San Francisco to host the Freak Show for 2 more years

In a season full of disappointment for the 2013 San Francisco Giants who displayed a bit of a World Series hangover by finishing 76-86 and tied for third in the division, one of the few bright spots came on July 13 when starting pitcher Tim Lincecum threw his first career no-hitter against the San Diego Padres. It would also be the highlight of Lincecum's season as his 2013 campaign ended with the right-hander finishing under .500 for the third consecutive season (10-14) and an ERA north of 4. But none of that stopped us Giants fans or the front-office from expressing how much we'd love to see him return to the orange and black in 2014 and beyond. 

Expected to test the waters of the free-agent market following the conclusion of the World Series, we made signs for Lincecum's final home start of the season that read: 'Don't leave, Tim' and 'San Francisco loves you' as it was unsure whether or not we'd see Timmy in a Giants uniform again. That question was answered much sooner than expected on Monday when news broke regarding both sides reaching a deal pending a physical worth $35 Million over 2-years. The deal includes a full no-trade clause and is $5.5 Million fewer than the 2-year, $40.5 Million contract he signed in 2012. Entering his age 30 season, the former first round pick of the Giants in 2006 owns an overall record of 89-70 and an ERA of 3.46 through seven Major League seasons. Though his fastball velocity isn't quite where it used to be in the 95 mph range, his popularity hasn't lost a beat. Better known around AT&T Park as "The Freak", Lincecum's teammates as well as manager Bruce Bochy will be every bit as happy as the fans are now that the 4-time All-Star and 2-time Cy Young Award winner is staying put.

While there are those who are saying the Giants are overpaying for his services, the market for pitchers heading into the offseason isn't very appealing to start. Bronson Arroyo, Hiroki Kuroda, Matt Garza, Ervin Santana and Ubaldo Jimenez round up this offseason's top pitching free-agents and with the exception of Arroyo, they'll all likely sign for a larger sum than Lincecum. Not to mention they're all older than the Giants right-hander. Other than the Giants, the Seattle Mariners who play just a stones throw away from where Timmy is from in Bellevue, Washington, were likely to offer him a contract had he hit the market. 

The re-signing of Lincecum comes three weeks after the Giants locked up their biggest offseason priority in outfielder Hunter Pence who GM Brian Sabean inked to a new deal one day prior to the end of the 2013 regular season, preventing him from stepping foot in the free-agent market. Pence who made a spectacular diving catch with 2-outs in the 8th inning to preserve Lincecum's no-hitter, hit a career-high 27 home runs in 2013 and logged a personal-best 22 stolen bases to go with 99 RBI's while starting in all 162 games this season, further demonstrating his durability. Pence has missed just 24 games in six full big league seasons and was an integral part in the team's World Series success last season as he delivered a motivational pre-game speech prior to game 3 of last year's NLDS vs the Cincinnati Reds. The signings of Lincecum and Pence leave only left-handed reliever Javier Lopez as the last name to be marked off of Sabean's list of top priorities for returning players entering 2014.


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