Bumgarner gets nod for Giants in Series opener
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO
The reliable southpaw is getting the ball for another important Game 1.
Left-hander Madison Bumgarner will pitch the World Series opener for the San Francisco Giants at Kansas City on Tuesday.
Manager Bruce Bochy made the expected announcement Saturday as his team worked out under sunny skies, one day before traveling. Bumgarner, an 18-game winner, was voted NL Championship Series MVP as the Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals in five games.
Despite MadBum’s high innings, Bochy wasn’t worried about the 18-game winner. Bumgarner didn’t get a decision in the pennant clincher against the Cardinals on Thursday night.
“I think I would’ve insulted him if I checked with him,” Bochy said. “He’s a big, strong guy. His last game I thought he had great stuff. It’s not like he’s thrown 120-130 pitches. His workload has been under control.”
Bochy is keeping his rotation the same as the first two rounds of the postseason. Right-hander Jake Peavy will pitch Game 2 on Wednesday, followed by 39-year-old right-hander Tim Hudson in his World Series debut Friday at AT&T Park and then righty Ryan Vogelsong.
Yusmeiro Petit, who has twice provided a huge lift as a long man, will stay in his role as Bochy stuck with Vogelsong in the rotation.
“Petit in the job he’s done in that role that we’ve had him in, you go back to Washington and without Petit it’s hard to say what would have happened,” Bochy said. “In St. Louis he went out there and gave us three big innings. He’s a great swingman. Vogey, he threw a great game against Washington. He had a little bit of a hiccup but no, I didn’t think about changing.”
Unused two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum will make the roster. Bochy didn’t expect to make any changes from the 25 players used in the NLCS.
Lincecum pitched the Game 5 World Series clincher at Texas in 2010, then held a key role as a reliever in the 2012 championship run. Lincecum pitched his second no-hitter June 25 against San Diego but hasn’t pitched since Sept. 28.
“I’ve been thinking about Timmy, trust me,” Bochy said. “Timmy’s done a lot for us, and we know that.”
Lincecum was undergoing treatment for a a problem that developed overnight.
“Timmy’s got a stiff neck right now but we talked about him throwing to hitters today,” Bochy said. “He’ll be back tomorrow, but he’s still on the roster. I don’t think it’s serious. ... I’m pretty sure at some point he’ll be in the game.”
Bochy didn’t announce a designated hitter, though Michael Morse is the obvious candidate. He has been unable to play left field and hasn’t started since late August because of an oblique injury, but hit a tying pinch homer in the 6-3 Game 5 NLCS win.
“I haven’t got the order set, DH,” Bochy said. “Right now we don’t have any plans to change our roster. Now that doesn’t mean we can’t change our mind as we look at this further.”
ROYALS
KANSAS CITY, Mo.
The moment Alex Gordon knew the Kansas City Royals were serious about winning can be traced to a cold December day when his wife heard they had traded for James Shields.
The franchise had long suffered through a forgettable cast of starting pitchers, from Jay Witasick to Darrell May to Runelvys Hernandez. Hot prospects flamed out. Free agents fizzled. And every year, the Royals languished near the AL Central cellar.
But things changed in December 2012. General manager Dayton Moore thought enough pieces had been assembled and all that was missing was the right starting pitcher — someone who could be the staff ace and change a clubhouse culture accustomed to losing.
Moore called up the Rays and made the deal.
“That’s when I knew,” Gordon said, “that we were going for it.”
Two years later, a trade that was panned by many has helped the Royals reach the World Series for the first time since 1985. Shields, who will start Game 1, has been everything Moore had hoped he would be.
“Those opportunities to acquire a top rotation starter and an impact pitcher like Wade Davis, they’re not presented year-in and year-out,” Moore said. “We were fortunate the timing of it was such that it was staring us in the face and put us in a position to compete in 2014.”
It was a gamble. The Royals sent baseball’s top minor league talent, Wil Myers, and a bevy of other promising prospects to the Rays.
Shields went 13-9 with a 3.15 ERA last year, helping the Royals to their best record in more than 20 years. And over the course of the season, Davis established himself as one of the most dominant late-inning relievers in the game.