Timmy's An All Star, But Will He Pitch?

To no one's surprise, Tim Lincecum was selected by his peers to represent the Giants at the All-Star Game July 15. But within hours of this announcement, Bruce Bochy seemed to dash any hopes of Lincecum getting the deserved starting nod, or of even pitching at all. Originally, Lincecum was scheduled to make his last start prior to the All-Star break on Wednesday against the Mets. However, Bochy chose to reshuffle the rotation, instead pitching Lincecum Tuesday in New York, and then again on Sunday in Chicago, just two days before the All-Star Game. The logic behind the move seems to be simply to give Lincecum more starts and give the Giants a better chance to gain ground in the NL West. But the strategy almost seems counterproductive. If he pitched Wednesday, Lincecum would match up with Johan Santana, giving the Giants their best shot to beat the Mets' ace.

I will be very disappointed if Lincecum doesn't pitch in the All-Star Game. Of course, I would prefer he start, but I'd rather see him throw just one inning than nothing at all. And I think it's extremely uncool of the Giants to hold Lincecum back from his first All-Star appearance with the justification of being in a pennant race. If the Giants want to prove that they deserve some respect, I'd much rather see Lincecum mow down Alex Rodriguez in Yankee Stadium than see the team fool itself into thinking that it has a chance at the playoffs.

In other All-Star news, congratulations to Brian Wilson for being chosen by the players, and make sure to vote for Aaron Rowand in the Final Vote, albeit over much more deserving candidates.