Tim Lincecum: Baseball's Best Pitcher by Peter Kenton

Tim Lincecum: Baseball's Best Pitcher

How good is Tim Lincecum? He is the best pitcher in the national league, if not the best pitcher in baseball. When he is pitching well, which is most of his starts, he has a way of making hitters look silly, like no other pitcher in baseball. The first pitch of the at bat might be a hanging curveball or a 95 mph fastball. His best pitch however, is his changeup. It appears out of his hand to be the same thing as a fastball, but as it approaches the plate, it takes a huge tip, making most batters look very silly when they swing and miss, at it leaves most of them off balance on their front foot.
Many ask, 'How does someone who is 5'10” 170 lbs, make it in the majors as a pitcher.' There aren't many of them. So how can Tim Lincecum throw a 95 mph heater? The answer, his mechanics. He has a stride that is almost seven feet in length, the same distance of Sandy Koufax's stride. There is no other pitcher in the majors who is his size, let alone a starter. So does size matter in pitching? The answer, not really, depending on your mechanics.
Even with this information, what makes Tim Lincecum the games best pitcher? Many sports analysts, such as myself think his size confuses the batter; hitters don't expect someone his size to be able to throw 95 mph gas. Another reason why, is his delivery: he hides the ball for so long but his delivery is very fast, around 1.2 seconds. This unorthodox delivery, and his size baffle most batters. He also has a way of combining pitches like no other pitcher I have ever seen, and his changeup, is the icing on the cake. When he throws his changeup, his delivery is the same as his fastball, but as the ball approaches the plate, it takes a dramatic downturn often leaving batters on their front foot, unable to hit the ball. If a batter does manage to lay off this pitch somehow, as it is mostly thrown with two strikes, the batter will likely get a hit, unfortunately for the batter, this happens very rarely because hitters have to protect with two strikes.
Many people this year think that Dan Haren of the Arizona Diamondbacks is the best pitcher in Baseball. If you look at his ERA (earned run average) this statement is true.
However, if you asked an honest spectator who is more fun to watch, they woProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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d most likely say Lincecum because of the way that Lincecum dominates everybody, and his mechanics. Haren does not have the kind of stuff that Lincecum has. Dan Haren is more of a power pitcher, and when facing guys such as Ryan Howard, Pablo Sandoval, and Albert Pujols, power pitching does not work. However, Dan Haren has been able to incorporate a curveball in his line of pitches in the past few years. Dan Haren is certainly the runner up to Lincecum in the N.L., but he is just not on the same level.
Another pitcher that has created controversy is Zack Greinke of the Kansas City Royals. He started out this year 8-1 with a .89 ERA. However lately he has not been the same pitcher. In the past few months, his ERA has risen almost three points and his record has dropped to 10-5 with a 3.01 ERA, hardly the pitcher he was at the beginning of the year. Despite making the AL All Star team, he is not at the same level as Lincecum. He does not have the same dominating stuff that Lincecum has. He also is the ideal size for a pitcher; 6'3” 220 lbs.
The obvious size advantage of all of these pitchers gives them a huge advantage, however, they don't seem to be able to use their size to their advantage. If Dan Haren took a step the size of Lincecum's, he could throw the ball nearly 110 mph. However, they have not worked on a bigger stride, or a deceptive delivery, which is what makes Tim Lincecum the great pitcher that he is. Tim Lincecum will only get better as the years go by, as he learns the weaknesses of different batters. People should watch Lincecum while they can, because a pitcher of his status doesn't come along very often.