely, but were there ever any extension talks?
I’m sure somebody has mentioned this before, but he probably would have broken the free agent contract record for pitchers three years ago if he didn’t sign the extension for his arb years and the three option years. He was just 27 years old and the top player available was Cespedes and the top starting pitcher was Rich Hill. Probably gave up $100 million in future earnings.
Still, over $145 million in career earnings with the guarantee in this contract is more than 99% of all MLB players.
He was very attached to the Giants, but under the old regime. For all of us fans of the Giants it’s a transition that leaves many of us feeling detached because the entire core of the organization is in transition. From management to coaching it all feels foreign right now.
I actually like the signing from a DBacks perspective
He provides the young pitchers coming up leadership qualities & a bulldog mentality to learn from
He give them the ability to trade Ray for much needed offensive help.
Different situation than Atlanta we have waves of young arms coming up & a 5 yr deal would block them
In Arizona they don’t seem to have as many pitchers coming so that contract doesn’t block them
In a perfect world we coulda got Hamels for 2 yrs but anything over that woulda been a problem so I rather 1 yr as opposed to 3 but 5 no way
You are right! Hope you love him as much as we Giants fans do. Fierce competitor & brings that to the entire clubhouse. Hope there aren’t any batflipping showboaters on your team…he’s likely to have a word with them
Good Luck Madbumm! Thank you so much for all the wonderful memories. You will always be a Giant in my eyes but I will be pulling for you each and every time you go to the mound for the D-Backs
Okay as a Giants fan I definitely drank the Bumgarner koolaid. He does march to his own drummer and I actually believe him. I said from the beginning that it wouldn’t be a $ decision for Bum but I could be wrong on all of it. The character of the Giants changed over the past year and I certainly don’t think new management showed him much respect. He strikes me as someone who wants to work for someone HE respects, too. Madison is a fierce competitor and an all-in guy. I think he has gas left in the tank. Zaidi might build the Giants organization back into a winning team. New Management just took the joy out of being a Giants fan for me
Bumgarner was crystal clear when he said : “Arizona was my #1 Choice”
But Delusional Frisco fans are jumping up and down screaming ‘FAKE NEWS’
Geez, get a grip
This is the stupidest thing ever. His first preference was to play in Arizona huh? A team that hasnt been in the playoffs in a while, in the same division as the Dodgers, so they wont get in by winning the division. Bullcrap! Of course he is going to say they were his number 1 choice above all others, what should he have said, “well, the team I really wanted to play for didnt want to pay me, so I took what I could get” No. Had he signed with the Twins, guess what, the Twins would have been his number 1 choice. What a crock of crap Bumgarner.