Rangers Agree To Deal With Lincecum, Pending Physical
SURPRISE (105.3 The Fan/AP) - It's official. Kinda. The Rangers have agreed to a contract with free-agent pitcher Tim Lincecum, pending a physical.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
While Lincecum's deal isn't yet official, Rangers general manager Jon Daniels did brief the media Tuesday on the club's agreement with the pitcher.
"There is nothing I anticipate will be an issue, but he still has to go through the process," Daniels said regarding Lincecum's physical, per T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.
When discussing what Lincecum's role on the club would be, Daniels said that the right-hander would initially be used as a reliever but he wouldn't rule out the possibility of him getting a chance to start in the future.
"He will be in the bullpen, what the role is exactly remains to be seen," Daniels said. "That will be performance-driven by both Tim and the rest of the bullpen. He doesn't want to close the door on starting, but he said that is not where his head is right now. It will be a bullpen role."
Lincecum was seen participating in on-field activities at the Rangers spring training complex Tuesday.
The Rangers were among a throng of major league teams to see the 33-year-old pitch in a showcase in early February.
According to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, the two-time NL Cy Young Award winner impressed the club by throwing between 90 and 93 mph.
The Freak hasn't pitched in the majors since a disappointing nine-start stint in 2016 with the Angels.
In 2015, Lincecum went 7-4 with a 4.13 ERA in 15 starts for San Francisco after throwing no-hitters — both against San Diego — in July 2013 and June '14. He had hip surgery in early September 2015 and didn't immediately sign with a team after concluding a $35 million, two-year deal with the Giants. In nine seasons with San Francisco, he helped the Giants win three World Series titles — in 2010, '12 and '14.
He had his highs and lows — and one of his biggest thrills came in Arlington in what might become his new home ballpark.
Lincecum figured things out in 2010, enduring an 0-5 August before adding a new pitch and winning the Game 5 World Series clincher at Texas as the Giants captured their first championship since moving West in 1958. In '12, he endured a 10-start winless stretch in which he went 0-6. A Cy Young winner in his first full major league season of 2008 and again the following year, he posted losing records in each season from 2011-13.
By 2014, he had bounced back to go 12-9. Lincecum was 2-6 with a 9.16 ERA over those nine starts and 38 1/3 innings for the Angels two years ago.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
