Tim Lincecum - Biography
Reprinted with Permission from Jockbio.com
The Freak. The Franchise. Seabiscuit. In baseball, nicknames aren’t hard to come by, especially when you look like a batboy but pitch like a hall of famer. Welcome to the world of Tim Lincecum. The good-natured San Francisco Giants ace has heard every name in the book —and laughed off every last one. That’s a lot easier to do after he has blown away a hitter with his exploding fastball or turned him into a pretzel with his breaking stuff or changeup. As far as Tim is concerned, you can call him anything you want—just don’t call him late for his next start. This is his story.
GROWING UP
Timothy LeRoy Lincecum was born on June 15, 1984 in Bellevue, Washington. (Click here for a complete listing of today's sports birthdays.) His parents, Chris and Rebecca, welcomed their first son, Sean, four years earlier. The family was active, and the boys loved sports.
Chris and Rebecca were big music fans. The car radio was usually tuned to a rock station. Tim was enamored by the Beatles and had an amazing ear for lyrics. Today, teammates often refer to him as "the human juke box."
Chris had a technical job with Boeing. Blessed with an analytical mind, he was constantly pouring over data in an attempt to build a better airplane. This practice spilled over into another obsession, throwing a baseball. A great pitcher in his younger days, Chris learned how to grip a curveball at age six. By his teens, he was thinking of a pro career, but a serious injury to his back ended his big-league aspirations. His fascination with pitching mechanics, however, only grew.
Sean was the first to benefit from his dad’s knowledge. Tall and beefy, he had the frame for success in any sport. Not only did Sean excel on the mound, he was a terror on the football field.
Tim, by contrast, was much smaller and more wiry than this big brothers. He would tag along with Sean and his dad during their pitching sessions and mimic everything he saw. As it turned out, Tim had the perfect body for Chris’s unique windup, a series of torso turns and arm whipping action punctuated by a long stride toward the plate. In recent years, coaches, writers and broadcasters have speculated that Chris developed his signature ptiching motion by studying Sandy Koufax. He says the delivery is completely his own creation.
Chris and Rebecca worked in tandem to help push along Tim’s career. His mother drove him to and from practice and games. His father focused on Tim’s performance on the hill. Chris videotaped his son’s games, and the two analyzed each outing together. Chris also developed a series of hand signals for Tim. During games, he would flash them to his son, letting him know when he was making mistakes in his mechanics.
While Sean’s career stalled after he broke an arm, Tim continued to improve—though his coaches didn’t always recognize it. Tim was normally chosen for All-Star teams as a kid, but he spent most his time watching from the bench. The problem was his size. He was so much smaller than his teammates that he rarely got a chance to play.
When Tim entered Liberty High School in Renton, he stood just 4-11 and weighed all of 85 pounds. Incredibly flexible, the teeanger was much stronger than he appeared, thanks mostly to a weight training program devised by Chris. Tim could do a back flip from a standing start and walk across the room on his hands.
Tim made the varsity for the first time as a junior. By then, he had sprouted by nearly 12 inches. Tim had a great year for the Patriots, going 4-2 with a 0.73 ERA. He struck out 86 batters in 49 innings.
Tim soon began to attract the attention of college coaches in the area. Ken Knutson, the head baseball man at the University of Washington, came to Liberty for a visit. Initially, he thought someone was pulling a fast one on him —until he saw Tim throw off the mound. Then Knutson was convinced.
Tim was lights-out for Liberty High in his senior year. Named Washington’s Gatorade Player of the Year, he led the Patriots to the Class 3A state championship. Tim went 12-1 with a 0.70 ERA and 183 strikeouts in 91.2 innings. He was an easy selection as Liberty’s MVP and First Team All-State.
ON THE RISE
Tim’s season—and his prospects as a major leaguer—seemed to change almost instantly during one game. He had always thrown hard, but his mechanics suddenly began to click perfectly. With scouts in attendance, his velocity jumped into the 90s. The Chicago Cubs were impressed enough to spend a draft pick on him. Tim turned them down, settling instead on the Huskies. Knutson promised that he would not fiddle with Tim’s mechanics.
Not that Knutson needed to. Tim was sensational in his first year with Washington, becoming the first player ever to be named Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year. He led the conference in strikeouts, and only Long Beach State’s Jered Weaver averaged more Ks per nine innings. Tim was dominant from the start of the season to the end. His best outing came against Loyola, as he threw one-hit ball and fanned 15 over six innings.
That summer, Tim joined the Seattle Studs, an amateur team that played in tournaments all over the country. He led the club to the National Baseball Congress World Series, where he won one game. Baseball America later named him the top prospect in the Pacific International League.
Tim continued his mastery over Pac-10 hitters during his sophomore year. An all-conference selection for the second season in a row, he allowed a measly .179 batting average against him. Over his last nine starts, he surrendered just 32 hits and 17 earned runs.
The Cleveland Indians were among the teams drooling over Tim’s potential. They drafted him the 42nd round, but Tim again said no to the big leagues.
Instead, he traveled to the East Coast to pitch for the Harwich Mariners in the Cape Cod League. Used as a starter and reliever, Tim went 2-2 with seven saves and a 0.69 ERA. Again, Tim’s fortunes benefited from another amazing single-inning performance. During the CCL All-Star Game, with scouts in full attendance, he registered 98 mph on the radar gun. His pro stock jumped immediately.
Tim entered his junior year with the Huskies as one of the nation’s top college prospects. He proceeded to have a season for the ages, setting school records with 12 wins and 199 Ks. Tim was named National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball six times and made the College Baseball Foundation's weekly honor roll seven times. He was voted Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week after striking out 16 in eight innings against Oregon State. In a shutout of UCLA, he went the distance and fanned 18.
Tim consistently threw in the high 90s and was clocked at 101 mph at one point. During one stretch, he went 37 innings without giving up a run. Baseball America ranked him as the country's second-best amateur prospect, and he won the the Golden Spikes Award as the nation's best amateur baseball player.
Still, a lot of teams weren’t convinced. Some scouts saw Tim’s small frame and assumed he wouldn’t be able to handle the rigors of pro ball. Nine clubs passed on him before the Giants selected him with the 10th pick in the 2006 draft. Even then, San Francisco GM Brian Sabean referred to him as "Tiny Tim."
For more fun facts and quotes by Tim Lincecum and about him, please visit JockBio.com
 | ||||
Getty Images
| ||||
Click photos to enlarge
AP
Tim Lincecum Biography & Stats
PHOTO ALBUM
Click Photos To Enlargee
The information below was sent out by the Giants in September 2008 to the Baseball Writers who vote for the National League Cy Young Award. Enjoy!
TIM LINCECUM
17-5, 2.66 ERA
Giants right-handed pitcher Tim Lincecum has posted a remarkable 2008 season and is a candidate of earning one of baseball's highest honors. He currently leads all Major League pitchers in strikeouts and ranks third overall in ERA, along with ranking third in winning percentage. Listed throughout this packet is just a handful of Lincecum's achievements this season and what his peers, managers and other former Cy Young award winners have said about the Giants' ace this year. • leads majors with 252 strikeouts and is 2nd in NL with a 2.66 ERA...is also tied for 2nd in NL for wins with 17 and 2nd in circuit with 25 quality starts, while his .773 winning pct. and .223 opponents avg. against leads all NL starters... • also ranks among NL leaders in strikeouts per 9.0 innings (1st 10.3), along with allowing fewest homers per 9.0 innings in senior circuit this season (0.45)... • his 2.22 ERA on the road is lowest among all NL leaders, while his 10 road victories are tied for the 2nd-most in NL...in fact his .833 winning pct. on the road this year was 2nd best in SF history...only pitcher to have just 1 loss in at least 10 road decisions was Jason Schmidt in 2004 (9-1, .900)... • has left with the lead in 5 contests this season in which he was eligible for the win, but bullpen squandered lead and he wound up with no decision...Brandon Webb has had just 1 such game this season... • has posted lowest avg. against with runners in scoring position in majors this season (.164, 31-for-189)... • has proven to be SF's stopper this season, going 13-3 with a 2.85 ERA (51er, 161.0) in 24 games following Giants losses, with club winning 16 of 24 contests...is 1st pitcher with at least 13 wins in season following his teams’ losses since Paul Byrd, Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez and Barry Zito each had 13 wins in 2002... • is 13-1 this season with 2.87 ERA (45er, 141.0ip) when Giants score at least 3 runs of support for him (21 starts)... • established SF-era single-season strikeout record with 252, surpassing Jason Schmidt’s 2004 total of 251...is currently 11th on franchise’s all-time list, with Mickey Welch establshing Giants standard of 345 for 1884 New York club... • is 9th Giant since 1900 to record 200 strikeouts in season, 22nd occurrence... • has posted 17-5 mark, logging most wins by Giants pitcher since Schmidt went 18-7 in 2004...
LOWEST ERA IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 9. Pitcher Johan Santana, NY Tim Lincecum, SF Jake Peavy, SD Ben Sheets, MIL Ryan Dempster, CHI Brandon Webb, AZ ERA 2.64 2.66 2.85 2.98 2.99 3.24 Rank 1. 2t.
QUOTES ABOUT LINCECUM
“To have the numbers that he does on a team that’s below .500 is that much more impressive,” Arizona Manager Bob Melvin said Tuesday, a day after watching his lineup get sliced up by Lincecum. San Jose Mercury News “He’s got some of the best stuff in the game, if not the best,” – Brian McCann, Atlanta Journal-Sentinel “Muhammad Ali and Michael Jordan were unorthodox and people couldn’t do what they do,” Arizona second baseman Orlando Hudson said. “He might be put right in that category one day. I like him. I hope he stays healthy. He’s a guy who can be around a while and be a 15-game winner every year. He has electrifying stuff and he’s like Dwight Gooden.” USA TODAY Asked which stats should be important in Cy Young voting, Webb said, “A good judge is ERA.” - Brandon Webb, San Francisco Chronicle “He’s got some of the nastiest stuff I’ve ever seen.” – Hunter Pence, San Francisco Chronicle “If you look at it,” said Barry Zito, the only current Giant who won a Cy Young Award (with Oakland in 2002), “strikeouts and ERA are in your control. Wins and (reaching the) playoffs are not.” - San Francisco Chronicle
MOST WINS IN NL, 2008
Pitcher Brandon Webb, AZ, Tim Lincecum, SF,Ryan Dempster, CHI Edinson Volquez, CIN Roy Oswalt, HOU WINS 22 17 17 17 17
HIGHEST WINNING PCT. IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3t. 5. Pitcher WIN PCT. Tim Lincecum, SF .773 Brandon Webb, AZ .759 Ryan Dempster, CHI .739 Edinson Volquez, CIN .739 Kyle Lohse, STL .714 Rank 1. 2. 3. 4t.
MOST STRIKEOUTS IN NL, 2008
Pitcher Tim Lincecum, SF Edinson Volquez, CIN Chad Billingsley, LA Dan Haren, AZ Johan Santana, NY 10t. Brandon Webb, AZ
*NOTE ALL STATS AS OF SEPT. 26, K'S 252 206 199 197 197 176 2008
QUOTES ABOUT LINCECUM
“[Lincecum] being so good, it’s going to bring the best out of other people,” Pelfrey said. “You kind of look at it like ‘It’s a challenge. This guy is one of the best in the league.’ You know you’ve got to go out and perform.’’ - Mike Pelfrey, New York Post “He goes right after the hitters,” said the Hall of Fame right-hander. “I don’t think anyone’s scaring him at all. That’s what you need, confidence.” – Gaylord Perry, MLB.com “He’s got good stuff,” Jackson said. “From what I saw tonight, that’s the best arm I’ve seen all year, no doubt. You’ve got to almost hit a ball right down the middle. You’re going to pop up the ball at your bellybutton, which we all did tonight, and the one down, it’s coming in at 98 [mph], you’re not going to put too much good wood on it. Even the ones down the middle are coming at 98. He’s good, man.” – Conor Jackson, MLB.com “Complete domination,” Giants shortstop Omar Vizquel said. “Amazing.” Los Angeles Times “If a guy on a so-called lesser club can put up those numbers, maybe that’s more impressive” – Bob Melvin, Los Angeles Times Wally Joyner, former Padres hitting coach, asked if Lincecum reminded him of any pitchers he faced: “How many Hall of Famers should I name? He’s the best guy in the league right now. I can’t think of anybody better.” – San Jose Mercury News “He’s a throwback for Giant fans to Juan Marichal,” Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said of the Hall of Famer. “He gets on top of the ball. He’s like a whirling dervish out there. He’s got some deception, he’s got thump with the fastball. He’s got a sharp breaking ball, he’s got a slider. And, then, he has that filthy changeup. He was on tonight.” – San Francisco Examiner
• has posted a 4-2 record with a 3.27 ERA (16er, 44.0ip) in 7 games against playoff contending teams this season (CHI, NYM, MIL, LA, PHI)...Cy Young candidate Brandon Webb has gone 3-2 with a 4.50 ERA (29er, 58ip) in 9 games... • has forged 8-3 mark with a 2.43 figure (31er, 115ip) in 17 contests this season against NL West foes, while Webb has logged 10-3 mark with a 3.48 ERA (36er, 93.0ip) in 14 games... • Tim Lincecum is among top 7 pitchers with highest differences over their teams’ winning percentages in Major League history with +.333 difference this season (min. 15 wins) (courtesy Elias Sports Bureau)... DIF +.411 +.399 +.383 +.355 +.352 +.345 +.333 YEAR 1959 1937 2008 1995 1972 1984 2008 PITCHER Roy Face (PIT) Johnny Allen (CLE) Cliff Lee (CLE) Randy Johnson (SEA) Steve Carlton (PHI) Rick Sutcliffe (CHI) Tim Lincecum (SF) W-L 18-1 (.947) 15-1 (.938) 22-3 (.880) 18-2 (.900) 27-10 (.730) 16-1 (.941) 17-5 (.773) TEAM W-L 78-76 (.506) 83-71 (.539) 79-80 (.497) 79-66 (.545) 59-97 (.378) 96-65 (.596) 70-89 (.440)
• Giants are 16-5 (.762) in Lincecum's starts this season...the D'Backs are 23-10 (.697) when Webb is on the hill... • Lincecum could become the fourth pitcher ever to finish 13 games above .500 for a team that is at least 13 games below .500, according to the Elias Sports Bureau...Steve Carlton won the NL Cy Young when he went 27-10 for the 1972 Phillies (59-97)...the other two were pre-Cy Young Award days - Eddie Rommell, 27-13 with the 1922 Athletics (65-89), and Dazzy Vance, 22-0 for the 1925 Brooklyn Dodgers (68-85)... • in each of the 9 statistical charts (NL leaders) that are listed in this packet, Lincecum ranks either 1st or 2nd in each category (1st - 6, 2nd- 3)...Webb is listed in just 4 of the 9 categories and ranks 1st or 2nd twice (1st - 1, 2nd - 1, 3rd - 1, 5th - 1)...the only category that Lincecum trails Webb in is wins...
LOWEST OPPONENT AVG. IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 12. Pitcher Tim Lincecum, SF Cole Hamels, PHI Ryan Dempster, CHC Jake Peavy, SD Edinson Volquez, CIN Brandon Webb, AZ AVG. .223 .227 .227 .229 .232 .243
FEWEST HR'S ALLOWED PER 9 IP IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Pitcher Tim Lincecum, SF,Mike Pelfrey, NYM, Ubaldo Jimenez, COL, Jair Jurrjens, ATL, Brandon Webb, ARI HR/9 0.45 0.51 0.52 0.53 0.53
MOST QUALITY STARTS IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3. 4t. Pitcher Johan Santana, NYM Tim Lincecum, SF Brandon Webb, ARI Cole Hamels, PHI Dan Haren, ARI QS 27 25 24 23 23
LOWEST ROAD ERA IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 9. Pitcher Tim Lincecum, SF Edinson Volquez, CIN Jamie Moyer, PHI Todd Wellemeyer, STL Johan Santana, NYM Brandon Webb, AZ ERA 2.22 2.43 2.92 2.98 3.00 3.24
FEWEST HITS ALLOWED PER 9 IP IN NL, 2008
Rank 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 10. Pitcher Tim Lincecum, SF Jake Peavy, SD Ryan Dempster, CHC Cole Hamels, PHI Oliver Perez, NYM Brandon Webb, AZ H/9 7.28 7.57 7.59 7.64 7.67 8.19
*NOTE ALL STATS AS OF SEPT. 26, 2008
| ||||
Photo by Lizzy Ramone
| ||||
AP
“He has absolutely filthy, nasty stuff. He’s one of the best pitchers in the league.”
Ryan Braun,
Milwaukee Brewers 3B
Tim Lincecum Stats
PHOTO ALBUM
Click Photos To Enlargee
| ||||
“He has three almost unhittable pitches. When he throws those off-speed pitches where he wants, you’ve got no chance.”
Lance Berkman
Houston Astros All-Star 1B
Another look at Tim Lincecum
by Josh Kalk
The Hardball Times, Reprinted with permission
November 18, 2008
During the last offseason, I gushed over Tim Lincecum and his incredible tools. Now that Lincecum has taken home the Cy Young award, I want to do my first rewrite of a player, to look at Lincecum's evolution this year and how he went from an excellent pitcher to the best pitcher in the National League.
First, though, a small correction to the previous article. Tim Lincecum's fastball is actually a two-seamer, not a four-seam fastball. Despite being able to throw his fastball in the mid-90s and with a ton of vertical "rise," Lincecum does not use four seams. Big thanks to Icon for this excellent picture showing Lincecum's fastball. You have to look closely, but once you see the seams, it is easy to tell this is a two-seamer. For more on fastball grips check this site.
Really, whether it is a four-seamer or two-seamer doesn't matter because of the excellent action of the pitch. Here is a look at the movement of Lincecum's pitches.
| ||||
Tim Lincecum throwing his two-seam fastball (Icon/SMI)
Lincecum's fastball averages 95 mph, which is overpowering, but he combines that with 11 inches of vertical movement and only three inches of horizontal movement. The small horizontal movement is because Lincecum throws his fastball from almost completely over the top. Because his fastball has little horizontal movement, it is effective against both right- and left-handed batters. Pitchers who throw more sidearm generally specialize in similarly handed batters. The overpowering speed is great, but the movement of the pitch makes it so much better.
For off-speed pitches, Lincecum throws a change-up, slider and curveball. While the change-up and curveball were holdovers from last year, Lincecum added a slider this year—about two sliders in 100 pitches. Lincecum had thrown a slider in college, but it was scrapped when he was drafted. You can see why Lincecum didn't use his slider often—it has almost no horizontal movement, which is important.
Lincecum's curveball is a very hard one, averaging 80 mph, similar to Ben Sheets'. Also like Sheets, he gets good vertical drop, and that combination is absolutely deadly. Here is a look at Lincecum's average fastball and curve from the side.
Because of its speed, Lincecum can hide his curve extremely well. His curveball's hump is absolutely tiny and he is letting it go from exactly the same release point. That gives a hitter no clue that the pitch is coming. But fooling hitters is only part of the equation. You then have to have the pitch drop enough so the hitter is swinging over the curve. That is where the vertical movement comes in; you can see the result with the huge differential when the pitch reaches home plate. That combination is what makes the pitch so effective.
As good as Lincecum's curve is, I don't feel it is his best off-speed pitch. That pitch is his change-up, which has identical horizontal movement to his fastball with about half a foot less vertical "rise." In addition, Lincecum has an excellent speed differential of almost 11 mph. That is extremely strong. When you look at his change-up and fastball, you see an even more devastating combination than his curveball/fastball.
There isn't any way for a hitter to identify the change-up here until the ball is right on top of him. If his change-up had different horizontal movement than his fastball, hitters could use that, but again, Lincecum's change-up has identical horizontal movement. This is one of the best change-ups in the world right now and you hear almost nothing about it. The scary thing is Lincecum just started throwing this pitch when he signed with the Giants. Whoever taught Lincecum his change in the Giants organization deserves a huge raise.
Usage
While Lincecum's pitches are electric, plenty of pitchers have electric stuff. What made Lincecum the best pitcher in the National League this year was how he used those pitches. Last year, he used his curve a little more than his change-up and used it mostly as his strikeout pitch. This year, Lincecum used his change-up more often and with two strikes much more frequently. As I mentioned last week while writing about Brett Myers, breaking pitches that move away from the hitter tend to be more effective than breaking pitches that move toward the hitter. For a right-handed pitcher, this means more change-ups to left-handed batters and more curveballs to right-handed batters. Lincecum absolutely followed that pattern this year.
Type RHB LHB
Curve 18 7.5
Change 11 27
(all values in percent)
Notice that Lincecum still throws some curves to left-handed batters and some change-ups to right-handed batters. He can get away with that more than other pitchers because he throws over the top and his change-up and curve have less horizontal movement. Pitchers like Myers who have more horizontal movement with breaking pitches need to be more careful about this. This means that right-handed batters can't just forget about Lincecum's change-up and focus on his fastball and curveball. Just another thing for hitters to worry about when facing Lincecum.
Conclusions
I hope this article has convinced you that Tim Lincecum is far more than just his 95 mph fastball. While speed is great, Lincecum's movement on his pitches is also excellent. Lincecum's off-speed pitches mesh incredibly well with his fastball and this year he threw the right pitch for the situation time and time again.
Not only is Lincecum blessed with great stuff, but clearly knows how to pitch and that is a deadly combination. Expect him to be one of the best pitchers in the league for many years to come.
Josh Kalk is a physics and math geek who can also be found blogging at http://www.baseball.bornbybits.com/blog/blog.html.
He enjoys good conversations about baseball and can be reached at joshkalk@gmail.com.
Tim's 2009 Stats
Wins:15 Losses:7
E.R.A. 2.48
Strikeouts: 261
Career K's: 676
Tim Lincecum
& San Francisco Giants' Probable Start Schedule: Click Here
Click here for Tim's Professional Career Statistics
| ||||
