Lincecum to visit hip doctor, could need surgery
Tim Lincecum could require surgery on his injured hip. (USATSI)
Giants great Tim Lincecum will travel to visit noted hip doctor Marc Philippon Wednesday in Vail, Colo., where a final determination will be made as to whether Lincecum needs hip surgery, people familiar with the situation say.
Lincecum has already seen multiple doctors regarding his hip issue, and he and Philippon, the world-renowned specialist, are expected to make the final call after an examination Wednesday afternoon at the world-class Steadman Clinic in Vail.
While Lincecum hasn’t been experiencing severe pain in his hips, he has been hampered by an instability that’s curtailed his comeback attempts. Before he went on the disablist list in late July, the two-time Cy Young winner could be seen slipping off the mound at times. The Giants have called it a “degenerative” condition.
Nonetheless, doctors are said to have told Lincecum that he could easily be ready for next spring training if he had the surgery, and they’ve further suggested that he should be able to return to form. They also are said to believe that his steep velocity decline is related to his current hip woes. The smallish righthander known as “The Freak” is a pitcher who relies on extraordinary torque and the drive of his legs to generate unreal arm speed for a sub-6-foot pitcher, or any pitcher really.
Andrew Baggarley of the San Jose Merury News reported on Monday that the hip problem was preventing Lincecum from making much pitching progress.
Lincecum, 7-4 with a 4.13 ERA this season, was throwing in the 92-93 mph range earlier this year, but by the July 27 game, when he was hit by a line drive against the Colorado Rockies and knocked onto the disabled list, he was throwing only in the high 80s. At his best, Lincecum threw in the high 90s. His arm is fine; the hip is the lone issue.
Lincecum, 31, has already seen multiple doctors, including a hip specialist in Nashville, Tenn., and he’s tried cortisone shots in attempt to improve the situation. But he acknowledged to Baggarley that he wasn’t progressing as he had hoped.
“It’s definitely frustrating but I’ve got to find a way to move forward,” Lincecum said. “The training staff is definitely doing their best to help me out. … (The shots) aren’t taking hold the way we had hoped. I don’t know. It’s a band-aid situation. To be honest, we’re trying to explore as many options as we can.”
Surgery is obviously a real possibility at this point.
Lincecum is a free agent after the year, but it can’t be assumed he’s thrown his last pitch with the Giants, as he’s an iconic player who’s enjoyed a special relationship with the team and the town; they’ve all enjoyed three World Series crowns together It’s fair to say his potential recovery will go a long way toward determining his possible Giants future.
While some wonder whether he’s thrown his last pitch in San Francisco, he isn’t in a position to know his Giants days are definitely coming to a close.
“I really don’t know. I mean, I hope not,” Lincecum told Baggarley. “I can’t predict the future. I have good days and bad days.
“The bad days are outshining the good ones.”
That could change after Wednesday.
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