Mercury News
TLANTA -- What emotions does it stir to know that Tim Lincecum is an 11-10 pitcher? Anger? Despair? Liquid hot volcanic outrage?
Or perhaps all of the above?
Lincecum sure appeared to bubble, simmer and seethe on the bench during the ninth inning Thursday night, as the Giants put the futile, finishing swings on a 1-0 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
But afterward, in front of notebooks and microphones, he was placid, earnest Timmy.
"Regardless of it happening consistently, or on an everyday basis, it doesn't matter," he said quietly, after losing on Chipper Jones' home run in the fifth inning. "You've got to compete with what you have on a given day. I seem to have a knack for giving up that go-ahead home run. If I can just eliminate that, I'm sure we'd be a lot more successful."
The obvious follow-up point: Almost any home run Lincecum allows is a go-ahead shot. For the 10th time in his 25 starts, the Giants failed to score one measly run for their two-time Cy Young Award winner.
This one was damaging. The Giants dropped three of four at Turner Field, where they've won just once in 18 regular-season series. So much for tightening up the N.L. wild-card race. The Braves hold a six-game edge again.
"We didn't have too many guys on base and, really, didn't get too many good swings off," said Giants manager Bruce Bochy, after left-hander Mike Minor and three relievers held a collection of slow bats to five hits. "Even when you're facing good pitching, you've got to find a way to get a run."
Lincecum held an opponent to one run or fewer for the ninth time in his past 11 starts. He has a 1.17 ERA in seven assignments since the All-Star break but just a 4-3 record over that span.
His 2.53 ERA is third best in the N.L. Yet he's already matched his career high for losses in a season.
This is a trail frequently taken by Lincecum, Matt Cain and Co. But has it reached the point where the manager needs to tell them to buck up?
"I don't think so," Bochy said. "They've done a great job dealing with that. They can't control it. It's natural, don't get me wrong, to be frustrated. Losing isn't fun. But there's nothing else he can do, other than hit two home runs.
"We can't get shut out. That's our fault."
Lincecum continued to say all the right things. But is it easier said than done?
"Well, yeah, but everybody is frustrated in here," he said. "You can't point fingers at any one person. Today was one of those days. Teams will get shut out. You'll have close games, 1-0 games. You've just got to prepare for your next start and put it behind me. Put it behind us, actually.
"I want to go out there and throw a shutout every time I can. Just like all of us. We're perfectionists. That one run is going to be crucial, whether it's ours or the other team getting it."
It's usually not Bochy's style to play for one run. Early in the game, he generally prefers mass production to a manufacturing style that involves giving away outs.
He didn't play for one run in the first inning, after Cody Ross hit a leadoff double. Orlando Cabrera showed bunt early -- a decision he made on his own -- but ended up swinging away and went down on a called third strike.
There was a bit of Bochy's signature buzzard's luck involved. Cabrera barely missed a double in the at-bat when his line drive to right field bounced a foot foul. Aubrey Huff hit a hard out to third base to end the inning, too.
Still, Bochy was asked why he didn't have Cabrera sacrifice in the first -- or after Ross hit a leadoff single in the third.
"In that situation, no, because I've got a professional hitter up there," Bochy said. "He's a foot away from a double there. No, we took three shots at getting that run in."
Cabrera blamed himself, saying, "I really believe if I move the runner, we're still playing right now."
The Giants' chances dried up against Minor. They didn't advance a runner into scoring position after the second inning.
"We've got to get that mojo back," said Bochy, apparently remembering a time when his hitters actually had it.
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