D-backs pitcher Madison Bumgarner doesn’t sound thrilled about DH rule
Jul 5, 2020, 2:51 PM
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 25: Madison Bumgarner #40 of the San Francisco Giants hits a single that scored a run in the fourth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Oracle Park on June 25, 2019 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Two-time Silver Slugger Madison Bumgarner signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks ready not just to pitch, but to step into the batter’s box of a ballpark he’s already had notable success hitting in.
Think he’s disappointed about the universal designated hitter rule that will be in effect in the shortened 2020 season?
“Obviously, my thoughts don’t really matter,” he said with a little chuckle during a Zoom call with media after practice on Saturday.
Bumgarner is no slouch at the plate from the ninth spot. His 19 home runs are second-most among pitchers since 1975 and 13th-most of all time, according to Baseball Reference. In his 2014 and 2015 Silver Slugger seasons he hit around .250 and is one of nine pitchers to win the award multiple times.
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He didn’t sound thrilled when asked about universal DH, though he didn’t outright condemn the change.
“I do what I’m told. I’ll sit there and pitch, and that’s it for now,” Bumgarner said. “I think that’s obviously where everybody wants the game to go, so, it is what it is.”
With the new rule, it’s very unlikely Bumgarner will get at-bats this year. Even as a historically good hitter for a pitcher, his .177 career batting average is lower than the vast majority of MLB position players. With a 30-man active roster for the first two weeks of the season and a 28-man roster for the next two, Arizona will have plenty of options including Kevin Cron, Jake Lamb and Josh Rojas.
Bumgarner is still allowed to hit, but when manager Torey Lovullo was asked about it in June, it sounded like that was not in the cards.
“Madison Bumgarner for right now is going to be one of our five starting pitchers and I want him to focus on that,” Lovullo said. “As far as his hitting, I think we might have to compartmentalize that for a little while and talk about him hitting next year in 2021.
“But I don’t want to take everything off the table. This guy can bang the baseball, and I saw it first-hand in 2017 to open the season. I don’t want to say that he’s not going to hit, but I’m gonna say that I want him to focus on one thing and that’s getting ready to take the mound every fifth day.”
