Madison Bumgarner is dealing. The Giants ace is essentially a three-pitch pitcher. He throws a four-seamer, a cutter, and a curveball. His first time through the Cardinals lineup, Bumgarner didn’t mess around, throwing his fastball almost exclusively. He started every at bat with his four-seamer, save the cutter he threw to No. 8 hitter Kolton Wong in the bottom of the second inning.
His cutter is a terrific pitch, one he can “add and subtract” for more movement and to vary the velocity. It looks like a slider but it’s just the big left-hander tailoring the pitch for the situation. It served as almost a changeup to the aggressive Wong, who swung through it for a strike.
The Cardinals looked to jump on Bumgarner during their first encounters, but his fastball command allowed him to keep the ball away from their power spots and grab some quick outs. Matt Holliday and Jhonny Peralta put the first pitch in play for outs, while Matt Adams looked overmatched in a three pitch strikeout (all fastballs).
How will the Cards adjust the second time through the order? In the top of the third, Bumgarner threw a curveball to Matt Carpenter with the count 0-1, his first true offspeed pitch in a non-two strike count. After Carpenter grounded out on a hard cutter, Bumgarner shook to his curveball with the count 1-1 against Randal Grichuk. It dropped in for a strike and led to a weak swing-and-miss on another curve, this one in the dirt to record the out.
Already, Bumgarner is dining out on his fastball-heavy first run through the order. He exploited St. Louis’ aggression with well-placed pitches, and now the second time he’s sprinkling in more offspeed as the Cards gear up for the heat. When he’s throwing his four-seamer and his cutter for strikes while alternating in the zone or in the dirt with his curve, the Cardinals could be in for a long night.
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