Spooky-good Madison Bumgarner scared up a whole pile of outs and ruined a Hallowe'en party in Texas. The rookie southpaw's great performance was one for the ages: 3 hits, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts, only one runner in scoring position, 21 first-pitch strikes to 27 batters, and a Game Score of 80. All this by a 21-year old who has yet to pitch 200 major-league innings! MadBum got some help from his rookie battery-mate Buster Posey, who threw out Josh Hamilton trying to steal in the 4th and then blasted a ball over the centerfield fence in the 8th for the final nail in the Rangers coffin. DH Aubrey Huff--the best free-agent signing of 2010--got the scoring started with a 2-run bomb down the rightfield line in the 3rd inning, scoring Andres Torres who had doubled. The Giants worked over-matched Tommy Hunter for long counts with lots of foul balls and turned the lineup over twice in the first four frames. Alexi Ogando sliced through the Giants in the 5th but hurt himself after two were out in the 6th. Darren Oliver gave up a run in the 7th on another Torres double (scoring the rejuvenated Edgar Renteria), and Darren O'Day gave up Posey's homer in the 8th. The four runs were more than enough for the brilliant Bumgarner, who showed nerves of steel and the ability to paint the corners in any situation. Brian Wilson got an easy three-out save. The Giants rapped out 8 hits, and despite the error, flashed some damn fine leather once again. A team effort, led by two exceptional rookies, has the Giants one win from glory.
The Rangers aren't done, but they are damn close. They send Cliff Lee out against Tim Lincecum tomorrow. It should be epic.
GO GIANTS!
WIN ONE MORE!
--M.C.
5 comments:
It was a great game, best game that I saw live all postseason. And guys, no matter what happens...fuck the doubt. GO GIANTS! ONE MORE WIN!! SMACK BLOOD OUT THEY ASS!!!
McCovey Chronicles beat me to the use of the word 'legendary' to describe that performance last night. I was thinking about that word while watching the Game. If Bumgarner can pitch like that at age 21 in the World Series, the ceiling is very high for him.
Lots of good pieces back into place last night - most notably working the count & showing some patience. F. Sanchez had a marvelous game in the field.
I suspect that we'll see Burrell as DH & Rowand in the OF tonight, with Huff back at 1B. Nate seems quite over-matched. So, I doubt that he'll see lefty-against-lefty action, especially against Lee.
Fox Deportes continued to be entertaining. A couple of other plusses:
- They were even further ahead last night ... perhaps 10 seconds ahead of Fox.
- No 'God Bless America' coverage at all! They go to commercial, then return for a round-table Game Summary with Jose Tolentino & the 2 Manny's.
- No live coverage of the first pitch ceremony last night. I was especially grateful for that.
- If you want a quintessential example of 'entre azul y buenas noches', think of Vlad Guerrero's swing-and-miss on his second whiff last night. Rolando Nichols obliged with the new catch phrase that will be sweeping the World.
- His signature HR call, employed so beautifully on 2 occasions last night, is
'batazo elevado ... complicado ... IMPOSIBLE!!!'
which translates roughly to 'Fly ball ... difficult (for the outfielder) ... IMPOSSIBLE (for the outfielder)!!!.
I knew MadBum would be solid, but clearly he exceeded any realistic expectations. Wow!
Anybody out there who's not in love with Freddie yet?
As a medical professional, I cannot in good conscience endorse the concept of smacking blood out they ass, and certainly not in all-caps. I do admire your enthusiasm however.
LOL, I meant it in the figurative sense. Even so, just saying (screaming) it can only encourage such behaviour. I am truly sorry. I'll just keep it simple and clean. GO GIANTS!
One more comment about Madison Bumgarner:
Apparently, Madison Bumgarner is a Yogi. During an interview with someone (can't remember who), he revealed that the secret to his serenity in pressure situations is 'controlling the breathing'.
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