The New York Yankees still have not officially announced their five-man starting rotation for the 2012 season. It seems most people believe, though, that veteran right-hander Freddy Garcia will be the odd man out.
Which begs the question. What do the Yankees do then with the 35-year-old Garcia, who is entering his 14th big league season? They could stick him in the bullpen as the long reliever, but that does not seem practical. He is a soft-tosser who has made two relief appearances in 13 seasons. He has 327 career starts.
Could they trade him? YES Network broadcaster John Flaherty tweeted Thursday about that possibility.
Thought on the Yankee rotation- Scouts in Florida told me there is interest in Freddy Garcia from possible contending teams!!
— John Flaherty (@flash17yes) March 29, 2012
There was a report earlier in Spring Training that the Anaheim Angels had expressed interest in Garcia, possibly in exchange for unhappy outfielder/DH Bobby Abreu, or that the Yankees could send Garcia to the Miami Marlins.
Stay tuned to this one. It seems likely that something will happen here. Garcia went 12-8 with a 3.62 ERA last season, and even if he regresses from that somewhat in 2012 he showed that he can still be an effective starter.