Who Needs A Bullpen When You Have Madison Bumgarner?

Madison Bumgarner pitched the Giants to another victory in game five against the Kansas City Royals. Bumgarner threw all 9 innings letting up 0 runs, striking out 8, and walking none. In a series so dependent on how the starting pitcher does, it can not be understated how big it was for Bumgarner to throw such a good game. In all five games the team that has the lead at the 6th inning has won the game.

Since both teams have such good bullpens it’s up to the starters to keep their team in the lead until the closers can come in. And that's exactly what Bumgarner did. Bumgarner controlled the pace of the entire game, only letting up 4 hits and pitching 77 strikes out of his 107 pitches. This series is all about the first 6 innings. Which ever starting pitcher has the better game will most likely win the game.

Of course game 5 wasn’t only about Bumgarner. The Giant’s offense has really stepped up their game. Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval have been on fire the past couple games, getting on base almost every time they step up to the plate. The Giants have always been a team where different players step up when the team needs it most. It will be interesting to see who the next player to come up big will be in game 6

Comparing and Contrasting Giants Defense vs Cardinals Defence

“They’re just a good postseason team,” says Matt Carpenter, the third basemen for the Cardinals during a post game interview. What makes the Giants, a team that was struggling for the wild card spot, such a threat in the postseason? It certainly isn't the offense since the Giants’ have only hit 4 home runs this postseason while St. Louis hit 15. The Giants’ defense has come up big over these past couple of weeks and is what is allowing them to win games.

Before Game 5 vs the Cardinals the Giants had scored nine runs in their previous five games off of zero hits. The Giant’s postseason would be completely different if it weren't for the opposing defense giving them runs off of errors. On the other hand the Giants have only have 3 postseason errors. And for the most part, the Giants pitching been doing work. It seems that whenever the starters are having a poor game, the bullpen picks up the slack and finish the game strong. Game two was the only game the Giants bullpen didn't come through for the Giants which they ended up losing from a walk off run in the 9th. With that being said the bullpen for St. Louis struggled to shut down the Giants, allowing them the game winning runs in games 3, 4 and 5.

The Giants defense and bullpen will need to stay strong going into the world series as they will be facing arguably the best bullpen in the MLB, the Kansas City Royals.

Giants Head Off to the NLCS

A pitcher struggling throughout the month of September, Ryan Vogelsong, became the very first  starting pitcher to pitch 5 postseason games without giving up more than one run. During a post game interview with Hunter Pence, he states, “The true story is that pitching and defense are the foundation of this club.” It wasn’t just Vogelsong’s excellent pitching that lead the Giants to winning the game, but also the amazing defensive showing that the rest of the players put on behind him. Hunter Pence made an incredible catch with his back against the wall for the second out of the inning that could have potentially sparked a rally from the Nationals.

The Giants ended up winning the game 3-2 and winning the series 3-1. Overall it an abysmal series from the Washington Nationals. The Nationals came into this series just after setting the record for the best National League record for the regular season. The National’s offense was lackadaisical and besides in game 3, could not get anything going. If the Giants can keep up their pitching I can see them easily going on to take the championships.

Two in One

Last Friday the the Giants vs Nationals game went to a full 18 innings, two times the length of a normal MLB game and ended with the Giants winning 2-1. Although Brandon Belt hit the game winning home run in the bottom of the 18th, it's hard to say exactly who the games MVP was. The game would have been over in the 9th if it wasn't for Pablo Sandoval's game tying RBI with two out, and the pitching was near perfect, Yusmeiro Petit who pitched innings 12 through 17, only allowed one hit.


This game lasted a lengthy 6 hour 23 minute (a postseason record) and proved that the Giants will continue their streak of amazing comebacks from their 2012 post season.