Lincecum's Full House

On June 25, 2014, I was wondering what to do for the day game between the Giants and Padres. After the two games before (on Monday and Tuesday) I probably shouldn't have put much thought into it, but I'm unemployed and awaiting a call as to whether I will or will not be hired. So I have what some might refer to as nervous energy.

Shall I walk to Golden Gate Park or just get a bite to eat and listen to Lincecum vs. Ian Kennedy on 680 KNBR? The two pitchers used to go head-to-head in college when Tim was on the University of Washington and Kennedy on the Trojans of USC. So I was kind of looking forward to the meeting. Besides, I had a book I was reading that I was fully invested in and I wanted to finish it. (Johnny Cash, The Life)

After six innings I started thinking, 'Hmmm, the home plate umpire has a pitcher's strike zone and Lincecum was breezing through the Padre batting order. The 7th inning was quick and the Giants scored two runs to make it 4-0.

The Eighth inning was of no difficulty and the ninth had a grounder in which Lincecum actually made the play on. Sometimes he's so tangled up in the wind-up of his he is in no position to field. So you knew that yesterday he was feeling pretty good. Then the grounder to Panik, love that name, and his second no-hitter is in the book.

He even got two hits and scored two runs. Wow, he expressed joy over that feat himself.

Then I began to think about pitchers who pitched great games and also did well with the bat. And I remembered on June 23, 1971 (yes, I had to look up the actual date) Rick Wise, of the Philadelphia Phillies pitched a no-hitter and hit two home runs in the game. He would hit two homers again in one game that season, finishing that season with 6 homers.

I remembered a game in 1966, when I was a kid when Tony Cloniger belted two grand slams against our beloved Giants. When I looked it up I was re-assured that it was on a Sunday, July 3, 1966. Why is that? Because I was at my cousins house for someone's birthday. Sunday would have been the day, for sure. In Cloniger's game he had AB-5 R-2 H-3 RBI-9. And he also served up a big fly to his opposing pitcher, Ray Sadecki. The guy we got in the Orlando Cepeda trade.

And I would be remissed, Holy Cow! if I didn't mention Buster Posey. Here was yet another example of how this ballplayer rises to the occasion. He went 4-for-4 and it was his blast off the bricks that upped the count from 2-0 to 4-0. Clutch. What is clutch? To me, it is doing what it takes when it matters most. And much like the pitcher in yesterday's classic, the two of these guys have shown San Francisco Giants' fans they have what it takes to make "it" happen. These two are winners.

No matter how many callers waste the listeners time to whine about how Timmy blows or Posey is overrated, on the Sports Leader (KNBR680AM), we all know that when the chips are down these two ballplayers find a way to get in the win column.

(thanks to baseball-reference.com for making my memories more accurate than they might have been)

Oh, what's Lincecum's full house?...55 2,2,2 (2-Cy Youngs, 2-World Series rings, 2-no-hitters)

Kevin J. Marquez