By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer
After I endlessly hyped him, Lincecum didn’t exactly pitch a gem during his debut Sunday night. In fact, he allowed more runs after facing two batters in the majors than he did during five starts at Triple-A. Still, there’s a lot to be encouraged about. The first inning, two-run homer was extremely wind-aided, and giving up a blast to Ryan Howard is nothing to be ashamed of, despite his struggles so far this year. Also, that obstruction call was about as bad as blown calls get.
Nevertheless, Lincecum wasn’t very sharp, throwing just 53 of his 100 pitches for strikes. Also, for some reason he seemed to leave his curveball in the bullpen, as he threw fastballs almost exclusively. Now, those 95-97 MPH heaters with movement were impressive, but make no mistake, the curve is by far his best pitch.
I’m not in the least bit worried about the lackluster debut, but what I am concerned about is if Lincecum doesn’t pitch well next start, which happens to come in Coors Field, and Brian Sabean turns back to Russ Ortiz. Judging by the fans reaction and likely attendance increase, that scenario seems unlikely. At least I hope.
I knew Lincecum could pitch, but I was unaware of his batting prowess. Good God. There’s a chance he finishes with a .000 batting average this season. Also, the guy doesn’t look a day over 17 years old. There’s no way he’s shaved yet. Anyway, if you can find a sucker in your league that panics over one start, go make an offer for “The Franchise.”
Watched the Mayweather/De La Hoya fight over the weekend, and it’s safe to say the bout didn’t save boxing. While I’ve seen worse, the fight was mostly lackluster, with a few decent rounds mixed in. De La Hoya certainly made it closer than anticipated, but Mayweather for sure deserved the decision. I could watch Larry Merchant interview Mayweather all day long. It’s just too bad there was more blood in the Phoenix Suns/San Antonio Spurs game than the boxing match.
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