Saturday BP: Madison Bumgarner’s extension that never was

Hello and happy Saturday.

If you actually read these daily morning articles — and I don’t know why you would — then you might be familiar with a segment I do. It’s titled, Old, random MCC article for you to read.

The way it works is simple: I use one of our analytics tool to find an old article that got clicked on by some poor fool on the internet that day, and give it to you to read. Usually it’s just a funny exercise that leads to me thinking, “what did someone google to end up here, all these years later?”

But occasionally it’s pertinent.

When I went to see what weirdness had been clicked on on Friday night, I found this article, with four clicks from wandering interweb souls:

What would a contract extension for Madison Bumgarner look like?

That was written by Grant Brisbee on February 17, 2016. I’d quote the article, but all I really need to quote is the subheader:

The Giants and Madison Bumgarner don’t have to talk about an extension for the next four years. But if they’re going to, the best time for both sides might be now.

Well. Yeah. About that...

Bumgarner is facing the Giants for the first time tonight, as he makes his return to Oracle Park as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Now we don’t know for sure why Bumgarner spurned whatever deal the Giants offered him over the offseason. But all signs point to Bumgarner being a bit hurt by the fact that the Giants didn’t take care of him early with an extension, as they did with many players, and as most teams do with franchise talents (the example Grant used in the article? Evan Longoria. Laugh it up.).

It’s a poignant article to read, even though Grant’s projection for a Bumgarner extension would put the Giants in year one of a six-year, $125 million deal, which I think we can all say they’re happy to not be in.

It’s all weird.

Note: It wasn’t until after I wrote this blurb that I realized that Grant referenced this piece in his latest article for The Athletic, included in the links. That explains where the clicks came from.

Did Barry Bonds hit a home run today?

Yep.

September 5, 1995: Against the Montreal Expos, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 1st inning off of Pedro Martinez. It gave the Giants a 1-0 lead, and Matt Williams would make it back-to-back shots, leading to a 9-6 victory. It was his 28th homer of the year.

September 5, 2000: Against the Philadelphia Phillies, Bonds hit 2 home runs. A 2-run shot in the 1st inning off of Kent Bottenfield scored Bill Mueller and gave the Giants a 2-0 lead. Mueller and Bonds went back-to-back in the 7th inning off of Ed Vosberg, with solo shots giving the Giants a 6-5 lead, and they would win 8-5. They were his 42nd and 43rd homers of the year.

September 5, 2002: Against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Bonds hit a 2-run home run in the 4th inning off of Curt Schilling, scoring Jeff Kent. It cut the Giants deficit to 4-2, and they would lose 8-5. It was his 41st homer of the year.

September 5, 2007: Against the Colorado Rockies, Bonds hit a 2-run home run in the 1st inning off of Ubaldo Jimenez, scoring Nate Schierholtz. It gave the Giants a 2-0 lead, and they would win 5-3. It was his his 28th homer of the year, his 762nd ever, and the final home run in his illustrious career.

Giants links

• Roger Munter on the Giants surprising search for talent (There R Giants)
• Podcast: Roger Munter talks with Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper about the future of developmental baseball (There R Giants)
• Grant Brisbee wonders if the Giants will ever sign a pitcher to a large contract again (The Athletic, subscription required)
• Kerry Crowley on what has changed since Madison Bumgarner left (Mercury News)
• Alex Pavlovic on why Madison Bumgarner expects his start against the Giants to be normal (NBC Sports Bay Area)
• John Shea on why the Giants are optimistic (SF Chronicle)
• Tim Kawakami talks with GM Scott Harris about prospects (The Athletic, subscription required)

Have a wonderful Saturday, everyone.