SAN FRANCISCO — Madison Bumgarner won the Silver Slugger Award for pitchers last season on the strength of his home-run hitting.
As he demonstrated Sunday, he’s added to his arsenal this year.
Yes, Bumgarner did smack his fourth homer of the season in the seventh inning of Sunday’s 5-0 win over the Washington Nationals.
But his real eye-catching at-bat came two innings earlier, when he lashed an RBI double to right-center field on a hit-and-run play. Second baseman Kelby Tomlinson scored all the way from first base on the well-placed hit.
“Obviously I don’t do that very often,” he said of going the opposite way. “It sure worked out for us.”
The base running clearly didn’t get to Bumgarner on an unseasonable hot day in San Francisco. He complemented his hitting prowess with a three-hit shutout, striking out a career-best-tying 14.
The complete-game effort was his second in a row, and gave him a chance to bat three times.
His 2-for-3 outing raised his season average to .245. The RBIs were his sixth and seven of the season.