When you think of Madison Bumgarner, the average baseball fan would think of the former San Francisco Giants pitcher who won three World Series and two Silver Slugger awards. ‘MadBum’ is more than a disgruntled pitcher who is temperamental about batters and their reactions. He is arguably the most interesting character in the MLB since Alex Rodriguez.
MASON SAUNDERS
Mason Saunders, a veteran in the rodeo community, has been competing in events since the age of 15 years old. Saunders won $26,560 in a team-roping competition. Mason Saunders is the now-known alias of Madison Bumgarner. Bumgarner kept this rodeo hobby a secret to the general public by shortening his first name and taking his wife’s last name. The story of him went viral because of a photo posted by Rancho Rio, “The team-roping capital of the world.”
Madison Bumgarner and Ms. Madison Bumgarner
According to Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci, Bumgarner once dated someone named Madison Bumgarner. No relation apparently. I am not sure if this is a story of Bumgarner (pitcher) being vain or what, but the details are just as simple as that. His hometown has the nickname of “Bumtown” because of the plethora of Bumgarner’s that live in the area, but what are the odds of dating someone with your same name? Granted Madison is a ‘gender neutral’ name but personally I think that would be a deal-breaker.
19
The number 19 is the number of career home runs Bumgarner has in his career as a pitcher. Pitchers that hit home runs are a rarity, especially since the designated hitter position came about in the American League. Bumgarner holds the lead among active pitchers. Out of his 19 homers, he’s hit two off of Clayton Kershaw, two off of Zack Greinke and one off of Jacob deGrom.
- Clayton Kershaw – 8x All-Star, NL MVP, 3x NL Cy Young, 3x NL wins leader, 5x NL ERA leader, 3x NL strikeout leader, pitched a no-hitter on June 18, 2014.
- Zack Greinke – 6x All-Star, AL Cy Young, 2x MLB ERA leader.
- Jacob deGrom – 3x All-Star, 2x NL Cy Young, NL Rookie of the Year, MLB ERA leader, NL strikeout leader
Also, on opening day in 2017 he hit two home runs.
MAD Bum
Bumgarner is notoriously known for his ‘competitiveness.’ Bumgarner having an altercation on the diamond is a normality in the MLB. From stare downs with Joe West to full out bench clearing brawls with Yasiel Puig and the Dodgers, he has known to be some-what of a hot-head. If you look at this man the wrong way, he will always have something to say or better yet, you will catch a ball to the ribs your next at-bat.
New Home
During the 2019 offseason Bumgarner signed a five-year, $85 million contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks. This will be his first time in his Major League career in a different uniform. If the Diamondbacks are not a right fit for him, at least he has an alter ego to fall back on.
Adam's Sports Blog 