The Yankees have prospects that could fill two of the three big needs they have this offseason, but are they ready to rise to the occasion and be productive? That's the big question. The Yankees have interest in upgrading their centerfield and pitching and the Yankees have names we all WANT to be ready.
We've seen brief appearances in the majors, but wish they were more permanent, especially since we need someone else to deliver when Aaron Hicks has proven he can't. Florial has the power, the athletic ability, and is considered the best defensive centerfielder in the organization but he hasn't been able to put it all together to stay in the big leagues. Last season he struck out 121 times (30.9%) and only had a .219 BA. That's just not going to get it done in the majors. Those numbers are scary in Triple-A, so considering a full year of that would be setting him up to fail and would only add more problems to the current Yankee roster. You can't promote someone that hasn't proven they are ready.
This could be a make it or break it season for Florial. Hard to imagine the Yankees being stuck in this position with their most talented centerfield defender but.... he only has one more option year left. Fangraphs didn't even include Florial in the Yankees list of top prospects this season. The clock is starting to tick and if progress isn't made, he could find himself as a non-tender candidate next season. Maybe.
This one stings a little. Garcia took a BIG step backwards that I don't think anyone saw coming. He was considered to be a favorite for the Yankee rotation last season, but after two big league starts, we could all see he wasn't ready. He's got the pitching arsenal; he was projected to be a number three type starter but then pitching coach Matt Blake had to start tinkering with his mechanics which led to a 6.85 ERA. Another example of the Yankees unqualified coaching staff.
I think Garcia can be saved. Even Blake has suggested that it is a possibility that Garcia spends more time going back to previous methods that made him successful before. Not to mention that he is about to turn 23 so he's still young and the Yankees can turn this all around.... if they would just let the kid do what he was good at and successful with before. He's also healthy with no major injury history. He was just obviously mismanaged by a staff not qualified to experiment with him the way that they have.
I really think Garcia could rebound if Blake and his boneheads would stop trying to tinker with him and stop trying to make him into something he's not. Florial could be saved with work from qualified hitting coaches, which the Yankees have needed for a long time.
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