NEW YORK -- The New York Yankees snapped their seven-game losing streak Saturday (NYY 2, NYM 1) and they will have one of their best young prospects on the mound Sunday. The Yankees announced right-hander Deivi Garcia will be called up Sunday to start one game of the team's doubleheader games against the New York Mets.
"We do have a decision that we've got lined up and we're ready to execute," GM Brian Cashman teased prior to Saturday's game when asked about the club's starters for Sunday. Right-hander Michael King will start the other doubleheader game. The Yankees did not announce who will start which game.
Garcia, 21, struck out 165 batters in 111 1/3 innings at three minor league levels last season. He started the 2019 Futures Game and reached Triple-A, and the Yankees moved him to the bullpen late last season to prepare for a potential big league call-up, though he was never summoned to the Bronx. Garcia has spent this season at the team's alternate site in Scranton.
Our R.J. Anderson ranked Garcia as the No. 1 prospect in New York's system prior to the season. MLB.com ranks him as the 100th best prospect in baseball and they describe a power bat-missing arsenal:
Garcia has one of the best breaking balls in the Minors, a high-spin curveball with so much depth that he sometimes has difficulty landing it for strikes. He also dodges bats with a fastball that ranges from 91-97 mph with high spin rates that give it riding life up in the strike zone. He added a mid-80s slider in 2019 to give batters a different look, and he also flashes a solid changeup with fading action.
The biggest knocks on Garcia are his size -- he is listed at 5-foot-9 and 163 lbs. -- and his command. Those 165 strikeouts last year came with 54 walks. Garcia has walked 125 batters in 293 2/3 career minor league innings. The Mets have the 10th highest chase rate in baseball and that could work to the young man's advantage.
Garcia gets Sunday's start over right-hander Clarke Schmidt, New York's first round pick in 2017 and essentially their No. 1A pitching prospect to Garcia's No. 1. Schmidt is a college product and considered more MLB ready than Garcia, but he is not on their 40-man roster, and the Yankees don't want to make a move for what might only be one spot start. Garcia is on the 40-man.
Of course, the Yankees have had bullpen problems most of the season, and a good outing Sunday could keep Garcia in the big leagues in some capacity. The team is known to want a starting pitcher prior to Monday's trade deadline. If they acquire one, Garcia could fit in a bullpen role. If they don't, he may be in the rotation to stay.
