Tim Lincecum joins Rangers with new contract, heavy heart

Former San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum in camp with the Texas Rangers in Surprise, Ariz., on March 6, 2018. Former San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum in camp with the Texas Rangers in Surprise, Ariz., on March 6, 2018. Photo: San Francisco Chronicle, John Shea Photo: San Francisco Chronicle, John Shea Image 1 of / 25 Caption Close Tim Lincecum joins Rangers with new contract, heavy heart 1 / 25 Back to Gallery

SURPRISE, Ariz. — For the first time in his big-league career, Tim Lincecum will wear a number other than 55.

He’ll wear 44.

“In honor of my brother,” Lincecum said Tuesday after working out at the Texas Rangers’ training facility. “That was his number. Either 12 or 44. Twelve was taken. So it’s 44.”

Sean Lincecum, a major part of Tim Lincecum’s upbringing and an inspiration for Tim’s stellar pitching career with the Giants, died last month at 37.

He was four years older than Tim, who threw on a side field Tuesday with a heavy heart, the memory of Sean fresh in his mind as he began the next chapter of his career with his third team. Tim flew to Arizona after attending Sean’s funeral Saturday.

“That’s a tough thing to put into words right now,” said Lincecum, who declined to specify his brother’s cause of death. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot with the services happening a couple of days ago. For me, I always looked up to my brother. He was an idol for me. He just had a lot of bad runs with choices he made in life. That’s where we’re at right now.”

Lincecum’s close relationship with his father, Chris, is well-chronicled. Chris has been his mentor, coach and friend and taught him nonconforming mechanics that helped him flourish in the big leagues.

But before Lincecum the elder worked with Tim, he worked with Sean.

“If I was 2.0, he was the 1.0. So my dad learned on him first,” Tim Lincecum said. “It kind of sucked because my brother was the kind of guy … I bent, and he broke. Different kind of body styles. It worked out differently, and then he became a hitter and hit the s— out the ball. I think he liked the 44 because …”

Reggie Jackson?

“Yeah. I’m not trying to be Reggie or anything,” Lincecum said. “I’m just trying to carry my brother out there with me.”

Photo: San Francisco Chronicle, John Shea Former San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum in camp with the...

Lincecum agreed to a reported $1 million contract and will compete for a bullpen job with the Rangers. He took a physical Tuesday morning, but not all results were in by the early afternoon — “I think I got an A,” he said — so the contract wasn’t official.

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Therefore, Lincecum couldn’t work out with the team. That could happen Wednesday.

The Rangers were one of two clubs to offer big-league invites. The other? The Dodgers.

The Dodgers?

Could Lincecum — the pride of San Francisco, the two-time Cy Young Award winner, the three-time World Series champ, the man who ushered the Giants into the most successful era in franchise history — see himself in Dodger blue?

“Could I? I had to think about that for a minute,” he said. “But, ultimately, I think it would be really tough to the point I would be betraying my heart.”

Lincecum laughed. He said he picked the Rangers because, “the conversations we had kind of made me feel warm and fuzzy inside.”

The Giants were among 20 teams to scout Lincecum at his Feb. 15 showcase at the Driveline Baseball facility in the Seattle area, where he had been training. Their interest wasn’t at the level of that of the Rangers or Dodgers.

“I was going to give the Giants the benefit of the doubt because it’s where I feel my heart is,” Lincecum said. “It’s a second home for me, and they’ve been so good to me over the years. With that, I tried to keep the communication up with them, but ultimately, it came down to what would fit best for me, and this opportunity was the best fit.”

The big question for the Rangers is whether Lincecum will be effective after sitting out last season and posting a 9.16 ERA in nine starts with the 2016 Angels. His last year with the Giants was 2015.

“I feel it would be tough to give up the game when I feel I’ve still got the ability to play it,” he said.

During negotiations, Lincecum’s masterful clinching victory over the Rangers in the 2010 World Series was mentioned.

“He actually apologized for it,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels. “It wasn’t a very sincere apology.”

Former Giants pitcher Matt Moore is wearing 55 with the Rangers and said after facing the Giants on Monday that he’d be willing to give the number to Lincecum, who appreciated the gesture but said, “I’m not going to make him give it up. I feel like he’s earned that with his career, and he was here before I was.”

Lincecum is in his element again, back on the field and playing ball, which he missed last season. The way he describes it, the game has been a family affair.

“As a baseball family, I’m around my dad a lot. Even with my brother, up until the point he passed,” Lincecum said. “We were always talking about baseball. It’s one of those things that kind of has an itch in you. When you see everybody go down for spring training, it’s like we’ve got to migrate. I’ve got to head down. I don’t feel it’s right if I’m not doing the same thing, essentially.”

Lincecum’s thoughts of his brother are with him on and off the field.

“If it wasn’t for my dad that I looked up to, it would be him,” Lincecum said. “Just growing up … I can’t even talk right now. It’s kind of making me emotional.”

With that, Lincecum signed a few autographs and walked toward the Rangers’ clubhouse, the well-loved right-hander embarking on his latest comeback bid, his glove in his arm and his family in his heart.