Absolutely brutal player comment should keep Yankees away from Madison Bumgarner

Once upon a time, left-hander Madison Bumgarner was as sure a sure thing as there's ever been in baseball. Got a World Series game to win? You'll be better off with Bumgarner than with any other option, past or present.

Due to the Giants and Diamondbacks' long-standing ineptitude, his Fall Classic resumé has been frozen in time since 2014, when he strode to the mound to pitch in relief in Game 7 after dominating in a Game 5 win just a few days prior. His ERA, in five games and four starts? 0.25. He allowed 14 hits in 36 innings. He was simply unbeatable.

But those days are in the rear view. They're so far gone, in fact, that one of Bumgarner's Diamondbacks rivals thinks you'd be better off starting Isiah Kiner-Falefa on the mound in a win-or-go-home playoff contest these days.

Bumgarner was DFA'd on Thursday afternoon following one last embarrassment on the mound in St, Louis, where the 33-year-old lefty picked a confusing fight with Willson Contreras as his ERA ticked above 10.00.

The Yankees need pitching depth. They certainly need veterans who know how to compete. Should they take a chance on Bumgarner, who's soon to be available at the league minimum? Judging by the way his rivals view his currently-diminished stuff ... no. One of MadBum's recent foes described his current arsenal in the coldest tone I've ever heard from an active big leaguer.

Yankees must stay far away from Madison Bumgarner, unless they want a position player pitching.

Maybe it was Contreras, furthering the beef. Who knows? Either way, that's the type of verbal disparaging you don't often hear regarding a still-active MLB player.

Bumgarner is old school, which has rubbed plenty of players the wrong way long before Contreras bat-flipped a walk against him. Some of the harshness of this statement could be due to long-standing resentment between Bumgarner and this anonymous player.

That said, the lefty's salad days are long behind him. He's pitched to a 5.23 ERA since joining the Diamondbacks prior to the 2020 season, and outside of his surprise no-hitter in a seven-inning doubleheader game, there have been precious few highlights to speak of since he left the Bay Area.

The Yankees need to find innings where they can get them, but if signing Bumgarner is equivalent to fulfilling Anthony Rizzo's dream and letting him pitch, there's no reason to dabble.