SF Giants milb coach compares prospect to Madison Bumgarner

Single-A hitting coach Travis Ishikawa sees similarities between 2022 first-round pick Reggie Crawford to a certain other slugging left-handed pitcher

The SF Giants' top pick in the 2022 draft is a two-way player with sky-high upside. Reggie Crawford returned from Tommy John surgery late last month and so far he's been dominant on the mound, striking out ten in 5.1 innings for the single-A San Jose Giants. That strong left arm and his power bat have drawn comparisons to the Angels' Shohei Ohtani. 

But to San Jose Giants hitting coach Travis Ishikawa, Crawford reminds him of a different lefty: Former teammate Madison Bumgarner.

"If you want to look at him like Bum a little bit. The hitting was more of a hobby for Bum, and we’re going to give Reggie more designed at-bats," explained Ishikawa. "But they are kind of a similar thing, big strong kids who can really get into one and are really tough competitors."

Bumgarner could indeed get into one, hitting 19 home runs in his career, including one bomb off Clayton Kershaw.

He also homered twice on Opening Day in 2017.

As a senior in high school, Bumgarner batted .424 with 11 home runs. and 38 RBIs. He also hit .391 and slugged .652 in his brief minor league career, but his pitching was so strong that he reached the major leagues to stay at age 20, limiting his development time at the plate.

Bumgarner was such a strong hitter that in 2014, he became the first pitcher in five years to get the green light to swing while ahead in the count 3-0. He eventually struck out, but it's a sign of the tremendous confidence that Bruce Bochy had in Bumgarner back then.

Bochy also declined to use the DH spot for one of Bumgarner's starts in 2016 against the A's. Mad Bum rewarded his faith by hitting a double and equaling Oakland's DH, Billy Butler, who was also 1-4 with a double. 

.@SFGiants to forgo DH Thursday in Oakland, allow Madison Bumgarner to hit. https://t.co/1IesCQuMs6 #PitchersWhoRakehttps://t.co/Hrm0oqcof4

— MLB (@MLB) June 30, 2016

Ishikawa got to see Bumgarner rake during his rookie year of 2010. He saw him again when Ishikawa returned to the team in late 2014, two weeks too late to see Bumgarner hit a grand slam.

Crawford both throws and hits harder than Bumgarner, whose fastball topped out around 93 MPH (Crawford has hit 101). But they're almost exactly the same size, standing 6'4" and weighing between 235 and 240 pounds. Could Bumgarner have won more than his two Silver Slugger awards with the extra hitting development Crawford is sure to get?

We may need to get deeper with Ishikawa. How does Crawford feel about Max Muncy? What about Yasiel Puig? Does he own an off-road vehicle of any kind? Did he ever date a girl who was also named Reggie Crawford? Is he comfortable throwing five innings of relief on two days' rest?

The bar is set pretty high for a comparison to one of the greatest pitchers in SF Giants history, and definitely the greatest hitting pitcher. If Crawford can even come close, there may be a truck commercial in his future.