MadisonBumgarner

News: 5 days agoBumgarner threw 35-to-40 pitches of live batting practice Saturday, the first day after reporting for summer camp, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Spin: Bumgarner, who was not at the ballpark Friday when most of the team reported, was not sharp during his first throwing session. He gave up three home runs -- Ildemaro Vargas hit two and Jon Jay the other -- but the pitcher was happy to be throwing. "Obviously, it wasn't perfect and not expected to be, but for where we're at right now I was pretty happy with it," said the left-hander. In other news related to Bumgarner, who is regarded as one of the better hitting pitchers in recent years, he will be replaced by a designated hitter in 2020.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Bumgarner cleared the 200-inning plateau after two seasons of falling well short of that mark. His ratios were not where they were in his prime, but considering the baseball and the run environment last year, he pitched effectively. It was good to see his fastball velocity trend back upward after it looked to be fading in 2018. Bumgarner seems older than 30, since he has been in the league since 2009. The move to Arizona leaves him in the division he has called home for his entire career, and the Diamondbacks have the potential to provide him with the type of run support he has not seen since the 2016 season. He should be able to get back to the mid-teens in wins with Arizona while continuing his levels of production in strikeouts and the rate categories.