Tim Lincecum silences catcalls, gets Giants closer to my dream World Series matchup.

San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum can do whatever he wants.

If he wants to grow his hair so that it’s fourteen feet long, I’m into it—as long as he keeps winning.

Last night, Major League Baseball fans were treated to a semi-masterful performance by “The Freak” as he silenced the Phillie’s potent lineup for seven innings and struck out eight, including power-hitting first baseman Ryan Howard twice. For those not paying attention, Lincecum’s twenty-two strikeouts through his first two postseason starts ties a record set by the St. Louis Cardinals’ Bob Gibson way back in 1964. He’s also won seven of his last eight starts, including two postseason bids, a fitting cap to his unusually underwhelming 2010 regular season.

I couldn’t be more excited because I’ll be the first to admit it: I do not want another New York Yankees/Philadelphia Phillies matchup in the World Series.

I’ve been alive for twenty-five years and of those twenty-five years, the New York Yankees have appeared in the postseason fifteen times. Most of those appearances happened to occur during my formative years, and as someone from New Bedford, Massachusetts, I guess you could say I’m scarred. Knowing that the Yankees are an almost-lock to appear in the postseason means that there’s only three real postseason spots.

And recently, it seems, the Philadelphia Phillies have routinely occupied one of those three spots. It’s like Groundhog Day—things are predictable and boring and, as a result, I’m generally ho-hum about the postseason. Sure, a team like the Tampa Bay Rays pops in and makes its mark, but a year later, it’s the same old song and dance. It’s baseball’s version of a monopoly, and it makes for a poor experience for fans living outside of New York and Philadelphia.

So last night, I was dazzled, awed, even smitten, with Tim Lincecum’s performance. Even if he does look like a barely legal girl on the mound, I’ll latch onto anything he does, as long as it means that the Philadelphia Phillies don’t make the World Series and there’s still a chance of a Texas Rangers versus San Francisco Giants finale.

The television ratings would probably be lower than a Mormon’s blood alcohol level on a Sunday, but for me, the prospect of that matchup is exceedingly exhilarating.

Think about it: Tim Lincecum versus Cliff Lee in game one, C.J. Wilson versus Jonathan Sanchez in game two, Colby Lewis versus Matt Cain in game three, or some combination thereof. No, no pitcher tossed a postseason no-hitter, but that’s a damn good list of pitching matchups for die-hard baseball fans.

Something’s going to have to happen for this matchup to occur, however.

San Francisco’s offense is anemic. The Phillies’ big boppers haven’t gotten it going yet.

Add to that the relentless, unstoppable, just-when-you-think-you’ve-got-’em-they-beat-you New York Yankees, and my World Series dream matchup may be just that.

Still, I’ve got my fingers crossed.

Blah: New York Yankees capture championship.

“I hate you New York Yankees, but goddamnit do I respect you. Today we spell ‘redemption’…N-Y-Y.”

The author then kisses the forehead of the collective Yankees.

The inevitable happened.

The vaunted New York Yankees franchise mercifully finished the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series last night, taking home their 27th World Championship in the process.

Pretty much everyone knew this was the foregone conclusion. It was just a matter of time.

But it still feels weirder than expected. The core of the Yankees is so tenured that it’s like I’ve been transported back to the late 1990s.

It looked like it felt the same way for Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, too. After winning so many championships, the two looked about as excited as a weathered, cigarette ripping grandmother at a BINGO parlor after the last out.

All those feelings of New York Yankee hatred that I’d harbored for so many years, but gradually declined each year they failed to capture a championship, are slowly bubbling back to the surface. And its a volatile mixture: part anger, part annoyance, with two parts respect.

I’m weary of another dynasty. I don’t want to see the Yankees in the World Series for the next five years straight. I’ve been there, done that way too many times in my short life. I’m only 24 years old and I’ve seen the Yankees in the World Series seven times.

I’m grumpy that the team that spent $423.5 million on the contracts of A.J. Burnett, CC Sabathia, and Mark Teixeira and were immediately rewarded a World Series Championship. C’mon, at least make ’em squirm for a year or two…

The Yankees have the highest-paid first baseman, the highest-paid third baseman, the highest-paid shortstop, the highest-paid catcher, the highest-paid starting pitcher and the highest-paid reliever in the history of baseball. To break that World Series Championship drought all they needed to do was make somebody the highest paid something and voila!

I admire the team’s front office for the product they put on the field, but it’s too much when one team picks up the top three free agents that hit the market.

But it is so friggin’ remarkable that Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada, and Mariano Rivera are still with this team.

It’s just another testament to the team’s loyal front office that people so often overlook or refuse to acknowledge: the Steinbrenners and Brian Cashman will do anything, spend anything, to keep this core together. In a day and age where players change hands like Harlem hookers, I admire Yankee’s fans because they get to cheer for the same players, year-in and year-out.

And the contributions that those players have made to this franchise’s storied history are impossible to express. For over a decade, they’ve been the team.

So congratulations, Yankees. But please, don’t make this a habit.

With five World Series homeruns, Philly’s Utley is marked man.

In a blog posted at 3 a.m., former New York Yankees pitcher David Wells bluntly described how he would handle Philadelphia’s Chase Utley, the new co-owner of the World Series’ homerun record: “[He] needs to kiss the Yankee Stadium dirt tonight.”

But Wells’ plan will be hard to implement.

After two hit-by-pitches in Game 3, Alex Rodriguez was plunked again in Game 4 by Philadelphia’s Joe Blanton. Rodriguez hadn’t shown signs of his ALCS dominance, yet umpires were incredibly quick to issue warnings to both benches.

To both teams, the message was clear: Stay away from the big bats or you’ll get tossed.

And there isn’t a bigger bat in Philadelphia’s lineup than Chase Utley. In the World Series thus far, Utley owns a .333 average to go along with five homeruns, eight RBI, and a .429 on-base percentage. It’s a postseason series for the record books and one that makes Utley a marked man.

It should be almost impossible to knock him down without a warning being issued. And if he gets plunked, an ejection should be the foregone conclusion.

I wouldn’t look for New York’s Andy Pettitte to be the one to send the message tonight.

At his advanced age, he’s a control pitcher; every umpire on the field knows this.

But Utley has led the league in hit-by-pitches three times; every umpire on the field also knows this.

A hit-by-pitch could go either way, for Pettitte or against Pettitte. That’s a chance I don’t think Joe Girardi is willing to take, especially with a shaky bullpen and a championship trophy hanging in the balance.

In seven regular season at bats versus Pettitte, Utley stroked just one hit, good for a sloppy .143 average. In Game 3, Utley posted an 0-fer against Pettitte and didn’t reach base. Thus far, Pettitte is the only pitcher to neutralize Philadelphia’s biggest threat.

I’m not looking for the Utley to even be in the Yankee’s game plan. I’m expecting him to get worked away most of the night with Pettitte pitching around him for the first six innings.

And while having ducks on the pond is never something you want to do, it’s more desirable than the possible ejection of MLB’s best postseason pitcher.

Make Ryan Howard show up. Make Jayson Werth and Raul Ibanez press and swing at pitches they’d normally avoid.

Trust shortstop Derek Jeter and second baseman Robinson Cano to turn the double play (43 percent of Pettitte’s pitches become groundballs).

Believe in the offense. Even when it seemed like the Yankees were all-but dead in Game 5, they took the wind out of Philadelphia’s sails by scoring 5 runs in the final two innings.

Pettitte should not brush Utley back in the first inning or even think about plunking him until the game is out of Philadelphia’s control.

Leave the pigheadness to Pedro Martinez.