Ex-Giants ace Madison Bumgarner could get World Series ring this year

The second-to-last round of MLB’s postseason began Sunday, meaning a beloved Giants icon responsible for bringing multiple championships to the franchise is that much closer to winning a World Series ring with a non-Giants ballclub.

Believe it or not, this does not apply only to Rangers manager Bruce Bochy. Former Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner is in the running to get some postseason hardware, depending on how the Arizona Diamondbacks do for the remainder of this playoff run.

To be perfectly clear, Bumgarner will not appear in any games for the Diamondbacks this postseason, or perhaps ever, since they designated him for assignment back in April. However, being on a championship team at any point gives a player a chance to get a ring, should that team win the World Series. There are no rules dictating who gets to have one after a World Series title.

One of the most famous examples of a cup-of-coffee tenure leading to some hardware comes from the Giants themselves. Back in 2014, Dan Uggla played four games with San Francisco, going 1-for-11 and making two errors before he was cut from the team. After the Giants beat the Royals in seven, the front office reached out to Uggla for his ring size.

Of course, players and coaches had a rather favorable view of Uggla as a teammate when that decision was made. The end of Bumgarner’s tenure with the Diamondbacks didn’t quite have that same vibe. He gave up 20 runs in 16.2 innings this season, refused to get any sort of coaching help and tanked what looked to be a surefire Hall of Fame career.

Still, this postseason has been full of so many surprising oddities — including the Diamondbacks’ NLCS appearance — that anything could very well happen if Arizona wins a World Series, like Bumgarner getting the fourth ring of his career.