Another New York Yankees player will participate in winter ball. The team needs some of its most important ballplayers to make up for the lost time because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Caribbean leagues are shaping up as an excellent opportunity for them to compete at a high level.
Just a few days after it was reported that Domingo German, Gary Sanchez and Miguel Andujar will be playing for Toros del Este of the Dominican League, Tigres del Licey announced they have permission from the New York Yankees to use Deivi Garcia in the same circuit.
The news was reported this week by ESPN’s Enrique Rojas. Garcia made his MLB debut for the Yankees this summer, and was a revelation in the starting rotation. He pitched had starts and pitched 34.1 innings, with a 4.98 ERA and a 4.15 FIP. He struck out 22.6% of the batters he faced, walking only 4.1%.
Licey’s general manager Junior Noboa confirmed the news to Rojas on Thursday. Conversations between the Yankees and the Tigres were taking place for days, as the latter was actively seeking permission to use the talented 21-year-old hurler.
The Yankees want him to get some more innings
“It looks like fans will get their wish of seeing (Deivi) pitch, we have already gotten permission from his organization and he will be with the team this season,” Noboa said to Rojas.
Garcia, who rose through the Yankees’ minor league system in 2019 by making the jump from Class A-Advanced to Double-A and then to Triple-A, had struggled a bit in the last level. However, with no minor leagues and a hole in the rotation following the injuries to Luis Severino and James Paxton and the Domingo German suspension, the Bombers had to call him up to fill a spot.
He was very impressive in his short stint, with only six bases on balls and 33 strikeouts. Garcia will, most likely, have a spot in the Yankees’ rotation next year.