Chase Headley has driven in more runs against Madison Bumgarner than anyone else.
So, what’s his advice to the Mets, who have to figure out how to score against the left-hander in Wednesday’s NL wild-card game against the Giants at Citi Field?
“Just hit his mistakes,” Headley said.
The Yankees third baseman added a grin to his response, knowing that Bumgarner doesn’t make many.
Still, Headley has been among the most dangerous hitters in the game against Bumgarner. He’s 10-for-36 with two doubles, three homers, 12 RBIs and nine strikeouts in 42 plate appearances.
Only Colorado’s Carlos Gonzalez has faced Bumgarner more and has a higher OPS than Headley’s .917.
“He threw a lot of cutters and when he left it in the zone, you tend to do damage to it,” Headley said. “I just tried to be aggressive in the middle of the plate and fortunately got some pitches to hit.”
Not surprisingly, Headley put up most of his numbers against Bumgarner when Headley was with San Diego. The fact that they would often face each other multiple times in the same season was beneficial, according to Headley, who went up against him for the first time this season in three years and went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.
“Repetition is good,” Headley said. “The more you see him, the better, so to speak. You don’t really want to go up against him, but I think it does help you pick up the rotation on the ball.”
The fact that Bumgarner puts so much spin on the ball is part of what makes him so effective, but according to Headley, it also plays a role in why he’s been able to hit balls hard off the southpaw.
“By nature, with the spin on it, when you barrel it and get a good one to hit, it usually jumps pretty good,” Headley said. “But you have to be ready, because they don’t come around very often. And if he executes and puts the ball where he wants, there’s not much you can do.’’