Thursday, November 19, 2009

Lincecum's the one; that makes two Cys


Wainwright finishes third despite getting most first-place votes

Chris Haft
MLB.com
From now on, when Tim Lincecum steps onto the pitcher's mound, he'll stand alone in more ways than one.

Many pitchers have recorded more victories and strikeouts than Lincecum. Several have earned more Cy Young Awards. None, however, thrived to the extent that Lincecum has during a career that has been as brilliant as it is brief.

On Thursday, Lincecum became the only pitcher to capture the Cy Young Award in each of his first two full Major League seasons. The Giants right-hander was named the National League's repeat winner Thursday in balloting conducted by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

"It's a tremendous honor for me," said Lincecum, 25. "To be up there and do what I've done means the world."

Several aspects of Lincecum's triumph combined novelty with history:

• This was one of the closest Cy Young votes ever. In balloting that assigned five points for a first-place vote, three for a second-place vote and one for a third-place nod, Lincecum totaled 100 points and 11 first-place votes. He edged St. Louis right-handers Chris Carpenter (nine first-place votes, 94 points) and Adam Wainwright (12 first-place votes, 90 points).

"Both the guys I was going up against had tremendous seasons," Lincecum said, calling Wainwright a "workhorse" and praising Carpenter's speedy comeback from injuries.

The 10-point margin separating the top three finishers was the second-closest in NL voting. It's exceeded only by the 1987 results, in which Philadelphia reliever Steve Bedrosian edged Chicago's Rick Sutcliffe, 57-55, while Rick Reuschel, who pitched for both the Pittsburgh Pirates and Giants that season, finished third with 54 points.

Lincecum's six-point victory matched the third-closest election in the NL since the ballot expanded from one to three pitchers in 1970. Chicago's Bruce Sutter also scored a six-point victory in 1979, edging Houston's Joe Niekro, 72-66. In strike-shortened 1981, Los Angeles' Fernando Valenzuela nipped Cincinnati's Tom Seaver, 70-67, in the second-most contested 1-2 finish.

"I had no idea how this voting might go, because of the other two candidates," Giants general manager Brian Sabean said.

• Lincecum set a new standard by winning the Cy Young with 15 victories, the smallest total for a Cy Young winner who was a full-time starting pitcher in a non-strike-shortened season. The previous low was established in 2006 by Arizona's Brandon Webb (16-8) and tied only Tuesday by Kansas City's Zack Greinke (16-8), the 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner.

Lincecum's 15-7 finish paled beside the records compiled by Carpenter (17-4, 2.24 ERA, 144 strikeouts) and Wainwright (19-8, 2.63 ERA, 212 strikeouts). Lincecum's victory total not only tied him for fourth in the league with seven other pitchers but also represented a dip from last year, when he went 18-5 and joined 1967 Cy Young recipient Mike McCormick to become only the second Giant to win the award. Yet Lincecum earned 23 of 32 first-place votes despite amassing four fewer victories than Webb.

While Wainwright led the league in victories and Carpenter was tops in ERA, Lincecum led the league with 261 strikeouts, reflecting his dominance. His superiority in more esoteric statistical categories also was believed to have influenced voters in his favor.

"You can see where it's taken a turn to complete numbers," Lincecum said, referring to the evolving thought process of Cy Young electors.

Lincecum led the Major Leagues by making seven starts in which he worked at least eight innings and didn't allow an earned run. Greinke recorded five such outings. Carpenter and Wainwright had four and three, respectively. Lincecum's eight double-digit strikeout performances, highlighted by his 15-strikeout effort July 27 against Pittsburgh, represented another Major League best.

Lincecum topped Wainwright and Carpenter in several other statistical categories, including opponents' batting average, strikeouts per nine innings and strikeout-to-walk ratio.Wainwright became only the second pitcher to garner the most first-place votes and not win the award. In 1998, Atlanta's Tom Glavine collected 11 first-place votes to 13 for San Diego's Trevor Hoffman but amassed the most points, 98-88, and took home the trophy.

The simple fact that a scrawny, 5-foot-11, 170-pounder could transform himself into one of the game's most elite pitchers since making his Major League debut in May 2007 is singular enough. So it seemed fitting that Lincecum could defy conventional elements such as vote totals.

"I never could have seen this happening growing up. You try to put in the hard work and do the good things necessary to put yourself in this position," said Lincecum, who thanked his father, Chris, the man most responsible for his pitching development.

Lincecum also expressed gratitude to teammates, the Giants organization, manager Bruce Bochy, pitching coach Dave Righetti, the fans and catcher Bengie Molina. "He's half the reason I'm here," Lincecum said of Molina, a free agent who's unlikely to re-sign with San Francisco.

Lincecum clearly improved overall upon his first Cy Young season. He trimmed his ERA from 2.62 to 2.48. Opponents hit .206 off him this season, compared to .221 in 2008. After walking 84 in 227 innings a year ago, he improved to 68 walks in 225 1/3 innings this season.

The NL's starter in this year's All-Star Game, Lincecum became the first Giant to lead the league in strikeouts for two years in a row since Hall of Famer Christy Mathewson (1907-08). Lincecum also topped the NL with 26 quality starts while ranking second in ERA and opponents' batting average and third in innings. He tied teammate Matt Cain for the league lead with four complete games and joined four other pitchers atop the NL list with two shutouts.

Lincecum is the first pitcher to win consecutive Cy Young Awards since Randy Johnson, a Giant in 2009, won four in a row with the Arizona Diamondbacks from 1999-2002. Other back-to-back winners include Pedro Martinez (1999-2000), Roger Clemens (1997-98 and 1986-87), Greg Maddux (1992-95), Jim Palmer (1975-76), Denny McLain (1968-69; he shared the honor in the latter year with Mike Cuellar) and Sandy Koufax (1965-66).

At the conclusion of a nationwide conference call, Lincecum read a statement expressing contrition for being cited earlier this month for possessing a small amount of marijuana and a smoking pipe in his car in Clark County, Wash. County prosecutors and Lincecum reached a standard plea agreement, but he must appear in court in Vancouver, Wash., on Dec. 22.

"I made a mistake and regret my actions earlier this month in Washington," he said. "I want to apologize to the Giants organization and to the fans. I know that as a professional athlete I have a responsibility to conduct myself appropriately both on and off the field. I certainly have learned a valuable lesson through all of this and I promise to do better in the future. In the meantime, I am focused on preparing for the 2010 season."

Lincecum departed slightly from the text of the statement at an AT&T Park news conference, earnestly saying that he "completely" regretted the incident, owed apologies "especially" to the fans before concluding, in part, "I want to say that this will never happen again."


Giants to show patience with free agency

Club expected to take time while looking to improve offense

Chris Haft
MLB.com
When Brian Sabean recently announced that he planned to exercise stealth instead of speed in pursuing free agents this offseason, the Giants general manager probably didn't have history in mind.

But it's worth noting that the Giants haven't shopped methodically in the open market since the 2001-02 offseason -- which preceded their last National League pennant.

Sabean typically has reached quickly into free agency's grab bag to fill the Giants' needs. San Francisco imported at least one significant free agent from outside the organization by Dec. 15 in the previous six offseasons.

By that date last year, the Giants had signed relievers Jeremy Affeldt and Bob Howry and shortstop Edgar Renteria. The year before that, the primary early addition was center Aaron Rowand. He followed outfielder Dave Roberts, infielder Rich Aurilia and catcher Bengie Molina (2006), right-hander Matt Morris (2005), shortstop Omar Vizquel, right-hander Armando Benitez and catcher Mike Matheny (2004) and second baseman Ray Durham and outfielder Marquis Grissom (2003).

But in the winter of 2001-02, the Giants didn't sign a newcomer until Jan. 5, when they secured outfielder Reggie Sanders. They added third baseman David Bell on Jan. 25. Both played key roles on the club that came excruciatingly close to winning the World Series, but was defeated in seven games by the Angels.

The Giants again should have the luxury of taking their time as open bidding for free agents starts Friday and they pursue their primary objective: Finding a qualified hitter or two who can play the infield or outfield corners. The financial crunch that has affected the entire industry is expected to decelerate the pace of negotiations. Though Matt Holliday and Jason Bay are the only true impact hitters available in free agency, the Giants should be able to wait for the right deal if they consider less-celebrated performers such as Mark DeRosa, Nick Johnson, Chone Figgins and Jermaine Dye.

"It's not a very attractive free-agent market, in my mind," Sabean said.

An 88-74 finish in 2009, representing a 16-game improvement, has enabled the Giants to resume entertaining postseason hopes. But they know they'll get shut out of October unless they improve their offense, which ranked 13th in scoring.

Economic constraints might prevent the Giants from being able to afford either Holliday or Jason Bay. Left-hander Barry Zito is owed $76 million over the next four years and Rowand is due $12 million in each of the next three seasons, consuming a substantial chunk of the payroll. Moreover, ace right-hander Tim Lincecum and closer Brian Wilson become eligible for salary arbitration for the first time and are thus destined for huge raises.

But Sabean hinted that if the Giants somehow fashion a creative offer for either Holliday or Bay, managing general partner Bill Neukom will at least listen to the proposal. "If we have something compelling baseball-wise to bring to him, he certainly will consider it and take it through the proper channels," Sabean said. "I think we'll have the latitude to see what we can recommend."

Expect the Giants' recommendations to come from the free-agent list. Sabean said earlier this week that a trade seemed unlikely, since he's reluctant to part with pitching assets that other teams covet.

The Giants have expressed interest in retaining at least three of their own free agents -- Molina, right-hander Brad Penny and infielder Juan Uribe -- but Sabean indicated that all of them will test the market.


Thursday, November 12, 2009

From: Sports Illustrated/SI.com

San Francisco Giants


PENDING FREE AGENTS: C Bengie Molina, SP Brad Penny, RP Bobby Howry, SP Randy Johnson, OF Randy Winn, IF Juan Uribe, IF Rich Aurilia, OF Dave Roberts, SP Noah Lowry.

PLAYERS WITH OPTIONS: None.

PROSPECTS ON THE VERGE: C Buster Posey, SP Madison Bumgarner, UT Matt Downs, 3B Jesus Guzman, 3B Ryan Rohlinger.

BUILDING FOR: Remaining in contention by consolidating gains.

BIGGEST HOLES: The offense around Pablo Sandoval.

TARGETS: LF Jason Bay, LF Matt Holliday, LF Johnny Damon, RF Jermaine Dye, UT Chone Figgins, OF Rick Ankiel, OF Andruw Jones, 3B Troy Glaus, OF/1B Xavier Nady.

BREAKDOWN: The Giants were surprise contenders this year thanks to the majors' second-best pitching staff (just a tick behind the Dodgers), and that staff will be even stronger in 2010 with the arrival of top prospect Bumgarner. However, the Giants' offensive attack was, well, offensive, ranking 26th in the majors. (If the 2009 Giants offense was a movie, it would have been Sandoval and the Seven Dwarfs.) The Giants just re-upped deadline acquisition Freddy Sanchez at second base and are locked into Edgar Renteria at shortstop and Aaron Rowand in center, but they have hot prospect Posey ready to succeed Molina behind the plate and no obligations at the four corners other than to play Sandoval at first or third. Bay and Holliday are obviously the belles of the ball, but Figgins would provide on-base ability and speed at the top of the order and play a strong third base, pushing Sandoval to first. Damon and Dye are defensively-challenged short-term solutions, but the Giants' options are so dismal in the outfield corners, and the pitching staff so adept at striking hitters out (a major league-best 8.1 K/9 in '09), that it would be worth sacrificing defense for their offense. Ankiel, Jones and Glaus are high-upside gambles similarly worth taking. Nady is a bit too much like Ryan Garko, but if there's a team he can help, it's this one.


Hot Stove from the GM Meetings

Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi
FOXSports.com

Giants trying to bring Uribe back in '10 — 2:49 p.m.

The Giants are still talking with infielder Juan Uribe about coming back to the team in 2010, sources said today.

Uribe's representatives touched base with Giants general manager Brian Sabean again today as the GM meetings adjourned.

The team was satisfied with Uribe's production as a part-time player this year.

Interest in Uggla ... at third base — 10:51 a.m.

The two teams showing the most interest in Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla would move him to third base.

The Giants and Orioles are the clubs in strongest pursuit of Uggla, according to major-league sources.

The Red Sox also have inquired, envisioning Uggla as a potential replacement for free agent Jason Bay in left field.

Uggla, 29, projects to earn approximately $8 million in arbitration. But in four major-league seasons, he has averaged 30 homers and 90 RBIs.

For the Giants, he would represent a more affordable addition than Bay or Matt Holliday. The Giants would play Uggla at third, Edgar Renteria at shortstop, Freddy Sanchez at second and Pablo Sandoval at first.

If Uggla went to the Orioles, he could replace free agent Melvin Mora at third base and also fill in at first base and DH.

The Orioles, awaiting the arrival of third-base prospect Josh Bell, do not want to block the position long-term. They also are concerned about Uggla's defense at third; their pitching is too weak for the team to give away outs. But the team would benefit from Uggla's right-handed power.

If the Marlins trade Uggla, they almost certainly will keep third baseman Jorge Cantu, who also is arbitration-eligible.

Cantu, 27, has driven in 195 runs the past two seasons and provides protection for shortstop Hanley Ramirez in the cleanup spot.

Emilio Bonifacio likely would replace Uggla at second, with top prospect Logan Morrison perhaps taking over at first.


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