Madison Bumgarner SAN FRANCISCO, CA – MAY 22: Madison Bumgarner #40 of the San Francisco Giants hits an rbi double scoring Gregor Blanco #7 against the Chicago Cubs in the bottom of the fifth inning at AT&T Park on May 22, 2016 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
MLBBy Jay Rigdon on

If you weren’t aware, San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner has been angling for entry into this year’s Home Run Derby at Petco Park.

Obviously that’s not a contest that would feature many pitchers, but Bumgarner has the strength (two dingers in just 37 plate appearances this season) and name-recognition that makes it an interesting case. And he’s also not worried about potentially hurting himself while participating.

So, is he going to do it? That’s still up in the air, according to Buster Olney’s reporting on Sunday Night Baseball. According to Buster, one solution being considered is a pitchers-only version, which might help assuage the concerns of other starters who want in. That list includes Chicago Cubs starter Jake Arrieta, himself a strongman of some renown:

This led to one of my favorite things, the tongue-in-cheek Twitter fight:

St. Louis Cardinals veteran Adam Wainwright is interested:

New York Mets ace Noah Syndergaard also wants his hacks:

So, what solution should MLB choose? According to Olney, the Giants are concerned about Bumgarner having to go multiple rounds, so perhaps a special one-round contest featuring pitchers? Or do you integrate them and have a pitchers vs. position players version? Or do you simply add a few starters to the normal contest?

Only one thing is for sure: if Bartolo does enter, it will be must-watch television.

[SI]

About Jay Rigdon

Jay is a columnist at Awful Announcing. He is not a strong swimmer. He is probably talking to a dog in a silly voice at this very moment.

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