It looks like one of the reasons why left-hander Madison Bumgarner reportedly joined the Arizona Diamondbacks has nothing to do with baseball.
The four-time All-Star owns horses in the Phoenix area and loves it there, according to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Andrew Baggarly.
The D-Backs were Bumgarner's No. 1 choice if the club ponied up a good offer, a source told Rosenthal. The 30-year-old was rumored to be seeking a multi-year deal worth $100 million in free agency. His reported new pact with Arizona is for five years and is worth $85 million.
Bumgarner, a three-time World Series winner and 2014 Fall Classic MVP, spent 11 years with the San Francisco Giants before leaving as a free agent.
The Giants offered the veteran hurler a four-year contract in the $70-million range, a source told Baggarly. However, it apparently wasn't enough to keep him in San Francisco.
"I will miss Bum! We have a ton of great memories that will last a lifetime," Giants catcher Buster Posey said via text, according to Baggarly. "It's going to be fun competing against him going forward!! No one on the mound competes harder than that guy does!!!!"
Bumgarner owns a career 3.13 ERA with 1,794 strikeouts in 1,846 innings with the Giants.
