Sanchez could become Lincecum's personal catcher

In both of Tim Lincecum's starts so far this season, his catcher was Hector Sanchez.

In the first, Buster Posey played first base. In the second, Posey sat out.

Much of last season, San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy was forced to explain why he didn't catch Posey in Lincecum games, and it's happening again.

For the first time, Bochy is admitting that Sanchez could become Lincecum's regular catcher.

"It's always an option," Bochy said. "I don't think there's anything wrong with your regular guy getting days off and the backup catches the same guy. There's a sense of comfort there for the catcher and pitcher, too. We'll see how things fall."

Problem is, either Posey or Brandon Belt would be out of the lineup in games Sanchez catches. If Posey plays first, Belt sits -- unless Belt starts getting time in left field, which wasn't supposed to be the plan entering spring training.

Either way, Bochy is favoring keeping the catcher's gear off Posey whenever Lincecum, who throws a lot of pitches that bounce, sometimes on purpose, makes the start.

"Timmy's not easy to catch sometimes, the ball moves so much," Bochy said.

Lincecum allowed six runs in six innings Tuesday during a no-decision against the Rockies. The Giants emerged with a 9-6 win.