Mets have had success against Madison Bumgarner
Most of the focus has been on the ‘unbeatable’ Bumgarner, not the Mets and Noah Syndergaard
The Mets and Giants face off in the Wild Card game Wednesday night, which has been dominated by talk about how scared New York should be of San Francisco’s age Madison Bumgarner.
That guy Noah Syndergaard, the one who throws 101 MPH with a vicious slider and hammer curve? He’s been an afterthought.
And while Bumgarner has been insanely good in the postseason, some of the Mets have fared pretty well against him — both recently and over the course of their careers.
Beware of small sample sizes, but it’s all we have to go on…
Jay Bruce is just 3-for-21 against Bumgarner, though he’s at least been swinging a hot bat.
Meanwhile, James Loney — starting in the Wild Card game over Lucas Duda (0-for-1 lifetime) — is 2-for-13 against him.
Perhaps starting Johnson at first base would’ve made the most sense.
In any event, Bumgarner is incredible. And he should be feared. But as the above notes, some of the most important Mets have had success against him. He isn’t a God.
And Syndergaard, who excelled in the playoffs last season and was better than Bumgarner down the stretch this year, should also be feared.
The lead-up to this game reminds me a bit of Game 2 of the 1986 World Series — I was too young to actually remember this happening, thank God for the ‘Year to Rememeber’ video — that pitted Dwight Gooden against Roger Clemens.
That game didn’t end up being a pitchers duel. But I have a feeling this one will live up to the billing.
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