MadBum; To Trade or Not To Trade?

Let me start this article out with this statement. I want to trade Madison Bumgarner! I just don't know if it is possible. I am already tired of his antics; it is like he thinks he is still an elite pitcher! Like he thinks he deserves to get every borderline call. He is far from elite; he is not even the best pitcher on the Diamondbacks staff. Zac Gallen has that honor, he might not even be the 2nd best pitcher on the Diamondbacks rotation, Merrill Kelly is putting up a fight for that. If you add up the 2022 salaries of Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Zach Davies, Luke Weaver, and Humberto Carrillo, then doubled the total salary of those 5 pitchers, it would still be less than the $23MM the Diamondbacks are going to pay Madison Bumgarner for this season. If you took the entire infield (Walker, Marte, Perdomo, and Rios) and doubled all of their salaries that figure would be right at the salary for MadBum. He is grossly overpaid and grossly underperforming. That leaves us with a few reality checks.

Only a contender would want him. But would they be willing to pay almost $50MM for the rest of this year and two seasons? In my mind, the Diamondbacks have 3 choices with MadBum. 1) Give him to another team, they save $50MM over the next 3 years and they get nothing in return. 2) pay down $15-$20MM of his salary when you trade him and get a fringe prospect in return. 3) Trade him and his contract along with a good piece of your farm system to receive some modest prospect or another player from another team that is expensive and underperforming as well.

He is averaging less than 5 innings a start (13 starts 64.1 innings), 61 hits 25 earned runs with 45 strikeouts. He has a 2-6 record with a 3.50 ERA. Now, I will say that it seems like more often than not, there is an error that costs the team a win and it seems like the bats go cold in his starts as well as they did in the start on Saturday where the team went 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position. If MadBum went to a better offensive team, he would surely have more than 2 wins. So, what playoff-bound team would be willing to simply pay the salary with nothing in return? Astros, Angels, Red Sox or Jays in the American League. In the National League, I think the Cardinals and Mets would be interested.

So, with MadBum being owed so much money and underperforming for that money the Diamondbacks need to find a trade partner who also wants to trade a larger contract. A team who has a contract of a person who seemingly no longer fits with the team. Well, the Yankees have a few of them, number one on that list is Aaron Hicks, and the second one is Zack Britton. So, let's work out a deal that will make both teams happy and will give some players fresh starts.

Yankees get: Madison Bumgarner and Christian Walker

Bumgarner will round out their rotation with a veteran who is proven in the postseason and a right-handed compliment to the left-handed Anthony Rizzo at first base.

Arizona gets: Aaron Hicks, Chad Green, and Miguel Andujar

Hicks is owed roughly $43MM so it cancels out the Bumgarner contract. Green just had Tommy John Surgery and will not pitch this season. His contract is basically dead money, but it will only be about a $2MM hit. For those two contracts, the Diamondbacks get a young offensive-minded third baseman in Andujar, who fits in nicely with the Dbacks offense.

Do you think the Diamondbacks will trade MadBum? Would you do the trade above with the Yankees? Answer one or both of the questions in the comments below.