Bumgarner Named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman Of The Year After Postseason Heroics
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - The editors of Sports Illustrated have made their selection for the most outstanding athlete of 2014, and nodbody who watch the World Series will be surprised to hear it's Madison Bumgarner of the San Francisco Giants.
In the 2014 playoffs, Bumgarner pitched a remarkable 52 2/3 innings of work, with an ERA of 1.03 while striking out 45. For his troubles, he was named NLCS and World Series MVP.
The 25-year-old capped off a performance for the ages and earned MVP honors during Game 7, pitching five scoreless innings of relief in Game 7 as the Giants held off the Kansas City Royals 3-2. It was just two days after his complete game victory brought the team to within a game of a third San Francisco title.
Here's the SI video announcing the award:
Bumgarner is the first baseball player to win the honor since Derek Jeter in 2009 and the first pitcher since Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling shared the title in 2001.
The last Bay Area recipient of the award was 49ers quarterback Joe Montana in 1990.