When Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner fended off snake with an axe to rescue rabbit in an epic encounter

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Madison Bumgarner seems no less than an American folk hero for the modern sports era who has been conjured up by authors Mark Twain and Grantland Rice.

Even if they sketch a backcountry bull-wrangling giant who is capable of winning the World Series on his own, they could still fall short of catching up with Madison Bumgarner.

In a feature profile for Sports Illustrated in 2014, Tom Verducci wrote about the fables of the life of Bumgarner. Verducci's list comprised of shocking but true events that ranged from rescuing a wild rabbit to dating a woman who was his namesake.

"Vin Scully narrates a new chapter in the legend of #MadBum. http://atmlb.com/23MOnwc‌ 🐍🐰"

Let's first delve into the rabbit saviour's story, as written by Verducci:

"This may be the best Boone-like tale about the man they call Mad Bum. One day during spring training this year in Scottsdale, Bumgarner and his wife were roping cattle when Madison was startled by a large snake he figured was a rattler. He quickly grabbed an ax and hacked it to pieces.

"When Ali, an expert field dresser, examined what was left of the snake, she found two baby jackrabbits inside pieces of it and extracted them. A short while later the Bumgarners noticed that one of the rabbits had moved slightly. It was alive. Ali brought the rabbit back to their apartment and for the next few days kept it warm and bottle-nursed it. The rabbit soon was healthy enough for them to release in to the wild."

Bumgarner confirmed that all of these were absolute true events. He was glad to be present there in person during the incident, else the rabbit that was alive wouldn't have made it.

Madison Bumgarner said:

“Think about how tough that rabbit was, first it gets eaten by a snake, then the snake gets chopped to pieces, then it gets picked up by people and it lives. It’s all true.”

Bumgarner's heroic activities and his noteworthy life events can make up for a whole novel.

2023 might be one of the best years for Madison Bumgarner and the Arizona Diamondbacks

Starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner #40 of the Arizona Diamondbacks delivers to home plate in the third inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on September 10, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)

While Madison Bumgarner played for the SF Giants, he had some of the best seasons of his MLB career. Despite being a solid contributor to the Arizona Diamondbacks since 2020, 2023 seems to be the season when Bumgarner's playmanship is taken to the next level.

Diamondbacks fans are in for a surprise this season.