Are the Giants and Phillies "rivals"? Well, maybe. Or maybe not.
It doesn't matter, though, because the two teams talk about each other like they are.
More specifically, Charlie Manuel, manager of the Phils, talks about the Giants pitching staff. You probably recall when he said they were "good" and not "great" and Tim Lincecum took offense.
Well, on Thursday, Manuel pointed out that what he really meant was that they weren't great because they haven't proved themselves. Oh, well, that's much better!
"What's a great pitcher? A great pitcher is a guy who pitches quite a few years, and he has some 20-game seasons and stuff like that," Manuel said, according to Philly.com.
Um, not to be a jerk, Chuckles, but you know Lincecum has two Cy Young Awards right?
Two Cy Youngs! I mean, what else does he need?
Sports
"Lincecum and Cain and their two lefties [Jonathan] Sanchez and [Madison] Bumgarner, they're good pitchers," Manuel said. "They're very good pitchers. I said our team can hit them. Their stuff is not so overpowering and great that we can't hit them.
"That's what I meant, but it doesn't matter. Whatever [Lincecum] thinks - good."
His last comment -- "whatever Lincecum thinks" -- is a decent mantra for Giants fans in general. After all, how often is Timmy wrong?
But it's clearly delivered with some sarcasm as well, and that's good news for Giants fans too. Because any motivation to beat Philly is good motivation.
And Manuel doesn't seem like not giving the team bulletin board material at this point.
