World Series notebook: Missing man Tim Lincecum returns, for just a while

Somehow, the tale of Tim Lincecum, postseason pitcher, just got a little stranger.

Lincecum, the ace of the Giants’ 2010 World Series team and a vital reliever in the 2012 World Series, had become the forgotten man in 2014. Chosen for the roster in each postseason series, he had yet to make an appearance until Wednesday, when he entered Game 2 in the seventh inning.

Lincecum pitched well, too, getting five straight outs (including two strikeouts). Then his back seized up while he pitched to Kansas City’s Salvador Perez. He tried one more pitch before leaving the game with the count 2-2.

“I didn’t feel like I was putting myself in a good position to keep throwing on it,” Lincecum said.

Manager Bruce Bochy said the strain was concentrated in the left side of Lincecum’s lower back, and the Giants hope to learn more today. Lincecum said he did not believe the injury was related to his lack of recent game activity.

In any case, his bounce-back was well received by the Giants.

“He threw the ball well,” Bochy said. “I mean, we’re going to need help in the sixth, seventh inning. I like the way he threw the ball today. … So he can be in the mix.”

Santiago Casilla relieved Lincecum and got a one-pitch strikeout.

DESIGNATED HIATUS:

The biggest change for this series as it moves from Kansas City to San Francisco for Game 3 on Friday - other than the color scheme of the crowd - will be the disappearance of the designated hitter position in the National League venue.

Royals manager Ned Yost, for one, doesn’t believe it puts his American League team in a hole.

“Because we’ve got a big bat on the bench late that we can bring off (in Billy Butler),” Yost said. “Our pitchers, even though they haven’t done it with regularity, the guys that we have are all pretty decent hitters. They’re all pretty fundamentally sound in terms of bunting. So I don’t really look at it as an advantage or disadvantage.”

Yost will be scrambling harder than Bochy to adjust, however. Bochy’s lineup has varied a bit in the postseason, at least on the back end, and he is used to deploying Michael Morse - the Giants DH in Games 1 and 2 -off the bench. The Royals, on the other hand, have used the same batting order every game since Sept. 21.

IS ANYBODY WATCHING?

This is shaping up to be an exciting World Series. You may want to keep the secret to yourself.

According to Nielsen, the Giants’ 7-1 victory in Game 1 on Tuesday drew an average of 12.2 million viewers, down about 15 percent from last year’s Game 1 telecast. The Fox telecast dropped to a household rating of 7.3, compared with 8.6 last year.

The ratings tied with the low 2012 series opener, in which the Giants defeated the Detroit Tigers, 8-3. The 2012 World Series, a four-game sweep of the Tigers by the Giants, was the least-watched Fall Classic ever.

NOTES:

The Giants are the first team in World Series history to hit a first-inning home run in Games 1 and 2.

Hunter Strickland has given up five home runs since the playoffs started. That ties Milwaukee’s Chris Naverson for most homers allowed by a reliever in a single postseason. Only three MLB relievers have surrendered more in a career.

Omar Infante’s home run for the Royals was his first in 145 postseason at-bats. The only active streak longer than that is Jon Jay’s 189.