A Star in the Making

[Islandboagie]

I thought this was an interesting video.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqCVaso-V0U

[sharksrog]

Did the video just black out after about 10 minutes? I surely enjoyed what I saw of it.

Four things that stood out:

. Early in the video, did you see the snap on Tim's curve? You heard the video say that Tim's 100 mph fastball wasn't even his best pitch. I don't know what happened to that curve, the one F.P. Santangelo used to call "snap nasty."

. I enjoyed seeing the clips of the game Tim pitched before his friends and family in Tacoma, located perhaps 15 miles from where Tim grew up. It is the one AAA game Tim pitched that I didn't get to see -- although I got a report on it from Chris.

. So cool to see the clips from Tim's debut day, although it just KILLED me that the graphic said May 7, 2007, when it actually took play on 5/6/7, Willie Mays' 76th birthday. Although Tim's debut was at best uneven, I remember the ooh's and ah's from the crowd when Tim hit triple digits on his second pitch.

I clearly remember the home run they showed Shane Victorino hit against Tim in the first inning. It came on the first curve of Tim's big league career. Tim wound up throwing 100 pitches, 85 of them fastballs.

I had forgotten that Jimmy Rollins had been going on the pitch. Rollins had begun Tim's major league career with a bouncing single up the middle.

. They showed Chris at the Willie Mays statue, which is pretty close to where I met him that day.

By the way, I enjoyed seeing Tim throw to his dad and also seeing Chris' throwing motion showed next to Tim's. Chris told me that they threw the same, and that Tim's older brother Sean threw the same way and had the same talent as Tim -- until Sean twice injured his throwing shoulder playing football.

Anyway, Boagie, thanks for the link. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Islandboagie]

You're very welcome, Rog. I thought you above all would enjoy it because you've talked to Chris in the past and have always been interested in Tim's mechanics.

I liked how the Seattle news media kinda gave it to the Mariners for passing on Lincecum. And eventhough there was a buzz at AT&T the day Lincecum made his debut, I think the reporters in these clips had a better idea of what the Giants were getting than the Bay Area media and the fans did. Some of the fans didn't even know how to pronounce Tim's name, which tells me they weren't fully educated on who Tim was prior to his arrival. I can't blame them too much because up to that point I think the last high draft pick that amounted to anything was Matt Williams. Now the feeling with the Giants prospects has taken a complete 180 and the expectations on them is very high.

[sharksrog]

Boagie -- I liked how the Seattle news media kinda gave it to the Mariners for passing on Lincecum.

Rog -- I liked it when the TV guy said the Mariners didn't draft Tim because he wasn't 6-4, 220. That is roughly the size of Brandon Morrow, the guy they DID draft ahead of Tim.

I thought it was ironic that the Mariners drafted the Bay Area guy (Brandon Morrow, out of Rancho Cotate High and UC Berkeley), while the Giants drafted the Seattle area kid (Liberty High School and the University of Washington).

I have mentioned this here already, but the key to the Giants' landing Tim was the Rockies. Drafting 3rd, the Rays were poised to take Tim after the Rockies drafted Evan Longoria. But the Rockies instead drafted a Stanford right-hander named Reynolds, leaving Longoria for the Rays.

In a way, one could say that Bay Area pitchers on both sides of the bay were instrumental in Tim's being available to the Giants. And that the Rockies not only hurt themselves (Reynolds became injured and hasn't done anything to speak of), but helped their rival Giants, as well.

And the Orioles helped out too, of course. Drafting immediately ahead of the Giants, Baltimore chose outfielder Billy Rowell. You might not have heard of Rowell. Plagued by position changes and a drug suspension, he hit .261 with a .718 OPS in the Orioles' minor leagues, finally making it as high as AA in 2011 and hitting .227 there.

Rowell didn't play a game last season and was released by the Orioles October 25th.

Not that it took brilliance for the Giants to draft Lincecum, who was considered to have enough talent to be taken #1 overall, but the only two of the nine teams drafting ahead of the Giants who did as well or better were the Rays at #3 with Longoria and the Dodgers at #5, 6 or 7 (forgot which) with Clayton Kershaw.

Morrow was traded by the Mariners and came on a bit last season. And of course, Tim had a HORRIBLE 2012. But at this point, no one aside from Longoria and Kershaw who were picked ahead of Tim has been close to him.

Read more: sfgiantsmessageboard.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=1604&page=1#9468#ixzz2NGYuCT7t

[sharksrog]

Boagie -- Some of the fans didn't even know how to pronounce Tim's name, which tells me they weren't fully educated on who Tim was prior to his arrival.

Rog -- When the Giants drafted Tim, I thought his name was pronounced "LINK-uh-cum." But something intrigued me about him, and suddenly I had seen more of his minor league career than anyone I am aware of and had met his dad over the internet.

And of course I got to meet Chris right before Tim's debut.

I was taken with the young kid who said as he was walking into the game that Tim's ERA at Fresno was 0.29.

Has there been any pitcher whose minor league career was a brief and successful as Tim's?

Read more: sfgiantsmessageboard.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=1604&page=1#ixzz2NGdIWfiu

[sfgdood]

even though we here in the Bay Area have heard the entire stories of Lincecum before it was fun to see it as it was happening. Interestingly he has gone back to the old short hair style he had in these old videos...will it signal a return of the CY Timmy? Not likely but if he even comes close, that would be great.

~Dood