At Least 15 Teams Watched Freddy Garcia

I can confirm that the Red Sox are still interested. I just heard on WEEI that they are sending one of their main scouts to watch Garcia today.

A few times on here the Phillies have been mentioned as potentially interested too.....I can't see them having interest anymore with Myers seeming to have his head straight for the time being and already having Happ waiting in the bullpen

the sox are in serious need of some long inning relief, i see garcia fitting the bill as long as he stays cheap, lots of teams are vying for him so luckily for him he should make more money then he really should

I hope we've sent a guy down there to check him out, another starter would be great right about now. Outside of Jurrjens and Campillo, there's not a real stable force in out rotation. Morton, while getting better, has struggled as has Reyes. And Hampton is well....Mike Hampton. Sign Garcia, grab another pitcher in FA and let's try again next season.

Wouldn't Phillies fans eat him alive?

If Joba is really heading to the DL, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Yanks make a big offer. Same with the Mets considering Maine just hit the DL.

bravesfan91- I doubt that any team would sign him for more than the remainder of this season. If they did, it would be a huge risk. It's a good "win now" move, but not a good move for a team that's out of contention and looking to next year. The success rates of shoulder surgery patients isn't high (see Matt Clement and Mark Mulder).

Braves should be evaluating the young guys' futures with the team, not bringing in a vet to eat innings. Go after a starter in the offseason.

I think Freddy makes a lot of sense in Seattle because there is no pressure for him to rush back and they could get a guy to add for next season should one of the young guys (i.e. RRS & Morrow) struggle in their new role. He's also an idol of Felix and could be a good moral boost for Hernandez and make the King more interested in an extension!

Not to meantion that if he's healthy this year, he can buy Morrow time at AAA to get stretched out as a starter, while being able to unload Washburn if the opportunity presents itself. I think Seattle is not wanting to rush Feierabend to the majors because the allure of what could be with the young lefty, may be worth more than whatever he could do at the major league level, he has beenlights out at AAA this year and may get moved in the right deal during the offseason.

melonis rex,

I didn't mean for him to take the place of any of the established guys right now. Reyes has been sent to AAA, and I just want a veteran presence in the rotation. I'd also like Garcia for next year to replace a back-end guy or in case Campillo suddenly comes back down to earth.

After watching Walrond and Happ get lit up in the pen last night, the Phils are probably open to bringing in anyone who can pitch. Garcia would presumably bump Myers from the rotation into a setup role, which would strengthen a bullpen that has struggled in recent weeks.

Phils bullpen ERA (from Baseball Reference):
April: 2.65
May: 2.83
June: 2.63
July: 4.16
August: 7.36

As for the Philly fans, if Garcia can pitch effectively, all will quickly be forgiven.

Mike Arbuckle was on 610WIP this morning saying that there is no interest in Freddy Garcia. They were there just to see where he is at and his stuff...maybe they wanted a loan since he probably has a few bucks lying around from last years robbery.

My guess is whoever signs him will do it for the rest of this season and 2009, a la Jon Lieber with the Yankees in 2003. That way, at least there's some chance of a good return on the investment.

besides the yankees and bosox, the team that could probably use him the most is the rangers. they are currently throwing 3 rookie starters (4 if you consider feldman a rookie starter, as this is his first year as a starter rather than a reliever), and some veteran pitching help could really bolster this team.

and even if he totally bombs, it couldn't be any worse than the rest of the rangers pitchers, so why not give him a shot?

I think a
Lilly
Zambrano
Dempster
Harden
Garcia rotation would be NL's best or even MLB's best rotation.