Bumgarner dominant in Game 4 win; Rangers on their heels

I was totally taken back by how dominant Madison Bumgarner was against the potent Rangers offense. When I scouted Bumgarner when he was called up, his stuff was almost identical to how it is now, and I was not impressed. He didn't have particularly good depth on any of his offspeed stuff, and his fastball seemed to be average. It simply has to be the angle that the baseball comes out of his hand, because he was baffling the Texas lineup all night. It has been a long time since I have seen a hitter look as bad as Vlad did against Bumgarner, and it wasn't just once, or twice.

I did notice one thing however. Bumgarner is tipping his pitches. This is the second big league starter this year that I have spotted doing something very obvious in his delivery that nobody else but myself has picked up on. Clay Buccholz of the Boston Red Sox tips his pitches by the degree at which his left leg bends. He has a sharper angle at the apex when he is throwing something hard (4-seamer, slider) and it is less of a hard angle when he throws a curve and changeup.

Last night, Bumgarner was tipping his pitches with his right foot. When he is throwing hard, the foot opens earlier in his delivery to create the harder force going foward. When he is throwing something offspeed, his foot stays closed until the last second.

Take a look for yourself and watch some game video of both pitchers and you will see exactly what I mean.

Tonight is the holy grail of pitching matchups. Tim Lincecum vs. Cliff Lee.

I have been off in most of my predictions in this years world series, but I think it's just because the Texas pitching staff is tired. Don't forget, CJ Wilson is a MLB veteran, but as a setup guy. He is way ahead of his innings total and is most likely losing strength. Tommy Hunter is just who he is, an average pitcher who has trouble getting through the lineup after a few looks. He just doesn't have the stuff to get through a good lineup the 3rd time through. Colby Lewis is a smart pitcher, who has great poise. He cannot get it done all by himself though.

Game 5 Prediction:

Texas wins 6-4
Lincecum 6IP 6h 3ER
Lee 7IP 7h 2ER

Game 7 here we come!