LL: Mariners Give Tim Lincecum Taste Of What He Hasn’t Been Missing

A Jesus Freak thumping if ever.

Lincecum extended his slump. He retired 15 batters, and he was charged with five runs while throwing less than 60 percent strikes. The oddest thing is that, stuff-wise, he looked a lot more like his old self than he has for much of the season. His fastball got up to 93, and averaged 92. On the year, he’s averaged closer to 90. His slider had that depth announcers are always going on about, his changeup danced like it’s often danced, and I don’t really remember his curveballs so I don’t know why I’m including them in this sentence. At times, Tim Lincecum looked very good, and he was working with his ordinary repertoire. Not ordinary, but ordinary for him.

And the Mariners got to him for five runs, and while they added more runs, they only needed the fifth. Two scored in the first, when Casper Wells and Jesus Montero each went deep. Wells hit a 2-and-1 mistake fastball that didn’t make Lincecum visibly upset, and Montero hit a good 1-and-2 low, inside slider, where it was supposed to be, and that did make Lincecum visibly upset. Lincecum whirled around and screamed at himself, or the baseball, or Kirt Manwaring, or someone or something. Lincecum made the pitch he wanted to make, and it landed well up the upper deck.