Tag Archives: Tim Lincecum

July 11, 2011

Why I Think Felix Hernandez Is The Best Pitcher In The World

By mceezy

Every so often, there’s a debate about who’s the best pitcher in baseball. Or, who is the best in each league, i.e. who should start the All-Star Game. Today on the old radio, there was a debate about who would you want to pitch in a one-game World Series. The debate eventually became Roy Halladay vs. Tim Lincecum, but I can’t ever help like Timmy has a home field advantage out here in Northern California. Obviously, he’s one of the best pitchers in the game. On most occasions that I’ve seen him pitch, he’s been dominant. On the other hand, I’ve seen him look extremely mortal at times. He’s prone to the occasional blowup. Halladay, however, never seems to give up any more than 4 runs in a game – and that’s when he’s off. Granted, I probably have a bit smaller sample size when it comes to Roy, but I probably see arguably his more important games. Though I will concede that Lincecum is usually solid in the big games as well.

There’s one guy, though, that I always consider to be one of the top two pitchers in baseball that no one really ever seems to bring up until you get to the top 5 or 10. Ever since the first time I saw him pitch when

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October 12, 2010

Let’s Hear It For The Boys!

By By

I’m not the biggest baseball fan in the world, but I am a huge Giants fan!  So if you, by chance, were wondering why I haven’t posted anything about Lincecum’s masterful Game 1, Cain’s solid outing in Game 2, the near carbon-copy of Lincecum’s aforementioned performance by Jonathan Sanchez in Game 3, and now Bumgarner’s impressive night on the road in a close out game, a game which started as Bobby Cox’s potential finale’ … quite simply put, I wasn’t trying to jinx my boys.

Now that the NLDS is over with, and I must say, it was an exciting one at that, with each game being decided by controversial calls and a single run,  but as I was saying, now that it’s over with, I can finally give my boys some praise!  If pitching wins in the playoffs, I have to like our chances at a pennant, period.  Between our four starters, the Giants gave up three earned runs.  Do the math, three earned runs, four games.  That is lights out pitching.  Lincecum highlighted the series with a brilliant, dazzling playoff debut, in a pressure packed environment in which every pitch was magnified.  One hanging slider, one mistake, and the Giants lose.  Lincecum wouldn’t allow it, possibly dialing up the best pitching performance of the post season thus far.  I know, I’m biased, but Roy Halladay had four runs to lean against, Timmy didn’t.  And Timmy rung up 14 batters … I’m just saying.

Matt Cain followed it up, by going 7 & 1/3, only giving up an unearned run.  Although not as flashy as Lincecum, or Sanchez, Cain delivers in workman like fashion, but all that matters is, he gets results.  Unfortunately Romo ruined his playoff debut.  And how about Jonathan Sanchez?  Called upon to right the ship that was capsizing after taking a major hit, because the Giants blew a three run lead late in Game 2, losing in the 11th … but Sanchez delivered the goods.  Unfortunately Romo ruined his playoff debut.  Finally Bumgarner.  How cool is this cat?  The Braves were a desperate team swinging desperate bats, and despite some fireworks early for the Braves, Bumgarner never flinched.  He stayed calm, cool and collective, and gave us 6 & 1/3 of solid pitching. 

Onto Buster “NL ROY” Posey!  He hit .375, and outplayed his ROY counter part in every facet of the game, but what impressed me most about Posey, his ability to lead.  Name another first year catcher who can command the respect of such a mighty pitching staff?  But when anyone of the studs on the mound lost control, it was Posey who got them back.  Posey made all the right plays, even the ones that shouldn’t have counted, and he called the right games. 

I can go on and on about the Giants.  B-Willy, who resembles Jean-Claude Van Damme’s best friend in Bloodsport, and pitches as intimidating as he looks.  Aubrey Huff, Cody Ross, etc.  Euphoric is the word that best describes my feelings right now.  I’m on cloud nine, a natural high, whatever it is, I’m enjoying every bit of it … at least for the next few days.  Then my mind is on Philly.  Tough task ahead.  But these Giants are not done. Regardless of how the rest of the post season turns out for the Giants, this year’s rendition of the team is by far, my all-time favorite.  Never have we had a group of players who the fans can connect to so easily, never have we had a team, that I feel, genuinely cares about us just the same.  Never have we had a team that genuinely cares for each other for Christ’s sake!  Bonds, Kent.  Do you see the emotion these Giants let loose every time one of them comes through for each other!?  It literally made my eyes tear to see Lincecum do the Jordan fist pump in the dug out after Huff tied the game in the top of the 9th in Game 3.  Then Freddy Sanchez ,with his slide into home plate right into a jumping fist pump of his own, after scoring the go ahead run off a Conrad error!  It’s our team, it’s like rooting for the boys, it’s our city, who is yearning for a winner, it’s how we got here, it’s how we get it done, the torture, and it’s how we wear our emotions on our sleeves.  There’s a certain magic in the air surrounding these Giants, the city, the fans right now.  I’m just happy to be a part of it.

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April 1, 2010

Things to Look Forward to in the 2010 MLB Season

By chappy81

Well, Mceezy did his tribute to the excitement of the upcoming baseball season, and I felt it was only fitting that I should write about sine if the storylines that will intrigue me during the 2010 season. Now that the teams have rounded third base in spring training, they are heading back home to the “real parks” for the last few preseason games. There’s a lot to look forward to that isn’t dealing with the Yankees and Red Sox (If you’re a hater like me), so here are ten things I want to watch develop.

Tim Lincecum – Can he win back to back to back Cy Young awards? If he stays healthy, I don’t see why not. He’d probably also solidify himself as one of the most dominating pitchers of all time (or at least this era) joining Gregg Maddux and Randy Johnson as the only other two pitchers to accomplish that feat. Thankfully Cy Young voters have gone away from counting wins as one of the biggest factors in handing the award out. It makes it much more likely, since he doesn’t get much help from the unfriendly Giants offense. The problem this time around is he will have to contend with Doc Halladay! Continue reading

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February 11, 2010

Lincy Wants More: E-Mail Thread

By dyslecix

Tim Lincecum, the two time Cy Young Award winner, is going to be arbitration eligible for the first time in his career. He obviously deserves to get paid, and there really isn’t any reason for him NOT to demand boat loads of money. The Giants wanted to give him $8 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility, but Lincy’s camp wants around $13 million. We debated in an e-mail chain what the Giants should do. We had someone that isn’t a part of Doin Work crew, but is a huge fan Giants fan, and is under the name Lincy Lover.

Lincy Lover: They should give him $40 plus million, in essence buying out his arbitration, and move on.

Cali4Dre: I’m curious what the Linecum’s team countered with when they say over $40M…

Lincy Lover: It’s really a matter of what the 2 years after this one are worth, since he’s not getting a dime more than $13m this year, no matter how things shake out.

Cali4Dre: If Lincy wants 3yrs/40M, I think the G’s should offer $80M over 6 years and be done with it…  Maybe that would meet his expectations, and they could sign him long-term all at once (at a discount in the latter years)

Lincy Lover: That’s less money than Felix and Verlander got, so it’d have to be more like 6 yrs. for $90m, but I like where you’re going with his contract…

Cali4Dre: I realize it’s less money than the other contracts, but the G’s need to at least be diligent in their pursuit of the best deal possible, which it seems they are doing by going to arbitration, otherwise they would have already made a better offer…  and do we really think the Verlander/Felix contracts will have a huge say in the outcome of Lincy’s hearing?  Tough to say…

Dyslecix: Would this already be done if Zito wasn’t on the books ($90M plus over 6 years)? I’m going to say yes, the Felix and Verlander contracts have a huge impact on Lincy’s deal.

Cali4Dre: Ah, Barry Zito’s contract… The gift that keeps on giving (headaches that is) Well, based on ML experience, both have been in the league longer than Lincy, so it’s not a perfect match for the situation.  The thing that makes the difference is the CY’s (ie. multiple)

Lincy Lover: I’m guessing it would be more if Zito wasn’t in play, but yes, it becomes a no-brainer if Zito’s not in the mix. Zito’s deal is also a problem because his contract is heavily back-loaded, so as Timmy makes more, so does Barry. I don’t see it as huge for the hearing, but if those contracts (along with Zito) are a baseline for any long-term negotiations.

Dyslecix: I’ve been reading a lot more SI of late…and saw this last week… I think the main point is the market has been set by those two, and Lincy, with his two Cy Young Awards, has all of the leverage at the table. I see that being the biggest thing.

Cali4Dre: I think besides the two Cy Young Awards, maybe a major piece but not the only one, you would also have to look at years in ML (3 to 5-JV and 5-FH) and starting point of their first year.  For JV and FH, according to your article, it was only $7M in year one… He’s in arbitration year one with the Giants offering $8M and Timmy asking for $13M.

Lincy Lover: The reasoning to lock him up now is to hopefully save money down the road, when he could hit the open market and be too expensive to keep, but you’re right, they don’t really have to do anything for 3 years.

Dyslecix: If they wait, his value will only increase….He’s a super star, and will only get better. Lock him up now at whatever the cost.

Cali4Dre: Wouldn’t they just keep going back to arbitration though, with Timmy probably winning it every year?  Might as well have more certainty, and less ill will with your Star… What would it cost the Giants to just waive Zito?  I assume a lot, but not all of the money is guaranteed obviously…

Dyslecix: Interesting…I thought all of Zito’s contract was straight up guaranteed. I heard them going on and on about this a while back when he was shitting on the mound every 5 days, and were discussing waiving him. It’s been forever since I heard that though…

Lincy Lover: Right. Any long term deal is basically buying out his arbitration and pushing back his free agency, but it seems like the Giants are going to be very careful with any hearings and stick to numbers and precedent, so not sure how much ill will can build up. All money in baseball is gauranteed, and zito’s due about $83m over the next 4 years, and i think there’s even an option for another year that the giants would buy out for $7m. f-me.


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November 19, 2009

A Stoner Gets Another Cy Young!

By chappy81

Did I win some money for this award to go grab some munchies?!?

Some more Bay Area baseball news came out today, and another award was given to another pitcher residing in Northern California. It was announced today that Tim Lincecum has won the Cy Young for a second consecutive year! It’s probably a little relieving to have good news since all the buzz lately has been about his Marijuana possession charges, which honestly, I don’t really see why people care about what he does as long as it’s not a Len Bias kind of habit! He’s just a long haired hippy at heart, hell, he probably scored his weed from Zito’s hookup! Let’s just hope he doesn’t follow the same career path as Barry or sign on for any denim ads. He’s only the second person to ever bag two in a row, and his teammate was the other, Randy Johnson, who won four straight (99-02)! The freak wasn’t the obvious choice for the award, but it’s hard to argue against giving it to him. He had more K’s, innings, and a better whip than runner up Chris Carpenter, but he had a higher era and less wins than Chris. I think Carp would’ve won if some of his votes weren’t taken from him by his teammate Adam Wainwright who also could have been a very deserving winner. I really like that the voters decided that Lincecum was the most dominant pitcher, and didn’t focus so much on just the wins column like they usually do. All in all, it’s been good award season for the Bay, as Tim Lincecum repeated his Cy Young defense, and Andrew Baily won the Rookie of the Year award.

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September 8, 2009

(Not So) Early Predictions for the Cy Young – National League

By mceezy

About three weeks ago, I broke down the AL Cy Young race.   I’m not so sure about my prediction anymore, as Roy Halladay has had a lackluster last few outings.  What I would like to point out, however, is that I also mentioned that if Zack Greinke were to “regain his form, his final numbers might end up too good to ignore.”  Well, at this point, that’s looking like the case.  Greinke’s numbers are now so good across the board it looks like he may be a lock, at this time, for the award.  He leads in the AL in ERA, WHIP, and Shutouts, is second in Ks behind Justin Verlander, and third in Batting Average Against, behind Matt Garza and Felix Hernandez, respectively.  There’s still a month of baseball left to be played, but he looks like the clear front runner in that race and should bring a little bit of pride to what’s left of the Kansas City Royals’ fan base.

Now, on to the topic at hand – the National League Cy Young race.  Once again, I’ve narrowed it to a group of five: Chris Carpenter, Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Adam Wainwright, and Dan Haren.  We’re going to do this one by process of elimination.  Haren is probably the longest shot at this point, given his team’s standing.  He has the least impressive record of the bunch and the highest ERA.  However, I put a lot of weight on WHIP when it comes to assessing a pitcher’s performance, and in that aspect he is the best, 0.95. Like I said, though, he’s a longshot, and would need to finish out strong to have a serious chance.

That leaves us with four.  Adam Wainwright has the most wins of the bunch, racking up an impressive 17-7 record.  But, he also has the highest WHIP and BAA, along with the next highest ERA behind Haren.  His record is due in part to his team’s success.  While he’s no doubt having a great year, his numbers just don’t stack up with this bunch.

Matt Cain is also having an outstanding year for a contending club.  Historically a hard luck pitcher, Cain boasts an impressive 13-4 record.  His 2.51 ERA and 1.16 WHIP are more than respectable.  Cain, though, is supposed to be a power pitcher, yet his strikeout numbers are low, and his K:BB ratio is easily the highest of the bunch. Next.

And then there were two.  Chris Carpenter (16-3) and Tim Lincecum (13-5) are the clear front runners for the award.  I’ll be honest, I’m not sure I’m quite ready to choose between them.  Carpenter has the better record, ERA, and WHIP, but Lincecum has substantial advantages when it comes to Innings Pitched, BAA, and has 34 more strikeouts than the next guy, Javier Vazquez, in the NL, and 104 more than Carpenter.  Lincecum has thrown 34 more innings in 4 more starts than Carpenter.  Granted, a pitcher shouldn’t necessarily be punished for missing starts due to injury, but you have to look at the numbers as a whole, and overall, I think Lincecum’s numbers are slightly more impressive.  But, both guys have a few more starts to go, and that will be what separates the two.  Carpenter will have an opportunity to set himself apart, and I think he’ll need it.  Because, at this point, although unlikely, I’m predicting Tim Lincecum to be the first repeat Cy Young winner since 2002 when Randy Johnson won his fourth straight.

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July 27, 2009

Another Lincecum Gem In The Making

By mceezy

Scrolling the box scores…. looks like Tim Lincecum has given up 1 hit through 4 innings, while striking out 8.  He’s only thrown 50 pitches, so, barring a meltdown, we could very well see a complete game shutout tonight.  Optimistic?  Perhaps.  But it’s only because he’s facing the Pirates!

Tim Lincecum is dialed in tonight.

Tim Lincecum is dialed in tonight.

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July 20, 2009

Can the Giants Win the NL Wild Card? Hmmm…

By mceezy

We all know the Giants’ strength, pitching, and we all know their weakness, hitting.  Pretty straightforward, right?  The question is, which will prevail as SF heads down the stretch in a tight race for the National League Wild Card berth.  At the start of this post, the Giants and Colorado Rockies were tied for the Wild Card spot.  However, by the time we’re done here, it looks as though the Rockies will have a one game advantage.  Though, since the Giants have been the frontrunners for a long stretch prior to this, many have posed the question whether they can hang on or not.  Typically, when you’re nine games over .500, you’re talking about winning the division.  But the Dodgers don’t appear to be slowing down any time soon, so Giants’ fans are left focusing on the Wild Card.

Tim Lincecum appears to be getting more and more unhittable with each start.  Matt Cain has always showed potential, but lacked run support.  This year, though, he’s finally turned the corner, and the offense has seemingly turned it with him – for his starts at least.  Problem is, after that you’re looking at Randy Johnson, Barry Zito, and Jonathan Sanchez.  Johnson may only get worse as the year goes on.  He’s currently sideline with a strained left shoulder, which doesn’t bode well for a pitcher in his 40s.  He’s already slated to be out longer than originally anticipated, so we won’t see the Big Unit until next month at the earliest.  Despite throwing the first no-hitter in 30+ years for the Giants, SF fans will be the first to say they don’t exactly go in expecting a W when Sanchez is on the mound.  He’s had his moments, and he looked great when he put those moments together for 9 full innings 10 days ago.  Tonight, he went 6 innings giving up 3 earned runs.  That is even considered a great game for him.  Then there’s Barry Zito.  I don’t want to kick a guy while he’s down, so I’m going to refrain from talking about Zito for the rest of his career presumably.

On the offensive side, Pablo Sandoval is having a well-documented breakout year, but when you look down the rest of the order, it looks very Athletic-like, numbers-wise.  It’s not like there’s really any veteran players who are due to break out any time soon either.  The offense is, and most likely, will be anemic for the remainder of the year.  Therefore, it seems logical that they need to trade for a bat.  They have two young pitchers who could net the offensive help they need, but the front office seems pretty locked in on Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson, so they don’t appear to be going anywhere.

I think the only move that makes sense would be to acquire one more veteran pitcher who can turn it on down the stretch.  It’s often assumed that the Giants have two guaranteed wins each time through the rotation: Lincecum and Cain.  Problem is, they almost have three guaranteed losses each round with Zito, Sanchez, and Johnson fill-in, Ryan Sadowski.  I know what you’re saying. “Sadowski has a 1.00 ERA!”  But, go look at Vin Mazzaro’s stats.  Tell me their first three starts don’t look identical, and then look at what Mazzaro’s done since then.  Ok? Ok.

Basically, the Giants will be LUCKY to play .500 ball the rest of the way.  I project them winning 7 of every 15 games, and quite frankly, that won’t be enough.  BUT, they are locked in a playoff race, and at this point in the season, that’s all a team can ask for.

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June 17, 2009

Who Should Start For The NL?

By mceezy

The MLB All-Star Game is less than a month away, thus kicking off one of my favorite pastimes…. speculating who will be the starting pitchers for each league.  It probably has to do with the fact that the A’s usually have someone in the running – Josh Outman is 2nd in BAA!  All kidding aside, it’s the NL that has me intrigued this year.  There are five distinct candidates; few could argue that.  Although I certainly don’t consider it to be the end all gauge for pitchers, look no further than the NL ERA rankings to find these five.

The first guy I rule out is Johnny Cueto.  To be honest, I wouldn’t even include him had I not known he has the lowest ERA.  His numbers are solid, but the 6-4 record is far from sexy and let’s be real, we just don’t hear a lot about this guy.  He’s pretty much this year’s version of Edinson Volquez, and look where that got him.

The next guy I rule out is Matt Cain.  A friend actually told me today he thought Cain is the front runner right now.  His reasoning was that Cain leads the league in complete games (three), wins (nine), and is third in ERA.  All good points, but I see some things that cancel those out.  The glaring fault I see is his K:BB ratio.  68 Ks to 34 BBs.  That’s 2:1 folks.  Not only is that obviously the worst among these five guys, he’s also got the worst BAA and WHIP, not to mention the least amount of innings pitched.  That 9-1 record looks a lot luckier to me now having said that.  I’m happy for the guy though.  He’s had notoriously poor run support the last few years, so it’s good to see him make up a few wins.

The other three guys, in my opinion, all deserve it, but I reluctantly cross out Chad Billingsley next.  I’m a pretty firm believer in the old practice of taking the best pitcher on the best team.  Billingsley and the Dodgers are that.  His 9-3 record helps, but the numbers just don’t stand out above the rest of the group.  A lot of his numbers, in fact, are similar to Lincecum’s, but Timmy comes out ahead in just about every category.  Billingsley has also walked the most batters, however his 93 Ks keep his ratio out of Matt Cain territory.  Aside from the win-loss records, choosing Billingsley over Lincecum just can’t be justified.

Speaking of Lincecum, I like him a lot for the fact that he’s the reigning Cy Young winner.  Sure, that’s reflective of last season, but to me, that makes him the defending champion i.e. the “top guy.”  He’s got 10 more Ks than the next guy on this list and his overall numbers are solid.  That win total of six might be his undoing though.  To his credit, I can see at least three starts that should’ve/could’ve ended in wins.  I would give the nod to Lincecum if it weren’t for……

Dan Haren.  Has a 5-4 pitcher ever been named the starter for the All-Star Game?  There’s a good chance the answer is no.  But, if you take a look at how he got to 5-4, you quickly realize he is FAR better than the record indicates.  He has four starts where he went 6+ innings (7 in three of them) and only gave up 1 run.  With any reasonable offense, he would be 9-2.  Beyond the wins and losses though, you’ll find superior numbers.  His 2.20 ERA is second only to Cueto, and he is head and shoulders above all these guys in WHIP (0.81) and BAA (.181)  Those numbers are unreal!  You know what else is unreal?  90 Ks to only 13 walks.  That’s 6.92 K:BB people!  Throw in 94 IP – second only to Josh Johnson‘s 98 – and Haren is the clear cut favorite for the All-Star Game start.  The best part is… there’s still a month to go and this race could have five completely different guys!

NL All-Star Starting Pitcher?

NL All-Star Starting Pitcher?

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