Free-agent RHP Tim Lincecum plans to hold showcase in February
San Francisco Giants free-agent pitcher Tim Lincecum has a big audition coming up soon.
Lincecum, who had season-ending hip surgery last September, expects to hold a showcase for MLB teams sometime in the first couple weeks of February, his agent tells the San Francisco Chronicle.
"He's throwing every day and says he's doing great," Lincecum's agent, Rick Thurman, told the Chronicle. "He's got no instability in his hip, and he's enthusiastic about his progress."
Thurman reveals that nearly every MLB team has reached out about Lincecum, who is a free agent for the first time since being drafted by the Giants in the first round of the 2006 amateur draft.
While Lincecum was revered as one of the best right-handers in baseball in his first four full seasons, he has struggled to reach the same level of success in the past four.
Since 2012, the two-time Cy Young Award winner has posted a 39-42 record with a 4.68 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and 577 strikeouts against 267 walks in 615 2/3 innings over 113 outings.
With his hip hopefully repaired, Lincecum is hopeful that he can recapture the success he once had in his heyday in San Francisco.
"Tim's doing great," said Brad Schoenthaler, Lincecum's physical therapist. "He looks really strong. His hip pain and compensation patterns have cleared up. Everything's coming back a lot quicker than we expected."
While Lincecum has spent all of his nine MLB seasons with the Giants, he might be sporting a new uniform in 2016.
With the acquisitions of Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija this offseason, the Giants have filled their starting rotation, which only reserves the possibility that Lincecum rejoin the Giants as a reliever.
Nonetheless, San Francisco has remained in touch with its iconic pitcher, nicknamed "The Franchise."
"Timmy has been such a big part of our fabric and success," Giants general manager Bobby Evans said. "It's important we do our due diligence. Of course we're going to keep in touch with Tim Lincecum."
