Report: Giants, Tim Lincecum have ‘mutual and strong’ interest in return

With the Giants officially being eliminated from postseason contention on Tuesday after an 8-0 defeat at the hands of the Dodgers, who clinched their third straight NL West title, the focus for San Francisco is now on next season. And one of the first orders of business could be bringing back veteran right-hander Tim Lincecum for another tour of duty with the team.

Lincecum, who had not pitched since late June due to a right forearm contusion and a degenerative hip condition, shares mutual interest with the Giants in returning to the team after the season, according to Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News who wrote about the state of affairs in San Francisco after Tuesday’s effectively season-ending loss:

There wasn’t an opportunity for Tim Lincecum to acknowledge the fans, as he had hoped. But there’s still a chance he’ll be back this weekend.

In any event, a goodbye might not be necessary. The interest is mutual and strong to re-sign Lincecum, from what I’m told. It’s more a matter of when, how much and in what form, rather than if.

The 31-year-old Lincecum, who recently left the team to rehab his hips, will see his two-year, $35 million deal expire at the end of the year. It was a disastrous overpay by just about every tangible metric, but if Lincecum is willing to take a hometown discount, it looks like an extension of The Freak’s tenure in the Bay Area could be in the cards.

Over the last few seasons, Lincecum has seen his velocity and his control nosedive faster than Macaulay Culkin’s acting career. His back-to-back Cy Young Awards in 2008 and 2009 and his four consecutive All-Star appearances from 2008 to 2011 might as well have taken place during the Bronze Age at this point. But as a local favorite and a winner of three World Series rings with the team, San Francisco, both management and fans alike, will be more than amicable to a Lincecum return provided that the price is right. And provided that Lincecum can stomach said return.

H/T HardballTalk

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