By Morris Phillips

Madison Bumgarner’s Giants career hasn’t entirely been about winning.

Yes, the Giants’ ace was around for all three World Series titles, and he became the Series MVP for the ages in 2014 for his incredible starting and relief performances against the Royals.

Bumgarner also won 18 games in 2014 and 2015, a remarkable feat of consistency, given the seasons bookended his grueling 2014 postseason.

And–as we were reminded of on Sunday afternoon–Bumgarner has battled the Dodgers tooth and nail for a decade.

In 34 career starts against the hated Blue, Bumgarner is 15-13 with a 2.52 ERA. But he hasn’t beaten the Dodgers in any of his last seven appearances.

It’s unlikely that the Giants’ ace remembers any of the wins, only the 13 losses, and definitely the last seven meetings without a win as well. That’s just who Bumgarner is, and his level of competiveness.

“He’s as competitive as anybody I’ve ever seen,” said Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow of Bumgarner.

In Sunday’s 1-0 loss to the Dodgers, Bum’s reaction to Max Muncy’s first inning home run was priceless. Angry and combative, Bumgarner yelled at Muncy, demanding he circle the bases with no dramatics.

Muncy, clearly enjoying the moment, gestured and yelled back, as he circled the bases. The Dodgers’ slugger would later say Bum could retrieve the home run ball from the Bay if he didn’t appreciate his celebration. Muncy’s quick wit won him supporters on social media.

But Bumgarner wasn’t swayed, justifying his confronting Muncy with a simple statement bathed in his old-school mentality.

“They want to let everybody be themselves. Let me by myself — that’s me, you know?” Bumgarner explained.

With the trade deadline approaching,  Bumgarner has precious few days left as a Giant. Increasing the bittersweet nature of the iconic player being dealt are the underwhelming offers being fielded by GM Farhan Zaidi. Losing one the faces of the franchise in mid-season for a pittance isn’t very dignified, so much so that Zaidi recently reiterated that Bumgarner would not be moved unless the return is significant.

Keeping Bumgarner would be bad business, moving him removes a key presence in the clubhouse, so there’s no victory there. Watching him battle every fifth day for a club that scuffles to score runs is hard to endure too.

Hard on Bumgarner, the team, and the fans.

So the end may be near, but the appreciation for one the game’s biggest winners is unrelenting. Manager Bruce Bochy issued his thanks on the occasion of his 1,000th managerial win as a Giant on Thursday.

“What he’s done here, and I wouldn’t say what he’s done for me, it’s been an honor to manage this man,” Bochy said. “He’s done so much for the Giants organization and he’s helped put rings on our fingers and he’s still going strong. He’s one of my all-time favorites and that’s pretty obvious.”