San Francisco Giants Morning Commute: Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Barry Bonds all at spring training

Mar 10, 2014; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants former outfielder Barry Bonds (right) greets Willie McCovey during batting practice prior to the game against the Chicago Cubs at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The San Francisco Giants face the Chicago White Sox today at 1:05 pm PDT in Scottsdale. It’s the first of two meetings between the two teams this spring. The White Sox roster includes former Giants Eric Surkamp and Jeff Keppinger. I haven’t seen their lineup yet, but Keppinger’s shoulder has been an issue this spring, so I’d be surprised if we saw him play today.

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Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports did a fantastic piece on the evolution of Tim Lincecum. He did a nice job of talking about what everyone, including Timmy himself, is well aware of. Tim Lincecum is not the pitcher he used to be. At age 30, he’s redefining himself a pitcher who is going to have to fight to last in this game. I think he’s on the right track.

"For two years, Lincecum resisted what deep down he understood: He needed to evolve. This offseason, coming off his second consecutive substandard year, Lincecum started that transformation. The mustache is merely a physical representation of something much bigger, much deeper.If he no longer could be the pitcher he once was, he no longer could be the person he once was, either."

Perhaps one of the best parts is this quote and acknowledgement from Lincecum.

"“That was never a question back in the day because I never had to answer it,” Lincecum says. “I could answer it with athleticism. Now, I’m not trying to get the 10 punchies. I want to get my outs and get through the game, and that’s just as gratifying to me as the days I would dominate. It’s a different kind of domination to me."

Read the full article here: How Tim Lincecum reinvented himself to stay ahead of the game

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According to John Shea of the SF Chronicle, Michael Morse is getting a lot of attention in Scottsdale. Most notably though, is from Barry Bonds himself.

"Barry Bonds spent a lot of time with Morse, who plays Bonds’ old position, at Scottsdale Stadium on Tuesday. Bonds is impressed with Morse’s strength and told Willie Mays about him."

It’s a good quick article by Shea and includes some new video footage of Bonds and Morse.

Give it a read: Barry Bonds works with Michael Morse (includes video of Bonds/Morse, new Bonds interview and some autographs)

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I’m not going to say more about this article from Alex Pavlovic except his tweet below and the quote from Sergio Romo below it to give it some context. Let’s just say the Giants had a lot of history, and power, sitting in their locker room yesterday.

From Pavs article:

"“That’s the don’t-leave-it-over-the-middle table,” Sergio Romo yelled, laughing and shaking his head. “Don’t hang that slider! That’s a lot of homers right there.”"

Read the full article: Barry Bonds stays busy at Giants camp

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Finally, in news someone may care about, Dontrelle Willis (minor-league camp) was sent for an MRI according to John Shea.