San Francisco Giants pitchers are stealing the World Series show

Madison Bumgarner deserves every accolade that comes his way, but another Giants pitcher that may end up playing a larger role in the outcome of the series is Yusmeiro Petit, writes Paul Freelend.

San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner has stymied the Kansas City Royals twice in this World Series. Rob Carr / Getty Images

Just like that, the party that seemed as though it would never stop is on its last legs.

Going into the World Series, the Kansas City Royals were the hottest team in baseball. They swept aside the Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Angels and Baltimore Orioles in a run that seemed destined to end in a title.

Now reality is starting to set in. The Royals are still in the World Series despite losing on Saturday and Sunday, but as play shifts back to Kansas City, they do so without their head of steam or any margin for error. The San Francisco Giants need one win in the final two games to secure their third World Series title in five years.

“We’ve got to walk a tightrope now without a net,” Royals manager Ned Yost said after Game 5. “But our guys aren’t afraid. We fall off and we’re dead. But if we win, nobody’s got a net.”

If there is a silver lining for the Royals, despite falling behind three games to two, it is this – it is unlikely they will face Madison Bumgarner again. The left-handed pitcher from Hickory, North Carolina, had Kansas City utterly befuddled on Sunday, throwing a four-hit shutout with eight strikeouts and no walks.

In retrospect, perhaps his performance should not be that surprising. Bumgarner pitching a gem when he starts a World Series game is almost as reliable these days as the Giants winning the National League pennant every other year.

Across four World Series starts – one in 2010, another in 2012 and two this year – Bumgarner is 4-0 with a 0.29 earned-run average. He has allowed one run in 31 innings. His 4-1 record, 1.13 ERA and two shutouts this post-season are equally impressive.

The only other pitcher to allow one run or fewer in his first four World Series starts was Christy Mathewson, who starred for the New York Giants from 1900 to 1916. Heady company for Bumgarner, who turned 25 in August.

It is just as well that Bumgarner’s performances have tongues wagging since the man, dubbed “MadBum”, is famously taciturn. When asked to describe the San Francisco crowd chanting “MVP” as he finished off Game 5, all he mustered in reply was: “That was really neat to hear”.

Bumgarner deserves every accolade that comes his way, but another Giants pitcher may end up playing a larger role in the outcome of the series.

Yusmeiro Petit has been a standout in multiple pitching roles, whether it required eating up innings in a marathon effort against the Washington Nationals or bridging the gap to the bullpen when a Giants starter falters.

The Venezuelan has thrown 12 scoreless innings in the post-season and forced his way into San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy’s reckoning for a starting role next season.

All is not lost for the Royals, who have shown an ability to win when it matters. Given the trajectory of the two teams, though, it is difficult to see the Commissioner’s Trophy landing anywhere but San Francisco.

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