Yankees promote former top pitching prospect to 26-man roster

In the late-2010s, Deivi Garcia was the New York Yankees’ top pitching prospect and was considered a future star. However, after an impressive showing in 2020 as a rookie, both his injury luck and command began to regress, causing him to fall out of the organization’s immediate plans in 2022.

This week, the Yankees promoted Garcia to the active roster to serve as bullpen depth and are giving him another opportunity to prove that he truly belongs in the major leagues.

However, this chance might be short-lived, as fringe roster fill-in players often lose their spots once injured stars recover and return. As a result, Garcia has a limited window of opportunity.

Now fully converted to a reliever, Garcia has posted a 4.50 ERA in 20 innings with the Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate. While he has struck out a respectable 18 batters, he has also issued 16 walks.

The Yankees need a reliable reliever, and Garcia could potentially fill that role

Garcia has not appeared in a game since May 2021 but is currently taking Greg Weissert’s roster spot. After spending a couple of years with a low-90s fastball velocity, he is now approaching the mid-90s out of the bullpen.

The Yankees undoubtedly need a talented arm to bolster their relief corps. Weissert has not been particularly effective, and the team is currently without Lou Trivino, Jonathan Loaisiga, Scott Effross, and Tommy Kahnle.

If Garcia can manage to keep his walks under control, he could provide the Yankees with a solid middle relief arm for the duration of his call-up. Recent history does not suggest he can do so, but the team is relying on him for now. He may not be the pitcher he once was, but if Garcia is looking for a chance to salvage his career (he has a 5.27 ERA in 42.2 MLB innings), this opportunity might be just what he needs.