Free agent Lincecum aims to relaunch career

Tim Lincecum’s attempted comeback will receive a very public test Friday when the pitcher displays his stuff in a “showcase” in Scottsdale, Ariz. More than 11-plus teams will reportedly have representatives on hand, and why not?

Lincecum has won two National League Cy Young Awards, and at 31, he doesn’t have to be done. More than that, he was the kind of performer who was automatically fan-friendly. Lincecum was the little guy with the big, competitive heart. He was very good — not only for the San Francisco Giants, but for baseball.

Lincecum won back-to-back NL Cy Young Awards in 2008 and ’09. At 5-foot-11 and perhaps generously listed at 170 pounds, he was “The Freak,” a slender fellow with a big fastball, terrific stuff and a will to win. Lincecum’s delivery was unconventional. But it certainly worked, just like Lincecum himself.

Lincecum has a career 3.61 ERA and has averaged more than one strikeout per inning over his career.

The passage of the seasons took some velocity from Lincecum. His 2015 season was cut short by a degenerative hip issue. Lincecum had arthroscopic hip surgery and has been working out throughout the offseason in an attempt to build velocity and durability for this showcase. He is reportedly throwing in the low 90s again, a level at which he was pitching competitively in recent seasons.

Lincecum, a free agent at this point, has a stated preference …

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