Tim Lincecum was cited by the state police in Washington for possession of marijuana this week. The pot was found in his car after he was pulled over for speeding near the Oregon border on Oct. 30. It was a small amount, and the police determined that Lincecum was not intoxicated while driving, so he's been cited for misdemeanor possession. After his hearing on Nov. 23, that will likely be the last we hear of this particular incident.
Andrew Baggarly, the San Jose Mercury writer who wrote the blog entry linked above, guesses that this incident won't be much more than an embarrassment for Lincecum and that it's unlikely to affect his potential arbitration hearing early next year. He's probably right that it'd be wrong for the Giants to accuse their superstar pitcher of being a dirty hippie for having a few grams of pot in his car, but that's a funny mental image I'm stuck with and now I hope you are, too.
The Giants will have a pretty big decision to make this offseason regarding Tim Lincecum. Do they sign the insanely talented righthander to a long-term contract extension to buy out his arbitration years or do they let him go to arbitration and continue going the one-year contract route to avoid being on the hook for big money if something untoward happens to Lincecum's arm?
You'd imagine they'd opt for the long-term deal, so his answer to a question about a willingness to sign an extension was likely met with some smiles.
Yes," Lincecum said Thursday. "I definitely like San Francisco. I've seen nothing but positive things as far as my personal experiences. It's where I see myself being for awhile."
So the deal's getting done, right? Sadly, it won't be quite that easy for the Giants.
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
What a fantasy season it has been for Prince Fielder. Of course, we must thrown the "fantasy" before season, as I'm sure Fielder pictured himself squarely in the middle of a playoff race when looking ahead to September 21st earlier in the season, but his owners must be pleased by their second-round pick's production. Fielder launched his 40th homer of the season Sunday, making this year the second (2007) in which he's reached the 40-HR mark. His average is still trucking along near .300 (currently at .299), which is a pleasant surprise, and his 128 RBIs tie with Albert Pujols' total as the best mark in baseball.
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
After Tim Lincecum missed a start, fantasy owners still in the championship race had to have been holding their collective breath. Now is not the time to lose your staff ace. His next start would be a test of his health. Last year's NL Cy Young winner took the hill Monday night against the wild card-leading Rockies, and he passed the test with flying colors. While the 4 free passes were a bit disappointing, Lincecum more than made up for that with a win, 11 strikeouts and just 1 earned run in 7 innings of work. He's back, and he'll be a force the rest of the way (now if only someone could convince him to get a freaking haircut).
Their mission, overcoming the Rockies in the final three weeks of the season to sneak into the wild-card spot, was a difficult one before the teams began a three-game showdown series. San Francisco's 9-1 victory in the opener makes it only slightly easier. The Giants are still 3 1/2 games out, three in the loss column, with 18 to play.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's weekly, extended look at some aspect of America's pastime.
As I look ahead to the MLB playoffs, I'm faced with the fact that my beloved Cubbies aren't going to be competing. Being a devout baseball fan, though, there's no way I'm not watching the postseason. Without a horse in the race, I'm forced to focus instead on individuals, and there are always plenty of reasons to watch certain players. Thus, I'm going to list 10 players I'm looking forward to watching and five players I wish I could come October.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That the Red Sox and Rangers weren't able continue what is the closest race for any playoff spot. Both teams were rained out, setting up Sunday to be a huge day in the race. Right now the Red Sox are two games ahead of Texas, and both teams will play doubleheaders on Sunday. Boston is playing Tampa Bay and Texas is playing Seattle.
The Red Sox might take a little advantage over the Rangers out of Friday's weather. Because Boston has an off day on Monday, the doubleheader on Sunday won't force them to dig up a spot starter later in the week. (Daisuke Matsuzaka will return to the Boston rotation on Tuesday, though, replacing Paul Byrd.) The Rangers are going to need a sixth starter for Wednesday's game against the A's, probably Dustin Nippert, Doug Mathis or Guillermo Moscoso.
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
For about five months of the season, Diamondbacks outfielder Chris Young was a draft disaster. Those who picked him in fantasy leagues suffered through the nausea of a sub-.200 batting average and anemic power numbers. Where was the dude who hit 32 homers in 2007 and 22 in 2008? Absolutely nonexistent ... at least until the last four games.
This is certainly a relief for Giants fans, whose team has no margin for error whatsoever in this National League wild-card race. Heading into Wednesday's game against the Padres, they trailed the Rockies by three games, with 23 to go. Even with Lincecum, they had their work cut out for them.
The question now facing the Giants is when to put Lincecum back on the mound. It's looking like he'll pitch on Monday against Colorado, which would have been his next turn anyway.
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
By now we all know of the greatness of San Francisco pitcher Tim Lincecum. He's the best pitcher in baseball this season, with a 2.34 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 233 strikeouts in 200 1/3 innings. But there's another hard-throwing young kid in the Giants organization that, like Lincecum, has a shot to be one of the league's best very quickly. He's a guy you want to burn that No. 1 waiver priority on, in case he sticks in the rotation for the rest of the season. He is Madison Bumgarner.
Tim Lincecum was cited by the state police in Washington for possession of marijuana this week. The pot was found in his car after he was pulled over for speeding near the Oregon border on Oct. 30. It was a small amount, and the police determined that Lincecum was not intoxicated while driving, so he's been cited for misdemeanor possession. After his hearing on Nov. 23, that will likely be the last we hear of this particular incident. 
The Giants will have a pretty big decision to make this offseason regarding 
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
SAN FRANCISCO -- A wise man -- either Confucius or Yogi Berra -- once said: "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."
Starting Five
Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
