12/18/08 10:00 AM EST Lincecum named TYIB top starter of '08 Giants right-hander earns another honor for stellar season By Chris Haft / MLB.com Tim Lincecum went 18-5 with a 2.52 ERA to go with 265 strikeouts -- most in the Majors. (Ben Margot/AP) The San Francisco Giants right-hander received 24.5 percent of the vote, outdistancing second-place Mike Mussina of the New York Yankees, who finished with 16.4 percent. Toronto's Roy Halladay (10.8 percent) and Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka (10.4) also garnered double-figure percentages. Rounding out the top 10 were Cleveland's Cliff Lee (9.9 percent), Milwaukee's CC Sabathia (8.4), the New York Mets' Johan Santana (7.9), the Chicago Cubs' Ryan Dempster (5.3), Arizona's Brandon Webb (3.8) and the Cubs' Rich Harden (2.6). Lincecum's biggest prize, of course, was being elected the National League Cy Young Award winner by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. He became only the second Giant to capture that prestigious honor. He also was feted as NL Pitcher of the Year in balloting by fellow players for the Players Choice and The Sporting News honors. What makes Lincecum so popular among fans? For one thing, he's young, new and fresh. Just 24, he has spent less than two years in the Major Leagues. He's also exciting. Lincecum's fastball routinely exceeds 95 mph and he complements it with other pitches to amass oodles of strikeouts -- a big league high 265, to be precise, in 2008. The right-hander amassed 10 or more strikeouts nine times, equaling a San Francisco-era franchise record set by Jason Schmidt in 2004. Twice Lincecum reached a career high of 13 strikeouts, July 26 against Arizona and in the Sept. 28 season finale against Los Angeles. The latter start was particularly memorable, as Lincecum recorded his first nine outs on strikeouts. This combination gives Lincecum a certain charisma -- always a quality that's difficult to define yet when it's there, you know it. That's why Sports Illustrated saw fit to splash him on its cover for its July 7 issue. This trait also might explain Lincecum's excess of nicknames: "The Freak," "The Franchise" and "Seabiscuit," a reference to his modest stature (the Giants' media guide generously listed him as 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds). Lincecum dwarfs the opposition when he takes the mound, however. "He pitches with so much heart," catcher Bengie Molina said. Lincecum finished 18-5 with a 2.62 ERA while thriving on adversity. He held opponents to a National League-low .167 batting average with runners in scoring position and posted a 14-3 record in 25 starts following Giants defeats. "You can't let things get to you," Lincecum said of his aplomb. "You have to get over it and move on to the next batter." Lincecum strives to maintain his self-control while making fans lose theirs. When he allows himself to get carried away by the cheers and yells, he said, "It kind of takes me out of my focus." Besides, Lincecum doesn't need additional motivation. "I love the game so much, I think there's enough excitement going on anyway," he said. The thrills are likely to continue in 2009. Giants manager Bruce Bochy already has named Lincecum his Opening Day starting pitcher. The Giants are capitalizing on Lincecum's popularity by selling three "Cy Young four-packs," including tickets to four games priced at $55 -- which happens to be the ace pitcher's jersey number. Even in this struggling economy, one of the four-pack plans already has sold out. "I can't say enough about his presence," Giants general manager Brian Sabean said. Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. --

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