In 2007, the young and electric Tim Lincecum was brought up to the big leagues by Bruce Bochy and the San Francisco Giants organization. Looking at his build up, you see a short, scrawny guy from the University of Washington who was named the Golden Spikes Player of the Year in 2006 (College Baseball MVP Award), and with a delivery no one can recreate. Major League Baseball welcomed Lincecum in 2007, being called up to an impressive 7-5 record with the short stint he had that season. 2007 was Barry Bond's final season, who was arguably one of the greatest faces of the franchise along with the "Say Hey Kid" Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry, Orlando Cepeda, and Will Clark. Giants were in a rut, and posting consecutive losing seasons and the future was looking bleak for Bruce Bochy's ball club and post-Barry Bonds. 2008 rolled around and an unexpected face soon took the league by storm in his first full season in the league. The scrawny Tim Lincecum came to the rescue, and put some life back into the Giants organization and the game of baseball. Who looked like a pitcher that could be easily hit off, was a wonky-delivery pitcher who knew how to get guys out. Looks were deceiving, and nothing but the sound of the mitt was coming from the Giants backstop every fifth game. The Giants continued to lose from 2007 to 2009, but no one dominated the game the way Lincecum did. For a short pitcher who is flexible as jello, he packs a mean punch and pitches that rarely get hit. In 2008 & 2009, Lincecum compiled back-to-back Cy Young Awards going 33-12, 526 Strike Outs, and an ERA under 3.00. Instantly, Lincecum became a San Francisco favorite and well-adored. In 2010, Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain went on to help lead the Giants to a surprising first World Series since relocating to San Francisco. They were the catalysts of this team. After a magical 2010 postseason, where the Giants weren't even supposed to be, they proved everyone wrong. In 2011, the Giants barely missed the playoffs and they looked forward to 2012, but 2012 wasn't gracious for Tim Lincecum. This was the start for the next three years of the most growing pains of his career. Lincecum lost velocity on the ball (95 MPH fastball dropped to low 90's), he was using more of his secondary pitches which hitters waited for, and his fastball was losing command. Tim became a sloppy pitcher that would show glimpses of hope of his Cy Young Award stuff, and times where a crappy game was easily predicted. This earned him losing his spot in the rotation, and coming out of the bullpen in 2012. Surprisingly, Lincecum went on to play a big part for the Giants, who won the 2012 World Series setting a historical performance during the playoffs from the bullpen. The playoffs seemed to be the rejuvenation Lincecum needed to get out of his rut, but that didn't seem to be the case. While going through a continual struggle of inconsistency, Lincecum still manages to be a household name who is mightily a powerful name that sells jerseys and generates revenue. In 2013, he signed a two year deal avoiding arbitration, valued at $35 million dollars, with earning $17.5 million dollars per season. Giants fans were disappointed with the amount of money Lincecum was being paid for the lousy 2012 and 2013 season performances. Why would the San Francisco Giants invest this much into a pitcher you don't know what performance they're going to give? It is very simple. Lincecum has been molded into AT&T Park, the San Francisco Giants organization, and the city of San Francisco. Allowing him to leave would almost be like taking a piece of your heart away. While fans are still frustrated, they still come out to support the pitcher who revived life into this franchise back in 2008, the first year of the post-Barry Bonds years. Lincecum is not a lost-cause pitcher, he is just unpredictable. While I still am baffled why Lincecum's consistency has fallen a part, drastically, there is one reason why I think 2015 could be Lincecum's bounce back with a more consistent look : He has been developing a new delivery over the years to save his career.
No pitcher have I ever supported or defended more in the game than Tim Lincecum. He truly is my favorite player in the game because of what he brings to the table. Inconsistent you can say, but Lincecum brings a sense of electricity and mystery which is what I love. While I don't think he will ever recreate the numbers he did in his Cy Young seasons, Lincecum has been good enough to throw two no-hitters the last couple of seasons. As I said earlier in this article, Lincecum shows glimpses of his old self in the beginning of his career. Growing up, Lincecum learned a delivery that is so unique, it earned him a spot in the Major Leagues and the success he has proven today. His father was his coach and taught him the ways of his delivery. While it is highly unorthodox and dangerous, Lincecum managed to perfect it to the point hitters have looked confused. Lincecum has displayed being a power pitcher (high strikeouts, risk of more walks), but has gradually tweaked with his delivery over time with the help of one the game's best pitching coaches, Dave Righetti. If Lincecum continued his power pitching tendencies with the style of delivery he has always known, his career would probably of winded up ending quickly. Over the last two to three seasons, which have been the worst of his career, I believe he has been experiencing inconsistency, due to learning on-the-go and it takes time. With changing his delivery, he is disrupting muscle memory from his original, unorthodox motion. While Lincecum doesn't give up a lot of hits, the hits have been unlucky and have gone for extra bases and runs. He has also lost command with the fastball which I believe has to do with unfamiliarity of a new style and getting comfortable, which is foreign to him. Mid point of a career, it is difficult to change what you always have known. What Lincecum has done is he is changing to save his future, but it is going to come with some bumpy roads and frustration.
It is difficult as a fan to see where Lincecum is now, but I continually believe he will reemerge. It is a rough patience myself and Giants fans have had to fight. While some may have given up, I believe I spot something most fans aren't seeing, and it is a retooling of Lincecum's pitching. Entering the final year of his contract, Lincecum knows he is playing for arguably his last long contract of his career. While he is no longer a top of the rotation option or a power pitcher, Lincecum is learning ways to get outs and be more effective. We may never see his strike out total surpass the 200 mark, but he can certainly still flirt with it. Lincecum still possesses one of the nastiest sinking change-ups in the game and that is his strike out pitch. Bruce Bochy still has faith in this guy, which is why he is giving Tim another chance to keep himself in the rotation and using the offseason and spring to prove something. Benching Lincecum for the majority of the playoffs may of sparked to prove something for 2015 and beyond. While it is difficult to do, Lincecum took it with a level head and I feel he is going to use the best out of it. This offseason and spring is crucial for Lincecum and the Giants if they want to solidify a quiet offseason. While the Giants didn't sign a James Shields, Jon Lester, or Max Scherzer, they may of found themselves their own free agent signing in existing Giants pitcher, Tim Lincecum. In 8 seasons, Lincecum has earned 3 World Series rings, 2 Cy Young's, and 2 no-hitters. Do you let those kind of accolades leave your franchise? 2015 is going to be Tim Lincecum's resurgence and a return of "The Freak".
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