Tim Lincecum won the NL Cy Young, with 23 of 32 first place votes. Lincecum, was dominant for one of the worst teams in the majors, and was pretty much the only bright spot for the Giants, a franchise deep in the doldrums.
The 24-year-old right-hander was 18-5 with a 2.62 ERA and a major league-best 265 strikeouts, remarkable numbers for a fourth-place team that finished 72-90.
Lincecum led the NL in winning percentage (.783), ranked second in ERA and was third with 227 innings. He made his first All-Star squad, but an illness prevented him from appearing in the July 15 game at Yankee Stadium.
Here’s the SF Chronicle’s take:
The landslide surprised Lincecum, who was sitting on his sofa at home in San Francisco watching NFL highlights on TV when he got the call saying he won.
“I thought it was going to be a lot closer,” he said. “I definitely don’t want to say I had it in the bag. I was thinking somebody else would have it, Johan Santana, CC or Webb. Those guys are all great players. I think they’re all three Cy Young winners previously. I figured they had a better shot, or as good a shot as I did.”
Lincecum often sounded nonchalant about his Cy Young chances, but teammate Brian Wilson revealed the thought had crossed both of their minds as early as spring training.
“Tim and I made some goals for each other, and the Cy happened to be just one of the many we set,” the closer said. “We joked around about both winning the award and calling it the ‘Cys Youngs.’ I can almost assure you that out of all the candidates, not one of them started their spring training off with winning that award in mind.
“Every start that Tim had, he had an agenda. As outlandish as it seems, focusing on that goal subsequently helped him focus on success and achievement.”
3 Backtalkers
OUTSTANDING!
Thought the site might be interested in this article by Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus about finding the next team to rise a la the Rays.
SF Giants
Resume:
Their long-ago eight straight winning seasons, including four post-season appearances, have been followed with four straight losing campaigns.
Going Well at the Major League Level:
Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum are the best under-25 one-two rotation combo in the majors. Pablo Sandoval continued to hit at every level, and Fred Lewis has developed into a solid everyday outfielder.
Not Going Well at the Major League Level:
The offense is a dead zone. Bengie Molina’s 16 home runs were the most by any player on this team that plated only 640 runs on the season. Not only are they bad, but they’re generally old, and the only under-30 players with over 250 at-bats this year were John Bowker, Jose Castillo, and Eugenio Velez—none of whom were good. No starter other than Cain and Lincecum had a sub-5.00 ERA, and the Barry Zito deal has been nothing short of a disaster.
Going Well at the Minor League Level:
Some excellent drafts and a commitment to international signings have allowed the Giants to begin a turnaround of their once-poor minor league system. Madison Bumgarner is one of the top pitching prospects in the game, and one of several prospects on a Low-A Augusta squad that have impressed. The system lacks high-ceiling arms after Bumgarner, but is nonetheless deep in solid big-league types.
Not Going Well at the Minor League Level:
The upper levels are barren, so there is little immediate help on the way. Angel Villalona is one of their few real power prospects, and 2008 first-round pick Buster Posey instantly became the top prospect in the system.
Cashflow:
The Giants lopped nearly $15 million off of their payroll this year, but they still have plenty of franchise-busting long-term commitments—primarily almost $95 million for five more years of Zito, and $44 million for four more years of Aaron Rowand. It’s not an enviable position, and almost forces a commitment to youth.
Moving for Young Talent:
Zito is all but untradeable without picking up a huge chunk of the contract. Molina and outfielders Randy Winn and Dave Roberts are entering the final years of reasonable contracts, and should be worth something to someone at next year’s deadline.
Outlook:
The future of the Giants’ pitching staff looks top-notch, but it’s still a mystery where the runs are going to come from. They need to find and develop some bats, and they won’t be a threat until at least 2011.
I’m shocked that he won. The moron voters have a history of looking no farther than wins. If this is an indicator of future voting I’m all for it.