Filipino-American Tim Lincecum is the ace in the San Francisco Giants pitching staff and, despite a shaky start in the first game of the Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series, he just gave his team a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven championship.
He will give Filipinos in the United States something to cheer about while waiting for Manny Pacquiao?s quest for an eight world boxing title in as many weight classes.
And he is playing for a city that has probably the largest concentration of Fil-Ams in the US.
Twice a Cy Young award winner in the National League, Lincecum?s mother is a Filipina.
He is the latest Fil-Am to play in America?s favorite sports past time. The last was Benny Agbayani who debuted as an MLB player for the New York Mets in 1998 and played for a host of other teams, including the Boston Red Sox.
So far in the 2010 MLB playoffs, Lincecum have already beaten two other ace pitchers, fellow Cy Young winners Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLCS and Cliff Lee of the Texas Rangers for the MLB crown.
Lincecum follows Pacquiao as the second highest paid athlete with Filipino blood running in his veins. He recently signed a two-year deal with the Giants for US$23 million.
The Philippines was once a powerhouse in baseball and was consistently vying for gold medal during the defunct Far East Games that is now the Asian Games.
Until a scandal broke out for fielding overage players for the Little League Championship several years back, the Philippine was a force to reckon in tot baseball.
Baseball is one of the team sports that the Filipino can be competitive against anybody. In fact, in a running game, most Filipinos will out sprint their American counterparts in a race to the bag.
MLB?s quickest guys are no taller than Lincecum who stands at 5?11?
Nevertheless, the Fil-Am phenom is not your archetypal player. He is thin and small by pitcher?s standard in the Major Leagues but his wild and unorthodox pitching style and his 60?s throwback of a hair make him what he is ? one of baseball?s feared strikeout pitchers.
Lincecum is on schedule to pitch the fifth game of the World Series if it goes beyond four games. There is still enough time however to watch the games in between updates in the Pacquiao training camp.
