Blister talk aside, something I noticed a few weeks back has been bugging me, but because no one has mentioned it, I assumed that I was on the lunatic fringe of worry warts and Anxious Andys.  However, as we rack our brains to try to figure out what Kryptonite has crippled our Superman, my mind has repeatedly returned to a single play.

For me, the turning point in Lincecum's troubles began with this play on an Alex Cora bouncer in the bottom of the 6th against the Mets on 5/9/10.

A nifty play, to be sure, but I remember watching it on TV and cringing at the way he whipped the sidearm throw to first base.  BTTJ then proceeded to give up a single, walk, and two more singles before finally getting out of the inning.  Bochy removed him in favor of Runzler and I haven't seen the same Timmy since.  He had cruised to that point in the season, but in that play it was if someone sapped the pixie dust from his tiny little body.

In his next outing, he only gave up one earnie in eight innings, but it was to a hapless Astros lineup and, having personally been in attendance, I can say with relative certainty that he did not have his A-game.  Little cause for concern at the time, but as we know, this was the first of three consecutive outings which he would walk five batters. 

The next two starts looked like this:

5/20: 5 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 5 BB, 6 K
5/26: 4.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 5 BB, 5 K

Over the last 18.2 IP, including that final inning against NYM on 5/9, Timmy has 16 BB and 17 K - clearly not what we expect from our pint-sized bundle of awesome.

Has this already been discussed and I missed it?  Am I crazy to think that this wacky throwing event may have contributed to the the scuffle Lincecum has going?  Is it simply a matter of a sample size and regression to the mean after such a blistering hot start?

One of the newer Giants blogs I sometimes read, Orange Black and Blue, has started a Zito email writing campaign.  Basically, the idea is to use Zito's free-spirited nature and love of all things hippy-dippy to try and get him feeling like a winner again.  Once he feels like a winner, he can start pitching like one.  I for one think that if we mobilize as a fan base and flood Zito's inbox with feel-good messages, that it may help him turn things around.  I already sent him my prestart email for the day to see if it could get him going.

I'm pickin' up good vibrations.  Anybody else into it?

Although I feel it's a given, this is quite encouraging.

Spurred by an ESPN.com article by Jayson Stark about the likelihood of Rollins having to eat his words, I decided to see what Vegas thinks about the Giants' chance of winning the NL Pennant.  I searched several prominent sports betting sites and 3 are listed below:

Bodog.com

I know that each of these essentially indicates the same outcome, but I wanted to be representative of the betting community's take on our chances.  8-1.  Eight-to-one.  You know what?  I'll take it!  Clearly not a lock, but not a total longshot either (see Washington Nationals 200-1 by some estimations).

Two things really chap my ass: a) on all three of the aforementioned sites, those cerulean-clothed c*ck-knockers are picked as more likely to win the pennant than YOURSANFRANCISCOGIANTS, and b) these odds makers have clearly never watched the Cubs play over the past hundred years.  I mean, c'mon, the Cubbies?

Wow, now that I read this diary, it turned out to be a lot more boring than I set out for it to be.

Discussion starter: What things would you like to bet on this season?  Please give the possible happening and your odds on the likelihood of its occurrence.

Due to the fact that I am an avid fan of both trivia and the Giants, and I have really enjoyed E's recent daily posts, I figured I should start a thread that combines the two.  Please feel free to post any of your own questions as you think of them.  Here are 3 to get things started (and don't Google the answers, 'cause we call that a-cheatin'):

1. Who was the last Giant to win the NL Rookie of the Year award?
2. On June 12, 1997, who had the distinction of becoming the first player to ever get a hit in an Interleague game (bonus point for the pitcher who surrendered the hit)?
3. Who was the last man to hit .400 in the National League?

For any unemployed McCoven living in the South Bay (or willing to relocate there), this could be golden opportunity

"Must be willing to attend all Giants home baseball games"

In a CBS Sportsline article, Wotus had some things to say about the future and being passed up for the managerial position.

For the clicking impaired:

I certainly believe in the people in this organization who have worked together for a long time. We have some minor adjustments. I am looking forward to working with the people I have for years and Bruce. I have respect for what he's done with his teams.

Scary organizational fact:

Wotus will be only the fourth person since 1900 to work as a major league coach for the Giants for at least 10 years

On being passed up for manager:

Certainly I was disappointed. Anybody would be. I'm happy the Giants and Bruce had the respect for my work to bring me back as bench coach. There's no place I'd rather be. I'm just hoping we can all work together to get the team back to championship form. That's the bottom line. Last year's over and my opportunities are in the past now

Discussion starters:  Why is it that we can't hold on to any major league coaches?

The only new coach on the squad is Tim Flannery at 3B.  Is he going to make a difference over Gene-Oh?  Can Joe Lefdhfbsvdfgvre help whichever young hitters get a shot to crack the lineup blossom?

Bochy plans on extending his visit to Florida to spend time with Armando Benitez.

I would prefer he reach out and slap the guy, but what can ya do?

Jays signed Frank Thomas and thh A's announced that they have the've been talking with Barry Lamar.

I could see Barry in an Oakland uni as an incredibly likely offseason outcome here.

Does anyone else find it insane that Grandpa Hurt got 9 mill per?  The guy is like 95 years old.

Schulman's Article

Okay.  So here Schulman suggests that "according to sources":

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Too bad

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It appears as though the Giant's best player of the last 15 years wants to get the hell outta dodge.

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Submitted for your approval:

If your pitchers are giving up tons of runs early in a ballgame, whom do you blame? If they are forced to find their mechanics while on the mound, who is at fault?  If your bullpen consistently gives up runs by walking hitters, how can you explain it?  If the only pitchers on your team who produce outs are people who just came up from the minors, where is the problem?

I submit that the answer to all of these questions is Dave Righetti.  Don't get me wrong, I love the guy, but I think he has become a problem.  It seems as though Matt Cain's success, for instance, has come in spite of Rags, not because of him.

When young guys like Sadler and Misch (recently) or Lowry and Williams came up, they had great stuff.  The longer they worked with Righetti, the further they slip into the category of "crap-chucker".  (no need to mention injury problems...I'm aware)

While this point has become moot for the remainder of this baseball season, I think it remains important for the seasons to come.  Considering how much young pitching the Giants have, do we want Rags in control?  Is he really to blame?  If so, how can we remedy this problem?

In the 8th today, the Giants' lineup looked like this:

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