McCutchen makes powerful opening statement
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. >> Andrew McCutchen said Madison Bumgarner never threw him an inside pitch.
On Tuesday, McCutchen reminded Bumgarner why.
During the first live batting practice of the spring, the Giants’ new outfielder turned around an inside offering from Bumgarner and launched it onto the lawn behind the left field wall at Scottsdale Stadium.
For McCutchen’s own safety, catcher Buster Posey jumped up and ushered McCutchen out of the batter’s box, so he wouldn’t have to deal with an angry Bumgarner. Posey explained later that he was only half-joking when he did it.
“I thought he (Posey) was telling me to get out because I could get a better swing than that, but he pushed me on out of there,” McCutchen said. “I guess he was looking out for me.”
While other hitters struggled to get acclimated against pitchers who have been throwing bullpens for the past week, McCutchen stole the show. The former Pirates’ star lined a single through the right side against Bumgarner and then drilled a towering fly ball that hit off the base of the center field wall against prospect Andrew Suarez. At the Giants’ spring training complex, that wall stands 430 feet from home plate.
“I never understand how guys can do that in the first live BP,” Posey said. “But yeah, Bum threw the ball fine and Cutch put a couple of good swings on it. Day one of live BP in the books.”
After McCutchen’s soaring shot to center off of Suarez, reserve catcher Nick Hundley turned toward the dugout where Giants’ general manager Bobby Evans was sitting.
“Good trade, Bobby,” Hundley shouted over.
Bumgarner and Suarez were two of the five pitchers who threw to hitters on Tuesday, joining reliever Derek Law and bullpen prospects D.J. Snelten and Tyler Cyr. Suarez’s breaking ball impressed manager Bruce Bochy while Snelten’s funky delivery threw hitters off balance, and while there will be plenty of time for evaluating the franchise’s young players this spring, the spotlight on day one of hitters against pitchers belonged to a former MVP.
“He (McCutchen) has fun, you can tell the way he bounces around in the clubhouse,” Bochy said. “He just loves the game, he enjoys it and he has a passion for it and he’s just so gifted. He gets after it too, you watch him on the defensive stuff. He’s been a pleasure.”
Though there were no defenders to help the Giants’ pitching staff out, McCutchen nearly collected as many hits off of Bumgarner on Tuesday as he has against the team’s ace in his nineyear career. McCutchen is just 3 for 19 against Bumgarner, but he said after the workout he won’t spend time picking Bumgarner’s brain about why the pitcher was so effective against him.
Ultimately, a hitter knows what works and what doesn’t. On Tuesday, McCutchen proved he’s figured it out.
“At the end of the day, I know what I needed to do,” McCutchen said. “I know regardless of who it is, the adjustments that I need to make. I don’t necessarily do that because I know myself more than anything. A lot of people like to say that it’s the guy who’s getting you out, but no, you’re getting yourself out. You know what you did wrong, you know what you need to do to make the adjustment so then you make the adjustment.”
• One day after Major League Baseball introduced new pace of play rules, Giants’ players discussed the six-mound visit limit that will prevent infielders, catchers, pitching coaches and managers from taking frequent trips to the rubber. Though players expressed uncertainty over how the rules will be implemented, second baseman Joe Panik said he’ll be more conscious of his interactions with Giants’ pitchers.
“It’s more if we’re changing up the signs or if you see something like a runner is going to try to take third, that’s the only time I’d think about running in there,” Panik said. “I guess now you just have to be a little more conscious, just yell from your position like ‘Hey, pay attention to the runner,’ instead of having to go in there so you’ll save those visits for the pitching coach or I guess Buster (Posey).”
With fewer opportunities to switch up signs, Posey advocated for pitchers and catchers to wear earpieces that would allow them a new channel of communication.
“Before the game, I think every pitcher is going to have to have a couple of sets of signs that they go to rather than just one and having some way of changing them without going to the mound,” Posey said. “I would be in favor of an earpiece, I think that would just simplify everything but maybe that’s something that could work down the road.”