Tim Lincecum close to signing with Rangers and could be their closer
Since everything is bigger in Texas, Tim Lincecum’s latest comeback attempt might be too.
According to our Yahoo Sports’ own Jeff Passan, Lincecum is close to signing a one-year, big-league deal with the Texas Rangers. The former two-time Cy Young winner and San Francisco Giants star is looking to return to the big leagues after missing all of the 2017 season.
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In fact, according to Passan, Lincecum could very well have a shot to be the Rangers’ closer in 2018:
Sources: Tim Lincecum is deep into talks with the Texas Rangers on a one-year major league deal, and the expectation is it gets done soon. One possible plan for Lincecum: pitch out of the bullpen. And with the Rangers' closer job wide open, he's got a good shot at securing it.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 27, 2018
Lincecum, 33, last pitched for the Los Angeles Angels in 2016, his first comeback attempt. It didn’t go well. He had a 9.16 ERA in nine starts. After taking 2017 off, Lincecum showed up this spring looking more muscular and had regained some velocity.
The Dodgers were another team believed to be interested in signing Lincecum. As a bullpen arm, Lincecum showed a small bit of promise in his days with the Giants and had often been thought of as a “what if?” case for bullpen conversation.
Sounds like we’ll see soon enough.
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Mike Oz is a writer at Yahoo Sports. Contact him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
