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The last time we saw Tim Lincecum, he was wearing rally-monkey red and reminding us all that entropy will always win, that our cells will decay, and that we are all mortal and doomed. At least that’s what he reminded me of. It got a little dark. He also reminded me of 2010, though, which was nice.
He’s not gone yet, though.
FOR RELEASE:
— KyleB @ Driveline (@drivelinebases) December 19, 2017
Yes, this is Tim Lincecum at @DrivelineBB.
Yes, Adam Ottavino took the picture while training here.
Yes, Tim will throw for teams at a showcase in the near future.
No, I have no other information for you.
Send all communication to kyle@drivelinebaseball.com. pic.twitter.com/0N0cXHVUq8
That is Joseph Gordon-Levitt bulking up to play Gentleman Jack Dempsey in a movie about bare-knuckle boxing, and the mitt is a hilarious mistake made by someone in wardrobe. Or it might be Lincecum in the midst of a training session, looking like he’s very much in shape and ready to return to the world of baseball.
I would absolutely love it if Tim Lincecum returned to the world of baseball. Even with the Padres. Apologies if that seems blasphemous, but I truly mean it. If we can steal their Jake Peavy to win a World Series, we can appreciate their ability to extract happy fun times out of Lincecum.
The tweeter up there is Kyle Boddy, who is the proprietor of Driveline Baseball, profiled here in the New York Times. His job is to help pitchers throw baseballs harder and with more purpose. Lincecum is signed up for this particular course, and he’s apparently planning a showcase soon. I am very much into this development.
As to the Giants planning a reunion? Whoa, slow down. Pablo Sandoval and Matt Cain played in the same game as recently as a couple months ago, and it wasn’t as successful as we would have hoped. Even though there’s a slot open in the rotation, I’ll need to see a headline of “TIM LINCECUM THROWS 95 MPH IN SHOWCASE” before advocating for that.
But if he did throw 95 in a showcase, I would take out a second mortgage to pay for the SIGN LINCECUM billboards around San Francisco. Know this about me.
Still, what we know now is this: Lincecum is training. He’s resuming baseball-related activities. He’s in shape. He’s figuring out ways to get some of his old athleticism and talent back.
The odds are against him, just as they’re against every 33-year-old trying to reinvent himself. But while this is where I would normally close with a Ryan Vogelsong reference, I would like to close with a Bartolo Colon reference. Because if that guy could come back from years of injury and expanded internal storage capacity, Tim Lincecum can come back.
It would be an awful lot of fun if he could. Stay tuned.