No pitcher in the history of baseball has won two Cy Young awards in his first two full major league seasons. Tim Lincecum is a truly special pitcher and athlete.
This gifted pitcher leads, arguably, the best pitching staff in baseball and has a World Series championship on his resume.
The real question now is: How long can he continue to pitch at such a high level?
I will review several pro’s and con’s pertaining to the outlook for Tim Lincecum’s continued success.
Tim Lincecum is entering his fourth full season in San Francisco. In his first three seasons, Lincecum won 40 games and only lost 17. He won Cy Young awards in his first two full major league seasons, the only player ever to do so.
It’s amazing that Tim Lincecum’s 2010 season, where he went 16-10 with an ERA of 3.43 and 231 strikeouts in 212 innings pitched, can be considered a down year. That’s how good this guy is.
Last season had its ups and downs for Tim Lincecum, as he struggled in August and lost all five of his starts during that month. Lincecum also did not get through the seventh inning in any of those five starts.
Tim Lincecum turned it around in September, as he went 5-1 down the stretch. Lincecum also pitched well in the postseason, but the poor August was a bit of a wakeup call for him.
I fully believe Tim Lincecum will regain his outstanding form in the 2011 season. Let’s take a look at 10 factors that will help Tim Lincecum return to top form.
It took 52 years, but the San Francisco Giants are World Series Champions. I can now cross that first and foremost item off my sports fan bucket list.
The San Francisco Giants have given their fans numerous heartbreaks, too many to list in this article, but now, all is forgiven. I have put together a fun piece to showcase the true Giant “hot dogs” who donned the orange and black.
This article is designed to allow us to reminisce about some of the most fun, stylish and charismatic players we have had the enjoyment of watching in San Francisco over the years. These are not always the best players, in fact, many are not. They are, however, some of our fan favorites because of the way they played the game.
Our list is a tribute to those individuals that played the game with a certain flair that made them fun to watch. These are the true “hot dogs” of the San Francisco Giants. Enjoy our list for what it’s worth, 100% fun, just like the players mentioned, who played this wonderful game and entertained us all.
No team in the National League playoff hunt is looking forward to September 1 more than the San Francisco Giants. Heading into the Colorado series, the Giants have only won six of their last 15 games.
The Giants desperately need a boost, especially in the pitching department. The team is fighting extremely hard, a credit to Bruce Bochy and the players, but the pitching looks tired.
In the past 15 games, the Giants have given up a total of 92 runs, an average of over six runs a game. For a team built on the foundation of a strong pitching staff, that’s way too high The starting staff and the relief corps have both struggled during this stretch.
Who are the top players that we can expect to see the Giants call up in September?
The first and most important call up is Dan Runzler. Runzler was injured while batting on July 8th. At the time of his injury, Runzler was pitching well. He will be a welcome addition to a relief corps that has been under a lot of duress lately, as the starters have had trouble going deep into games.
Eric Hacker is the second pitcher, I believe, that will be called up. As a starter, he has thrown well at Fresno and is 16-6 on the year. Hacker can give the Giants multiple innings as a long reliever, especially if a starter gets blown out early, as has happened multiple times in the recent past.
We should also see Emmanuel Burriss as a September call up. Burriss gives Bruce Bochy some added flexibility in the infield and also as a speedy pinch runner. It’s the speed Burriss possesses that will be his biggest benefit to the Giants.
The Giants top minor league hitting prospect is Brandon Belt. Belt started the season in A-ball with San Jose. He did well and was moved to AA Richmond. Belt continued to hit and was recently promoted to AAA Fresno. His cumulative totals for 2010 are a .354 batting average with 20 HR’s and 103 RBI.
Belt will likely not see much action, if any, in San Francisco. However, this taste of the big leagues can ultimately be beneficial. The Giants believe that this same approach helped Buster Posey acclimate himself and will likely use this plan with Belt.
Two others that have spent time in San Francisco already this year and could be recalled are Eugenio Velez and Ryan Rohlinger. Velez has great speed and can help as a pinch runner. Utility infielder Ryan Rohlinger is also an option for the Giants.
Although not a September call up, Edgar Renteria will also be eligible to come off the disabled list in mid September. Renteria and newly acquired Mike Fontenot give the Giants experienced depth in the infield.
The other two players I would recommend as September call ups are Jesus Guzman and Steve Holm. Guzman has major league experience and is an excellent hitter, but a poor fielder. He can be valuable as a pinch hitter.
Steve Holm gives the Giants a third catcher. He is solid defensively and that will give manager Bruce Bochy a lot of flexibility.
Buster Posey has missed the past two games with a forearm strain. While this is not considered serious, if Posey misses any additional games, having only Eli Whiteside behind the dish is not enough. Whiteside is not a strong offensive threat. Steve Holm enables Bochy to pinch hit for Whiteside, when necessary.
The Giants have 31 games left and a decent shot at making the playoffs. These September additions can help them win maybe two or three extra games. That could be enough to get the Giants over the hump.
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The San Francisco Giants are a team built around their starting pitching. Over the past month, it’s this aspect of the team that has been letting them down.
GM Brian Sabean has made several moves during the course of the season to bolster the offense. Outfielders Pat Burrell, Jose Guillen, and Cody Ross give manager Bruce Bochy a lot of flexibility to go with the hot bat. Infielder Mike Fontenot was a much needed acquisition when Edgar Renteria went on the DL.
In addition, the trade of catcher Bengie Molina opened the door for Buster Posey to play every day. These moves have given the Giants a solid lineup and also a potent bench.
Now, the key for the Giants to make a playoff run is the pitching, most notably the starting pitching. Two time Cy Young award winner, Tim Lincecum, has been struggling and has now lost five straight decisions. His overall record has slipped to a very pedestrian 11-9, with a 3.80 ERA.
The alarming thing about this recent run is the loss of velocity and command that has plagued Lincecum. Against Arizona tonight, Lincecum’s fastball was usually in the 90-91 mph range, down from the 94-96 mark he was at for most of the past two years.
The decrease in velocity means that Lincecum is unable to get as many hitters to swing and miss with the fastball. Not only does this mean more balls are put in play, but also more foul balls, so Lincecum’s pitch count rises too rapidly.
The decrease in velocity also means that the speed differential between Lincecum’s fastball and changeup is a lot less. This, again, means more contact and more foul balls. Lincecum is having trouble putting hitters away quickly, even when he gets two quick strikes on them.
In addition, Lincecum has been having trouble with his command, both in and out of the strike zone. Lincecum walked two in the first inning. They both came around to score on Adam LaRoche’s home run. Lincecum missed badly with his location on an off speed pitch, leaving it over the plate for LaRoche to smash. LaRoche blasted it into McCovey Cove, giving the Diamondbacks a three-run lead.
The second starter, Barry Zito started the season quite well. However, he has also struggled of late. In Zito’s last three starts, he has given up five runs once and four runs twice. Zito has not made it out of the seventh inning in any of those outings.
Matt Cain has been the most reliable starter in the month of August. His overall record is 10-10 with an ERA of 3.07. Cain’s WHIP ratio, (Walks + Hits allowed per innings pitched), is a phenomenal 1.14. Cain has endured poor run support from his offense. Otherwise, his record would be much better. Right now, Cain is pitching like the ace of the staff.
Jonathan Sanchez, the fourth starter, has great talent and can have tremendous games. He threw a no-hitter against the Padres last season. However, as good as Sanchez can be at times, he has struggled with consistency his entire career.
In the past four outings, Sanchez has had one great outing and three poor ones. Against Philadelphia, Sanchez threw eight innings, giving up only two hits and one run. In the other three starts, Sanchez threw a total of 13.2 innings and give up twelve runs. These short outings also cause the bullpen to become overworked.
The fifth starter, rookie Madison Bumgarner, just turned 21 years of age. He is under pressure to deliver, as the Giants need him to do well in their playoff chase.
Bumgarner had been pitching well, then had a terrible outing earlier this week against the Reds. He was unable to get out of the third inning, giving up seven earned runs. The Giants trailed at one point 10-1, but staged an incredible comeback to take the lead 11-10. Unfortunately for the Giants, the Reds were able to tie it in the ninth inning and win it in the 12th.
Having lost the past two games, the Giants need to get back to their winning ways in order to keep their playoff hopes on track. The starting pitching for the Giants must improve immediately, or this season will be lost.
The talent is definitely there. Now, it’s up to Lincecum, Zito, Cain, Sanchez, and Bumgarner to step up and lead the Giants to the playoffs.
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