You have to read the text message Madison Bumgarner's dad sent him during Game 7

Mike Oz

Forget the big contracts, free pick-up trucks, prime-time TV ratings and the rest. Baseball, at its essence, will always be a game of fathers and sons. It's why the Ripkens are royalty, why we rooted for the Griffeys and why "Dad, do you wanna have a catch?" tugs at our hearts all these years later.

It's also why you should read Michael Powell's piece from Thursday's New York Times. Powell journeyed to Hudson, N.C., to visit Madison Bumgarner's father, Kevin, and watch Game 6 of the World Series with him. Powell returned Wednesday night after the Giants won Game 7 to talk to Kevin some more about his son's gutsy relief performance that helped earn him the series MVP.

(AP)
(AP)

It's a great piece, with wonderful quotes from Kevin Bumgarner, including this one that we all know to be true now:

“I didn’t know if he had enough left tonight,” Kevin said of Madison. “But I did know that boy would try to steal a steak off the devil’s plate.”

The absolute best part of the story, though, is down at the end. The elder Bumgarner shares the text he sent his son after the eighth inning:

“OMG. You’re so much more than awesome. To see you work on the mound reminds me of watching you in high school. You are willing yourself to perfection and dragging the team along with you. I couldn’t be more proud of your baseball accomplishments.”

Free trucks are nice and World Series rings are nicer, but making your daddy proud is a whole different kind of nice.

“I knew he wouldn’t read that text before the game was over,” Kevin Bumgarner told the Times, “but I wanted him to know this was what his daddy thought of him.”

Awww, man. Right in the feels. 

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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!