The 2014 World Series will go down in the history books as one of the most memorable performances in the modern era of baseball. Reason, because no pitcher in today's baseball system has ever stretched beyond the limits of the pioneer players since 1904. Truly an amazing feat by the 25 year old pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, Madison Bumgarner. He brought new meaning to the phrase, "ice in your veins" with an unshakeable demeanor on the mound during the entire post season of 2014. As a baseball fan, Major League Baseball delivered on their performance and for that, all that can be said is "Thank you!"
So for all of you non-baseball people out there, what does this mean for Madison Bumgarner? Yes, he's likely punched his ticket for entry into the Hall of Fame someday with this indisputable performance within such a short window of time as professional player. And likely that is the most important thing to a guy that possesses such a natural ownership of the pitcher's mound. It is truly his sanctuary as he's proven year end and year out. But what does it mean for him beyond the diamond?
In the sports marketing world, Madison Bumgarner just punched his ticket for an endless journey of opportunity to become an icon for the sport of baseball and beyond. I can only imagine that ad agencies throughout the country this morning are in the process of strategizing every potential avenue to leverage this instant sensation towards the consumer world. We've seen it time and time again with incredible athletes– Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Peyton Manning, Aaron Rogers, the list goes on and on of athletes that have reached the pinnacle of performance cashing in on their "identity" as a household name. His agents are hot on the phones working every potential deal that they can secure. Life just changed even more for this slow talking, country boy that happened to make history last night!
The key for Mr. Bumgarner will be his ability to maintain who he is and never lose site of where he came from. A lot of pressure for a 25 year old, but something tells me that he's going to handle it just fine. Anyone that can stand on the hill among 37,000+ screaming fans in the opposing team's stadium, in the bottom of the 9th with the tying run on third base, and ices it the way he did– I'm thinking he's going to be okay!
Keep an eye out for the new "Madison Bumgarner" brand. And congratulations to the Giants for the huge surplus of merchandising that just came your way– Hello Nike, Under Armour, Chevrolet, Subway, AT&T, and on, and on!! Gotta love it!
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