From feel-good story to SF Giants’ history: Why Logan Webb made Buster Posey think of Tim Lincecum

SAN FRANCISCO — In a span of five days, Logan Webb went from another Giants feel-good story to a player who is carving out a special place in franchise history.

Webb’s fame is sudden, but it’s hardly unexpected for a pitcher who followed up a division-clinching win on Sunday by conjuring up memories of Tim Lincecum with 7 2/3 scoreless innings in a dominant 4-0 victory against the Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLDS on Friday.

“It felt a little bit like Lincecum’s (start) against the Braves in 2010,” catcher Buster Posey said. “I think Timmy ended up nine (shutout) on that, but I think Logan had the potential to do that tonight if he stays out there.”

Against a Dodgers lineup that led the National League with 5.12 runs per game, Webb scattered five hits and didn’t allow a walk while racking up 10 strikeouts in one of the best starts in Giants’ playoff history. Juxtaposed with a relatively rough day for starter Kevin Gausman, who was charged with four earned runs in a Game 2 loss, Webb’s start was even more impressive.

“I feel like I keep saying this,” Webb said. “But like you kind of dream of these moments growing up as a player and just to be able to be a part of it and do it is something that’s special, for sure.”

Lincecum’s 14 strikeouts in a 1-0 shutout in Game 1 of the 2010 NLDS against the Braves came in his postseason debut, but at that point in his career, the pitcher known as “The Freak,” had already won two Cy Young Awards and made three All-Star teams.

The key to Lincecum’s success against Atlanta was the increased usage of a slider he developed in bullpen sessions during the final weeks of the regular season. Despite primarily relying on his fastball and a devastating changeup for much of the year, Lincecum surprised the Braves with a pitch that swept across the strike zone and missed bats.

“They said go warm up, and I’m thinking, ‘Why?’” former Giants reliever Sergio Romo said that night. “Hey, I was a fan. I was entertained from the first pitch to the last pitch. I’ve never seen that before, especially in the magnitude of a game like this.”

Posey was a rookie who caught his first postseason shutout while throwing down signs for Lincecum that night, and 11 years later, he was the backstop imploring Webb to keep throwing a brilliant changeup that he shelved for much of the season.

Webb threw a season-high 38 changeups against the Dodgers and generated a career-high 12 swings and misses with the pitch.

“I feel like the game plan really never changed,” Webb said. “It’s just attack the guys. They don’t chase. It’s just like us, we don’t chase, very similar. When you attack early I feel like you start to get more chase at the end, and kind of just how the game went today.”

The Dodgers’ offense led the majors with the fewest swings on pitches outside the strike zone, but manager Dave Roberts lamented his team’s approach against a starter who was able to work into the eighth inning while averaging fewer than 14 pitches per inning.

“The slider, the change down below, we just chased a lot more than we should have,” Roberts said. “If you don’t make adjustments, then they’re going to keep going to the well, and that was kind of the story of it.”

On Saturday against Gausman, the Dodgers’ manager was much more pleased with his team’s plate discipline.

“I just thought we gave ourselves a chance,” Roberts said. “Not afraid to get into counts and grind Gausman and use the whole field.”

Webb’s dominance isn’t much of a surprise to those who watched him closely during the second half of the year as his 2.48 FIP (a stat that focuses on events a pitcher has the most control over) ranked second in the majors behind a top NL Cy Young candidate, Corbin Burnes.

And while a national audience could end up learning a lot more about Webb in the coming weeks, especially if he starts a potential NLDS Game 5 on Thursday, a Giants organization that used its fourth round draft choice on the Rocklin High product in 2014 has long believed he has the potential to pitch at the front end of its major league rotation.

As far back as 2018, Giants farm director Kyle Haines told reporters Webb deserved to be considered a top-100 prospect. A Giants franchise that produced homegrown greats such as Lincecum, Matt Cain and Madison Bumgarner was convinced Webb had the potential to be special, in part because the late Dick Tidrow, who influenced the development of the three aforementioned aces, played a key role in identifying Webb as a future major league starter.

The Giants brought Webb to the majors in August, 2019 and while the then 22-year-old initially struggled, he flashed his immense potential with back-to-back quality starts against two playoff-bound teams, the Braves and Dodgers.

The breakout the Giants thought might take place in 2020 didn’t end up occurring during a truncated 2020 season, but it was then that Webb says pitching coaches Andrew Bailey and Brian Bannister began to help him understand how his arm slot, mechanics and pitch mix would be most effective.

Instead of relying on a four-seam fastball and sweeping slider, Webb entered 2021 determined to maximize his two-seamer while blending a tighter slider with a changeup that showed the potential to be devastating during Cactus League play.

The path Webb took to becoming the Giants’ most trusted starter took longer than expected, but in the team’s two biggest games of the year, the right-hander has brought back memories of Jonathan Sanchez’s NL West-clinching effort from October 3, 2010 against the Padres before reminding Posey of the days he caught one of the most decorated starters in franchise history in Lincecum.

Webb and the Giants always believed this type of success was possible. Now everyone can see why.