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Madison Bumgarner, leader, All-Star, slugger, master of slutters, and distributor of snot rockets was voted the 2014 Willie Mac Award winner on Friday night. The annual award is voted on by the players and coaches and given to the most inspirational member of the team. Bumgarner is the 35th winner in its history.
From the press release sent by the Giants:
The award was established in 1980, in honor of legend and Hall of Famer Willie McCovey. Bumgarner will receive a plaque prior to tonight's game. Engraved on the plaque are the words "Competitive Spirit, Ability and Leadership" to characterize the qualities both McCovey and Bumgarner exemplify.
The list of past winners:
| Year | Player |
| 1980 | Jack Clark |
| 1981 | Larry Herndon |
| 1982 | Joe Morgan |
| 1983 | Darrell Evans |
| 1984 | Bob Brenly |
| 1985 | Mike Krukow |
| 1986 | Mike Krukow |
| 1987 | Chris Speier |
| 1988 | José Uribe |
| 1989 | Dave Dravecky |
| 1990 | Steve Bedrosian |
| 1991 | Robby Thompson |
| 1992 | Mike Felder |
| 1993 | Kirt Manwaring |
| 1994 | (not awarded due to strike) |
| 1995 | Mark Leiter |
| 1995 | Mark Carreon |
| 1996 | Shawon Dunston |
| 1997 | J. T. Snow |
| 1998 | Jeff Kent |
| 1999 | Marvin Benard |
| 2000 | Ellis Burks |
| 2001 | Mark Gardner |
| 2001 | Benito Santiago |
| 2002 | David Bell |
| 2003 | Marquis Grissom |
| 2004 | J. T. Snow |
| 2005 | Mike Matheny |
| 2006 | Omar Vizquel |
| 2007 | Bengie Molina |
| 2008 | Bengie Molina |
| 2009 | Matt Cain |
| 2010 | Andres Torres |
| 2011 | Ryan Vogelsong |
| 2012 | Buster Posey |
| 2013 | Hunter Pence |
| 2014 | Madison Bumgarner |
Jack Clark. Huh.
Congratulations to Madison Bumgarner, who is somehow becoming a veteran at the same age that other pitchers are finishing their first full season. It's hard to express just how lucky we've been to watch him since 2010.