Tim Lincecum has not pitched for the San Francisco Giants since June 27 against the Colorado Rockies after being hit by a line drive in the forearm. Mercury News reported that he was diagnosed with a degenerative hip condition while recovering from the injury and suffered a setback while rehabbing in Arizona.

He underwent a successful arthroscopic surgery on his left hip last Sept. 3 at the Steadman Clinic in Vail, Colo., performed by Dr. Marc Philippon. It seemed that he had thrown his final pitch with the Giants as his two-year contract extension signed in 2013 was set to expire at the end of the season.

But Andrew Baggarly of Mercury News pointed out that the Giants are still interested in re-signing the two-time Cy Young winner.

"There wasn't an opportunity for Tim Lincecum to acknowledge the fans, as he had hoped. But there's still a chance he'll be back this weekend. In any event, a goodbye might not be necessary. The interest is mutual and strong to re-sign Lincecum, from what I'm told. It's more a matter of when, how much and in what form, rather than if," Baggarly said.

The 31-year-old helped the Giants win three World Series championships in the last five years and was one of the most dominating pitchers since his debut until 2011. According to NBC Sports, "The Freak" struggled in the past four years as he only had a 39-42 record with an ERA of 4.68.

For the first time since his hip surgery, Lincecum was interviewed by SF Gate. He gave an update on his condition and revealed his future plans. "I know the window that I was given was about five to six months and I'm pretty confident I'm going to be ready for spring training," the three-time World Series champion said.

"I don't know yet. I can't see that far ahead," Lincecum said regarding the possibility of him working out with other teams before spring training. "I'm just worried about what I've got to do on a daily basis. That feels like it's been kind of overwhelming for me at times, too."

The second all-time strikeout leader in Giants history was also optimistic and acknowledged the Bay Area fans as they had been very supportive of him even with his struggles. "I hope something happens. Obviously, I would like to show my appreciation one way or another just because they've been with me day in and day out," he said.

In an earlier report by USA Today, Giants fans really didn't care about his stats as Lincecum was the "bridge" from Barry Bonds' last few seasons and the rebuilding of the team into their first World Series win in San Francisco.