3
Jul
Justin Verlander
102IP, 90K, 39BB, 80H, a no-hitter in which he threw over 100mph in the 9th inning.
If you have not heard of Justin, I would guess you are not a baseball fan. He is a nasty pitcher when he is on. His fastball have good movement and his curveball is outright unfair for a hitter to face. Of course when he is off… he is off with the best of them (5IP, 4H, 5BB, 6ER against the Twins last time out). you can expect ups and downs from any pitcher in the majors, and especially a youngster (24 years old) in his second full season.
Anyone have his 2005 Topps Chrome Refractor Rookie Autograph Card (#242 ) laying around? I don’t!
Tim Lincecum (pronounced Lin-seekum)
Although I am a huge fan of Lincecum’s, I can understand why all but the true baseball fans may not have heard of him. Nicknamed “franchise” by his Giant teammates, Tim looks to be destined to be a star in the majors. He is only a year out of college.
66IP, 74K, 29BB, 52H (with the bulk of those BB coming in a 4 game stretch where it looked like he was trying to spot his pitches to hard)
I got on the Lincecum bandwagon last year, and am feeling might good about him right now. Except for a concern I have that he could blow out his arm, he sure looks like the real deal. I watched a game in mid-May where he matched up with Roy Oswalt that was absolutely phenomenal. The kind of game that makes you enjoy watching baseball on TV. I can say this one thing about him… when he is on… he is way on, and hitters look silly against him! If you have not seen him pitch yet, be sure to check him out as soon as you can.
