Obsessedsportsnut's Blog

Pitchers and catchers report to training camp today! We’re less than two months away from opening day! Baseball is almost back!

Living in the Bay Area, it’s impossible not to be excited about the rest of this NBA season. Will the Warriors break the Bulls’ record of 72 wins and go undefeated at home? Will the Warriors repeat as NBA champions?

It’s also impossible not to be excited about the upcoming San Francisco Giants season. For starters, it’s an even year, which means they should be planning another parade down Market Street again, right? The Giants also had a pretty impressive offseason, signing Johnny Cueto, Jeff Samardzija, and Denard Span.

The parallels between the two franchises are numerous. Both are the only two Bay Area franchises to win a title in the past 20 years. Both are lead by a strong ownership group and front office, as the core of both championship teams have been built through the draft.

And both teams are lead by the most humble, egoless stars in the game: Stephen Curry and Madison Bumgarner, who are arguably the two most underpaid players in their respective sports.

Steph Curry, the reigning MVP, likely two-time MVP, and the best player in the league, is “only” making $11.3 million this year, the 57th highest paid player in the NBA and 5th highest on the Warriors behind Klay, Draymond, Bogut, and Andre.

Madison Bumgarner, 3-time World Series winner, owner of a 0.25 career World Series ERA, and one of the best starting pitchers in baseball, will”only” make $9.95 million this season, which makes him the Giants’ 4th highest starting pitcher, behind Cain, Cueto, and Peavy.

While other players might hold out and demand a new contract that better reflects their market value, Curry and Bumgarner continue to go about their business in a workmanlike fashion. You never hear them complain and are always genuinely happy when players around them sign new contracts. They are the ultimate team players and their demeanor and approach to the game sets the tone for the rest of their teams to follow. The Giants and Warriors are full of egoless players who like to have fun and who truly enjoy playing for each other and they are both prime examples on how team chemistry can transform a talented team from a good one to a great one.

But back to Curry and Bumgarner. While they are currently severely underpaid, both are in line to eventually sign franchise record contracts in a couple years, with each possibly getting over $30 million a year.

They’ll be worth every single penny.