SO...WOULD SKIPPING GARCIA HELP OR HURT?

The New York Post’s George King III had reported earlier this week that the Yankees may skip the next Freddy Garcia spot in the rotation. Read HERE.  Now it's being reported by Bryan Hoch HERE that Joe Girardi has decided that Freddy will in fact pitch Saturday night against the Detroit Tigers and CC Sabathia will pitch Sunday.  To be honest, I would have preferred not seeing him in his next start, just to give the guy a rest one time through and let him clear his head a bit.  Why? Well... in 3 starts this year, Garcia is 0-1 with a 9.75 ERA. I don’t want that on my team.  That sucks.

The worst part of all of Freddy’s starts was his last one in Boston.  People can rave about the 15-9comeback win against the Red Sox all day long, after all, a win is a win, and a win against the Red Sox is so much sweeter.  But we cannot forget about how it happened.  Garcia was horrendous.  It can’t be overlooked.  If they lose that game, Garcia is no doubt pulled from the rotation or at least skipped.  You can’t pitch like that on the New York Yankees and expect to have a job.  I give credit to the Yankees, they bailed out their teammate, but it’s a bad situation for Freddy. 

Some are suggesting the Yankees should have chosen Bartolo Colon over Freddy Garcia this winter.  Sure, you can roll the dice like any one, but I would have done what the Yankees did based on the performances of both pitchers last year, especially down the stretch, where Colon simply broke down and couldn’t pitch himself out of a paper bag, and Garcia, while not outstanding, was still able to pitch.  Sure, now we look at Freddy compared to Colon and it’s no contest, Colon looks better…but one thing you can’t do is second guess a decision that can’t be changed…what’s done is done and now we need to adjust and fix the problem we’re in, not harp on what “could have been.”

Look, maybe a rest is good for Freddy or maybe his next outing will be great.  My opinion though is the Yankees have much bigger problems...after all, it's not only Garcia, we also have to think about  Phil Hughes, the Golden Boy, who has also struggled. Make no mistake about it, his record this year reflects it.  Sure, Garcia is our #5 guy, Hughes is our #3 guy.  While both pitchers have to perform, Hughes definitely does.  My solution to this is simple and it’s nothing personal.  You bring in David Phelps for a start, see how the kid does. If he can handle 5 or 6 innings and come out with a win, you have something. If he can’t, you do what you need to do and wait for Andy Pettitte to move to the 3 hole and slide Hughes to the 5 hole and Garcia…well…he moves on. I just can't see it any other way.

Finally, let me state the truth of this mess…I love “The Chief” and always have throughout his entire career…. and it all started in Seattle. He’s a team player, a great pitcher who had a decent career.  It hurts me a lot that I would even suggest that this guy needs to take a walk…but he does.  It’s business…we need to win a championship and that’s done by winning…not trying.

Let's hope Garcia kicks ass Saturday, we'll all be watching, that's for sure.

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