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All in a name: Madison Bumgarner rules the (softball) mound

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How many Madison Bumgarner's are there? Apparently, at least three. They all hail from the same small town in North Carolina. One is the 2014 World Series MVP. Another once dated that MVP. And now NBC Charlotte reports a third is emerging as a star on the softball mound.

It gets confusing, following all of the Bumgarners in South Caldwell, a.k.a. "Bumtown." The high school softball pitcher says she is a sixth cousin of the San Francisco Giants pitcher. They must have inherited at least a few of the same genes, as the younger Bumgarner is tearing up the competition this season.

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner throws to the San Diego Padres during the fourth inning of a baseball game Monday, May 4, 2015, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner throws to the San Diego Padres during the fourth inning of a baseball game Monday, May 4, 2015, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

The older Bumgarner led the South Caldwell Spartans to the state title in 2007, shortly before being picked in the first round of the MLB draft. One of his state championship teammates is now coaching the Spartans varsity softball team.

“So far I’ve gotten to win a lot of games with both of them. There’s a lot of similarities, both are very competitive,” coach Casey Justice told NBC Charlotte.

For those that don't know the two Bumgarners personally, it can be confusing. The younger Bumgarner told NBC, “On Facebook, I guess they didn’t look at the picture and someone sent me a message saying, ‘Congratulations on your World Series win.’ I said, ‘Thanks!'”

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Danielle Elliot is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact her at delliot@yahoo-inc.com or find her onTwitter and Facebook.