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Giants open on road against Arizona
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PHOENIX (AP) — Madison Bumgarner was 0-3 with a 4.91 ERA in six spring training starts.No need to worry about the San Francisco Giants’ ace. The left-hander feels good and is coming off one of the most dominating postseason performances ever.“No matter what anybody else expects, it will not be as much as the expectations I have for myself,” Bumgarner said.Bumgarner and the World Series champions certainly will have expectations following them when they open the season today against the Arizona Diamondbacks.Last season, the Giants won their third title in five seasons after outlasting the Kansas City Royals in seven games.Bumgarner carried the heaviest load for San Francisco, going 4-1 in the postseason, including 2-0 with a 0.43 ERA and a Game 7 save in the World Series.The Giants will look a little different behind him, though.Slugging third baseman Pablo Sandoval is no longer in the lineup after signing with Boston. Right fielder Hunter Pence is out, possibly until May, with a broken forearm.The new third baseman will be Casey McGehee, who was acquired from Miami, and outfielder Nori Aoki joins the Giants after playing against them with the Royals in the World Series.The Giants may look a little different, but the approach will be the same.“If you can play every day like opening day and get yourself up like you do for opening day, you’re probably going to have a good year,” Giants manager Brucy Bochy said.