Bumgarner’s gem gives Giants 3-2 World Series lead

Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO

With every pitch, Madison Bumgarner etched his place among the World Series greats.

The long, tall lefty kept slinging away and put the San Francisco Giants just one win from yet another championship, throwing a four-hitter to beat the Kansas City Royals, 5-0, Sunday night for a 3-2 Series edge.

Hardly menacing on the mound, Bumgarner was simply untouchable — again — as “MVP! MVP!” chants broke out in the late innings.

And by the time the 25-year-old from Hickory, N.C., closed out his second win in a week, he had evoked memories of Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax, Curt Schilling and the top October aces of all-time.

Joined them, and maybe even passed them.

Who else has gone 4-0 in four World Series starts with an 0.29 ERA? Throw in only 12 hits in 31 innings, along with 27 strikeouts, and that adds up to the very definition of Big-Game Pitcher.

“He’s so fun to watch. He’s always fun to watch,” teammate Brandon Crawford said. “In the postseason, you could look at him and he looks like he’s just pitching in the middle of June, like it’s no big deal. He takes the pressure off of everybody else. We just feed off of him.”

On this evening, he fanned eight without a walk and never was in trouble, becoming the first pitcher to toss a World Series shutout since Josh Beckett’s clinching gem for the Florida Marlins in 2003 at Yankee Stadium.

The Giants’ work isn’t done yet. To lock up their third crown in five years, they’ll need to win in Kansas City.

Jake Peavy gets the first chance to seal it for San Francisco when he starts Game 6 at Kauffman Stadium on Tuesday night against rookie Yordano Ventura.

If the Giants don’t win then, there was always this possibility: Bumgarner out of the bullpen in Game 7.

Hunter Pence once again was in the middle of things for Giants. He singled off James Shields in the second and scored on a groundout by Crawford, who finished with three RBIs.

Later, the enigmatic Pence accidentally threw his bat past the mound while striking out, and seemed to apologize to Shields. Pence added another hit in a three-run eighth, making him 9 for 19 in the five games.

Postseason star Pablo Sandoval also singled twice. Juan Perez broke it open with a two-run double off the top of the center-field fence in the eighth off Wade Davis and scored on a single by Crawford.

Since trailing 4-1 in Game 4, the Giants have responded with 15 straight runs. San Francisco won that game, putting aside concern that Bumgarner should’ve been moved up to pitch on short rest.