Tim Lincecum dazzled us with his meteoric rise to super stardom. The 5’10”, 170 pound kid from Bellevue, Washington proved to the Giants and the rest of the world that not only was he ready to play in the bigs but that he was ready to dominate.
Finishing 18-5, with a 2.62 earned run average and a major league-leading 265 strikeouts, Linceum became the first Giant in 41 years to be named the Cy Young Award winner and he did it in only his second season (first full) in the majors.
While this young phenom, who has been bestowed nicknames such as "The Franchise," and "Hurricane Tim," opened eyes around the league making mincemeat of opposing hitters, truth be told, he did not just come out of nowhere. He is a product of the rejuvenated efforts the Giants have made in scouting and minor league development.
Lincecum, who was taught how to pitch by his father, had been baffling hitters for years in college. Nevertheless, he was passed up by nine other major league organizations in the 2006 first-year player draft.
Teams like Kansas City, Colorado and Pittsburgh worried about Lincecum’s size and unorthodox delivery, ranked players such as Luke Hochevar (No. 1 overall), Greg Reynolds (No. 2 overall) and Brad Lincoln (No. 4 overall) all as higher rated, more durable right-handed pitchers.
With the 10th overall selection, the Giants—who some thought to be crazy at the time—passed up on prospects such as Travis Snider, Max Scherzer and Ian Kennedy in order to draft Lincecum and it has, to say the least, paid huge dividends.
So, who is Tim Lincecum really, besides just an overpowering ace at the top of any team's pitching staff?
He is the product of a new and improved scouting program.
He is the result of a quality developmental system entrusted to mold players with raw talent into groomed major leaguers.
He is redemption for an organization that once traded Francisco Liriano, Joe Nathan and Boof Bonser for a hot-headed AJ Pierzynski.
He is just the tip of the iceberg of what is happening under the surface of the San Francisco Giants major league organization. When the organization decided not to sign Barry Bonds to another contract for the 2008 season, many analysts and fans alike speculated that it was time to rebuild. Little did anyone know but the process had already begun.
Highlighted by the Tim Lincecum signing in ‘06, the Giants had started spending more money than ever in prospect research and development both in the US and abroad.
Noticing his raw ability at an early age, the Giants signed undrafted free agent Pablo Sandoval out of Venezuela in 2002.
In 2006, the Giants gave Angel Villalona, a Dominican-born player they had been scouting since age 13, a $2.1 million signing bonus (a club record at the time).
Players such as Nick Noonan, Conor Gillespie and Buster Posey have joined pitchers such as Madison Bumgarner, Tim Alderson and Kevin Pucetas in helping to rank the Giants farm system amongst MLB’s top 10.
So for all you fans who miss October baseball and watching the Giants make a run at the division, wait no more. The fruit of the rebuilding effort has blossomed and those glory days are here again.
For the Giants, the future is now!
Read more about the SF Giants at baseballinformant.com/2009/04/tip-of-the-iceberg/.
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