Freddy Garcia was a pleasant surprise for the Yankees in 2011; in 26 appearances (25 starts) he posted a 3.62 ERA, his best since 2005, and helped anchor a rotation that had many injury troubles.
Yankees Demote Freddy Garcia To Bullpen, Promote David Phelps
Presswire
This year? Not so much. Garcia has made four starts and the "best" of them could be charitably described as "mediocre"; the rest have been awful. On Saturday, he didn't make it out of the second inning against the Tigers, allowing six runs, and overall this season he's given up 25 hits and five walks in 13⅔ innings.
The Yankees have seen enough; manager Joe Girardi is moving Garcia to the bullpen and rookie David Phelps to the rotation:
Phelps, 25, has been solid as a long reliever this season, making the club after Michael Pineda suffered a shoulder injury late in camp. Phelps owns a 3.57 ERA through 17 2/3 innings of relief work, walking two and striking out 14 around 12 hits.
"I've said all along about David Phelps, I envision him as a starter," Girardi said. "I have not seen anything that tells me eventually he can't be a starter at this level. Time will tell as we move forward."
The Yankees also have Andy Pettitte working his way back to the major leagues after a year of retirement... which might make retirement Garcia's next stop, if he doesn't pitch well in relief for New York.
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