Madison Bumgarner has pitched in the Major Leagues for more than a decade. He’s known as a fiery competitor with a wicked arm. It’s why teams love him, why fans want to see him and why opponents often have trouble with his stuff.
In the first inning of Wednesday’s matinee between the Diamondbacks and Marlins, that famous temper boiled over—but the reason for it sure seemed like a deliberate attempt by an umpire looking for a reason to toss Arizona’s ace.
Here’s some quick background: After giving up a leadoff home run to Miami’s Jon Berti, MadBum bounced right back to induce pop-ups on Jesus Aguilar and Jorge Soler. The starter thought he’d ended the frame with a strikeout to Garrett Cooper, but home plate umpire Ryan Willis (rightfully) called it a ball as Bumgarner started to walk off the mound before angrily returning. After getting Cooper to fly out to right on the next pitch, MadBum walked towards the dugout to meet first base ump Dan Bellino for the routine foreign substance check after every frame. Then things went off the rails.
