Could Lincecum lose his spot in rotation?

SEATTLE — He put seven of the first nine hitters on base, allowed six runs before recording three outs and failed to complete six innings for the eighth consecutive start. By the time he was finished Friday, Tim Lincecum’s ERA had inflated to 9.16, the second-highest among pitchers who have registered at least 35 innings this season.

After the game, a 6-4 defeat to the Mariners, Angels manager Mike Scioscia clung to one phrase when asked repeatedly about Lincecum’s standing in the rotation: “Our goal is to get Tim right.”

Getting Lincecum right without jeopardizing the team’s chances of winning, or even putting a heavy toll on the bullpen, doesn’t appear realistic these days.

The 32-year-old right-hander has lost six of his nine starts in his return from major hip surgery. Over his last three outings, he has allowed 18 runs in a stretch of 9 2/3 innings, giving up 21 hits and 10 walks while striking out only four batters.

“I don’t want to be patient,” Lincecum said, “but obviously it’s something I’ve had to grasp because of the way things have gone and the way this has progressed and the way I’m going after it. I’m not going out there just throwing bullpens against nobody. I’m still trying to get outs in the [American League] West, against good hitters. It just goes back to throwing quality strikes. I’m not doing it on a consistent basis to help myself out enough.”

Lincecum joined the Angels on a pro-rated, incentive-laden $2.5 million contract towards the end of …

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