When Tim Lincecum recorded his 1,000th strikeout as the Giants faced the Washington Nationals on June 6, 2011, a standing ovation ensued. It was a heck of a moment, and the guy on the other end of it, Jerry Hairston Jr. remembers the at-bat well.
However, Hairston Jr. kind of had it coming.
“I do remember that at-bat,” Hairston Jr. said on Balk Talk. “It kind of serves me right because -- I know this is hard for you to believe, Jess, but I wasn’t the most talented player on my team, but I probably talked the most trash among my teammates.”
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What exactly did he say to Timmy?
“I would always yell out to Tim Lincecum when he was taking the mound, ‘Get a haircut, hippie!’”
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Hairston Jr. said he would yell it “all the time.” And while he’s not sure if Lincecum heard him, he felt the 1,000th strikeout against him was a form of karmic justice.
“I always respected Tim, he had great stuff -- another guy that wasn’t 6-foot-5, wasn’t huge in stature, but he had electric stuff,” Hairston said.
Lincecum spent nine seasons with the Giants, earning two NL Cy Young Awards, four All-Star selections and three World Series rings. He remains a beloved member of Giants and Bay Area sports royalty because of his pitching abilities and how unique of a character he was.
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“Listen,” he added. “Somebody had to be that 1,000th, it just happened to be me that day. It was more about him, not me.”