Freddy Garcia pitched so poorly so far this season, the Yankees couldn’t even wait for Andy Pettitte’s return to replace him.
After Garcia was knocked out in the second inning of two straight starts, they demoted the veteran to the bullpen and replaced him in the rotation with David Phelps.
“When you pitch bad, what do you expect?” Garcia said. “I don’t pitch the way I’m supposed to pitch. It’s reality.”
Garcia gave up six runs in just 1 2/3 innings against the Tigers on Saturday in a 7-5 Yankees loss. That came after he surrendered five runs, while recording only five outs, in Boston last week.
Phelps will start in Kansas City on Thursday, and the Yankees also called up D.J. Mitchell from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to fill Phelps’ spot as long man. Cody Eppley was optioned to Scranton to make room for Mitchell.
Garcia doesn’t know what his role will be out of the pen.
“They’ve got a seventh [inning pitcher], an eighth [inning] guy and Mariano [Rivera],” Garcia said. “Maybe long reliever. But I’ll be ready.”
Manager Joe Girardi doesn’t intend for Garcia to gather dust.
“We’ll try to get him some work,” Girardi said. “And get him back to where we need him to be.”
Garcia was expected to have to battle for a rotation spot at some point this year, but Michael Pineda is done for the season with a torn labrum and Pettitte isn’t ready to pitch in the majors yet. But after Saturday’s debacle, it became clear that the Yankees couldn’t send Garcia back to the mound for another start.
Phelps has been solid as a frequently used long reliever, tossing three scoreless innings in Saturday’s loss to lower his ERA to 3.57. Garcia is 0-2 with a 12.51 ERA in four starts.
“I’ve been playing this game a long time and a lot of things have happened to me before,” Garcia said. “I always came [out] on top.”
Phil Hughes, who will take the mound tomorrow with a 7.88 ERA, is trying to avoid the same fate. He watched video of himself from when he had success as a reliever with pitching coach Larry Rothschild.
“This bullpen [session], I let it loose and I’m going to bring that with me [tomorrow],” Hughes said. “I already knew what was at stake before this happened to Freddy. No one has to tell me. I need to get back to the aggression and tempo I had when I was relieving and rely more on my fastball. Just put the pedal to the floor and see where it takes me.”
And Phelps just wants to continue what he’s been doing.
“I’ve worked myself up to throw the innings,” said Phelps. “I’ll throw a heavier bullpen [session] and try to give them what they need. … The biggest thing is to prove you can get these guys, whether it’s in a start or in the bullpen. I’ve definitely learned stuff since I’ve been here.”
