[新聞] Bumgarner rebounds to fan career-best 11
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Bumgarner rebounds to fan career-best 11
Southpaw's seven stellar innings lead Giants to fifth straight victory
By Chris Haft / MLB.com | 6/27/2011 1:10 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO -- It wasn't a premonition. It was a conviction.
The Giants knew that Madison Bumgarner would excel Sunday, long before their
Interleague contest against the Indians even began.
"When I got here, I knew he was going to do well," said third baseman Pablo
Sandoval.
"I'll go back as far as his last outing," said manager Bruce Bochy. "I knew
this kid would bounce back. There was no doubt in my mind."
Dominance replaced doubt, as Bumgarner recovered from a historically dreadful
performance to strike out a career-high 11 batters in seven innings and lead
the Giants to a 3-1 victory -- completing their three-game series sweep.
The Giants, who lead the National League West by 1 1/2 games over the
D-backs, matched a season-best by climbing 10 games above .500 (44-34). They
finished their homestand by winning five games in a row, despite averaging
exactly three runs per game in that stretch. But that's complemented by the
0.83 ERA that San Francisco's renowned pitchers put together during the
winning streak.
Bumgarner (4-9), who allowed one run and six hits, looked nothing like he did
on Tuesday, when he surrendered hits to the first eight Twins that stepped in
the box. The left-hander ultimately yielded eight runs in one-third of an
inning and became the first pitcher since 1900 to allow nine hits and record
fewer than two outs in a game.
This time, Bumgarner held Cleveland hitless in seven at-bats with runners in
scoring position. As if for emphasis, he concluded his final five innings
with strikeouts. Filling in for closer Brian Wilson, who pitched in each of
the previous four games, Jeremy Affeldt struck out five of the six batters he
faced, hiking the Giants' total to 16.
Part of that was due to the game's 5:10 p.m. PT start, creating a treacherous
mosaic of light and shadow for hitters. But part of it could undeniably be
attributed to Bumgarner's motivation and skill.
Was he trying to make a point?
"No," Bumgarner said. "I was just trying to make pitches."
The southpaw acknowledged that his performance against the Twins dented his
self-assurance, which every pitcher needs.
"I'm not going to say there wasn't any doubt. There was a little doubt,"
Bumgarner said. "It's tough to forget about a start like that. I tried to put
it behind me as best I could."
Bumgarner accomplished that while requiring just one mild mechanical
adjustment. He stared on the catcher's target throughout his motion, instead
of looking away from Chris Stewart's glove and refocusing on it before
releasing the ball.
"I think that's the reason my command was better," said Bumgarner, who threw
78 strikes in 112 pitches.
Bumgarner also benefited from the Giants' steadfast support, which emanated
from Bochy's office and permeated the entire clubhouse.
"That gives you a boost of confidence, to know that [Bochy] has that kind of
faith in me," Bumgarner said. "My teammates picked me up after that start and
helped me through it."
But once Bumgarner took the mound before yet another sellout crowd of 41,978,
it was all up to him. As Affeldt said, "You fix the problem, but then you
pitch like you never had the problem."
Aside from missing a fourth-inning sign for a squeeze bunt, which enabled
Cleveland to trap Bill Hall off third base, Bumgarner had few problems
against the Indians, who arrived in San Francisco as the American League
Central leaders and left in second place.
After Orlando Cabrera and Asdrubal Cabrera singled to open the fourth inning,
Bumgarner retired Carlos Santana on a fly to center field and Grady Sizemore
on a groundout before fanning Shelley Duncan.
Bumgarner looked just as resolute while permitting his lone run, which came
after a questionable call. After Michael Brantley walked to open the sixth
inning, Orlando Cabrera smacked a grounder past third base that was foul, as
the Giants insisted and as television replays proved.
But the umpiring crew was undermanned after Hunter Wendelstedt was hit by a
foul tip and departed his post in the middle of the second inning. With no
umpire down the third-base line, Jerry Layne, filling in behind the plate for
Wendelstedt, ruled it a fair ball. That resulted in a double for Cabrera that
sent Brantley to third. After Asdrubal Cabrera's groundout drove in Brantley,
Bumgarner fanned Santana and Duncan.
"Besides having that mid-90s fastball, he had a pretty good cutter, too,"
said Indians manager Manny Acta. "He was able to cut right into the
right-handers' hands and away from the lefties. Not to take anything away
from him or our guys, but it's also pretty tough to see the ball here at this
time of the day. Some of the guys were complaining about it, but everybody
out there had pretty good stuff."
Stewart nevertheless managed to line a two-out, two-run double off Cleveland
starter Fausto Carmona (4-10) that opened the scoring for the Giants in the
second inning. They represented the first Major League RBIs recorded by
Stewart, who has spent most of his 10-year professional career in Triple-A.
The Giants added a run in the third inning on consecutive one-out singles by
Brandon Crawford, Sandoval and Aubrey Huff, breaking a streak of 15 home
starts in a row in which Bumgarner received two runs or fewer from his
offense.
Given Bumgarner's sustained excellence, it didn't matter.
"That was awesome," said Affeldt, who converted his second save. "That was
probably bigger than just a good outing for him. I think it was a big part of
his maturing process. I think everybody, I'm sure from the coaching staff to
the players and the front-office personnel, is pretty proud of him."
Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the
approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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