Rare Batting Feat

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The fans filed in to AT&T Ballpark on a cool Friday night, hopeful of a victory with ace Madison Bumgarner on the mound. Little did they suspect that he would win the game by performing a feat by a pitcher that is rarer than a no-hitter.

In the fourth inning "Mad Bum" came to the plate with the bases loaded and the Giants trailing the Rockies, 3-2. On the first pitch he slammed a towering drive into the left-field bleachers. (When the ball left the bat, the crowd, including your humble observer, rose to its feet and didn't stop yelling for a good five minutes.) It was only the second grand slam by a Giants pitcher (the first was Shawn Estes in 2000) since the team moved from New York 57 years ago. During that same period, Giants hurlers have notched seven (7) no-hitters.

The tall, lanky 24-year-old is already one of the top pitchers in baseball. Although no one expects his batting to be as consistent as that of an everyday player, his raw power will have to be respected. The Giants have made some poor personnel decisions recently, but with Madison Bumgarner they've struck gold.

By the way, the Giants held on to win, 6-5.

Photo from Bay Area Sports Guy.com