Nov. 28: Ben Nicholson-Smith clarified on Twitter that the bonus for pitching 60 innings or appearing in 60 games is actually $500K, not the $250K he previously reported.
Nov. 27, 11:07PM: The 2024 option has a vesting element, as per Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith (Twitter links). The Jays have a $5MM club option for 2024 with a $1MM buyout, but that third year becomes guaranteed at $6MM if Garcia tosses 60 innings or makes 60 appearances in 2023, or if he pitches at least 110 innings or 110 appearances in 2022-23 combined.
Garcia will receive a $1MM signing bonus, a $4MM salary in 2022, and $5MM in 2023. Garcia also receives a $250K bonus if he hits the 50-inning mark, and other $250K bonuses at the 55-inning and 60-inning thresholds. An unknown team offered Garcia a more lucrative multi-year deal, Nicholson-Smith writes, but the reliever rejected that deal in order to join a Blue Jays club that looks to be closer to contending.
8:14PM: The Blue Jays have agreed to a deal with right-hander Yimi Garcia, as per former player Carlos Baerga via Instagram (hat tip to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi). It is a two-year contract worth $11MM for the 31-year-old Garcia, as per TSN’s Scott Mitchell, and the Jays also have a club option for 2024. Garcia is represented by agent Kelvin Nova.
Garcia comes to Toronto after something of a tough end to his 2021 season. After the Marlins dealt Garcia to the Astros at the trade deadline, Garcia posted a 5.48 ERA over 21 1/3 innings with Houston. While his strikeout and walk rates improved following the trade, he had some bad luck in the form of a very low 42.6% strand rate. With a 2.98 SIERA for his time as an Astro, the argument can certainly be made that Garcia deserved better, and things didn’t really improve thanks to a couple of rough outings in the playoffs.
On the whole, Garcia had a 4.21 ERA/3.61 ERA over 57 2/3 combined innings in 2021, with a 25.3% strikeout rate and 7.6% walk rate that were both better than the league average. Garcia allowed quite a bit of hard contact, but he continued to boast one of baseball’s very best fastball spin rates. Perhaps most promisingly, Garcia’s home run rate was a manageable 14.5%, after the long ball led to a lot of issues when he pitched for the Dodgers in 2018-19.
Those home run concerns notwithstanding, Garcia has been a pretty solid bullpen arm for much of his career, posting a 3.60 ERA over 232 1/3 career Major League innings. Garcia has rebounded nicely from a 2016-18 stretch that was essentially a wash due to injuries, as he tossed only 30 2/3 combined frames in those three years due to knee problems, biceps problems, and Tommy John surgery. Los Angeles elected to non-tender Garcia after the 2019 season, and he was quite effective with the Marlins after signing with Miami that winter.
A two-year deal is a nice score for Garcia in the wake of this career history, and also a reasonable price for Toronto to pay for a veteran relief arm with postseason experience. The Jays have generally not spent much on relief pitching during Ross Atkins’ tenure as general manager, with the partial exception of their one-year, $5.5MM deal with Kirby Yates last offseason that immediately went south when Yates needed TJ surgery of his own. Garcia’s health history contains some obvious red flags, though he hasn’t had any true injury problems since the start of the 2019 campaign, apart from a month missed in 2020 during the Marlins’ COVID-19 outbreak.
A swath of bullpen injuries badly hampered the Jays for the first few months of the 2021 season, and while the numbers began to generally improve, the Blue Jays lacked depth beyond their top quartet of closer Jordan Romano, Trevor Richards, Adam Cimber, and Tim Mayza. That group is all back next season, and with Garcia added to the mix along with other pitchers (i.e. Julian Merryweather, Ryan Borucki) that will hopefully be healthier, the Blue Jays are aiming to turn their relief corps from a weakness into a strength.
Nice move to bolster the bullpen. A little surprised at 3 years though.
The third year probably got him sign with Toronto over the competition
Bad signing he was always overrated
I’m a little surprised at the little dig in the story update – the Jays are only a team that ‘looks closer to contending???’
Umm… did someone miss the 2021 season? The jays ARE contending. Barely missing the wildcard or a tiebreaker, finishing one game behind both the sox and Yankees. And winning 90+ games?
I guess a team isn’t considered a contender anymore unless they win what? 100 games?
Jays won 3 more games than the eventual WS champ Braves. But I guess the braves aren’t a contending team either, eh?
Try giving credit where it’s due. Say he chose to join a contender or a contending team. Not one ‘closer’ to being one.
Despite being a 2021 contender, one could argue the Jays are one more starting pitching signing away from being a real 2022 contender, because of Ray, Matz and Semien being free agents.
While one *could* try making that argument, it doesn’t equate to how the other teams have been treated this offseason (nor does it correlate to how contenders are usually grouped.)
Nobody said the Astros were ‘closer to contention’ despite all their prominent free agents when Verlander decided to sign there instead of the Yankees and others. That would be one perfect example of the double standard. It does, however, hold true for other clubs as well.
I think they’re not only contenders but a top 3 AL team if they bring back Ray. Their lineup is already stacked, and if they bring Ray back they’ll have Berrios, Ray and Ryu as their top 3 pitchers, which, with Manoah as well, is a scary playoff rotation
dmx – You started in the right direction, but then veered off course.
As of right now the Jays aren’t considered as definite contenders because they lost Matz and both Ray & Semien are free agents.
Until Ray & Semien are either re-signed or replaced with comparable talent, they could fall further behind the Sox/Yanks/Rays.
Fan – Verlander is not a good comp. He never said he wanted to sign with the team that had a better chance of winning.
Garcia did say that.
Fever
Fall further behind the Sox who were only slightly better then a .500 team post July 19th?
Yea ok.
The Jays are indeed a top 3 team with the re-signing of Ray
1-Full season of Manoah and Berrios vs slightly more then a 1/3 this past year.
2- Full season of Springer
3- Looking like a much improved pen over the months of May/June in 21.
4- A healthy Pearson looking for a break-out year either as the #5 starter or a high leverage pen arm. ( Pearson as a #5 ponder that )
5- Moreno’s bat only a few months into 22.
6- Last but not least having to play much of the season on the road. There is 0 doubt the Jays playing at home all of 21 would have finished ahead of the Sox and Yanks.
The Jays have much more upside then either the Yanks or Sox unless either goes nuts and push salary into the 260-280 range.
As a Yankee fan their a scary team. Imagine they played all their home games in Toronto? Might had won the division
higgy – I agree, and the same could be said if Springer had been healthy all year.
But what-ifs are kind of irrelevant. For example the Red Sox could have won the division if their roster wasn’t decimated by a Covid outbreak, etc.
Sir, this is a Wendy’s.
10 teams make the playoffs and they contend for the world series. The jays didn’t make the playoffs. They are close to contending.
I can’t see the logic in getting hurt feelings over several words that only you thought was a dig at the blue Jays.
The jays did finish 4th in their division but have young talent and are close to being contenders. Chill. Are you this sensitive in real life too?
Three years eh?
Interesting how it was a three year deal
Jay’s are like, “GIMME YIMI”.
GIMMI GIMMI YIMI ONE MORE TIME!
Here’s a Yimi joke about your mama that she might not like…
That’s the most useful thought you have ever posted, Randy Marsh. Good job and congratulations on personal improvement.
Let’s get all the pen arms this year. All of them.
It’s been done by the White Sox
Yeah, can’t have another Kirby Yates situation.
Wow 3 years eh?
Who says it’s a 3-year deal? I don’t see that anywhere.
The original story said three years. It’s been edited since and that was taken out.
Sounds like 1 year for 4.3mil
Garcia was super solid this year, and when healthy he’s been very effective. Jay’s could do a whole lot worse in a setup man. I like this move (and the years) because I could see him closing at some point.
He absolutely did not perform well in high leverage situations while with the Astros. During the playoffs it was a collective sigh around town any time he came in to pitch.
Yes, this was his entire existence in LA. Even if his stuff has ticked up a bit you’re not going to be comfortable with him in many 8th or 9th inning situations so Jays fans shouldn’t fall in love quite yet
If Yimi Garcia is pitching in the 8th or 9th, it’ll mean Romano, Cimber, Richards, Mayza, Merryweather, and possibly some others like Pearson are all unavailable… in which case I’m not expecting a win anyway.
If he can stop games from getting away in the 6th and 7th, that would be wonderful.
Statistically he might actually be the worst setup man in the league
A. Who said he’s the setup man?
And B. His underlying stats are actually quite decent.
A. OP did
B. He’s gar-bahj
Have you seen the Yankee lineup lately? Mediocre pitching can get outs there.
Jays need bridge pitchers that was their biggest issue this year was after, Cimber and Richards they had no one who could throw the ball in high danger spots to get to Mayza or Romano.
I think their biggest problem in the pen now is if Romano goes down. They need another legit closer type and Romano was used heavily last year. While Yimi fills a role he does not fit this specific bill much at all.
Don’t think that’s why they brought him in though. I think they have Pearson in that role or another big name reliever
Merryweather will be just fine if Romero isn’t available
Garcia is no where near of a closer…i see him as a solid 6/7th inning man
The Dodgers cut him not too long ago. And now this.
Why is it taking so long to get an update what he signed for?
2 Years and $11M
According to informed sources, The Marlins were in on Yimi Garcia right up until he signed the deal to join the Blue Jays.. The Marlins made a “strong” offer, but not one that matched the Blue Jays’ financial commitment. The Marlins weren’t the only team to be outbid.
Yimi… Poor dude… Had a terrible stat line because of Dustys regular season bullpen mismanagement…
The reliever after a guy is in trouble with juiced bases should be a stopper… with great control. The relievers to follow were allowing all inherited runners to score before getting out of the inning or gaining control. Not really fair for Y imi at all.
The Astros or Garcia himself really changed his pitch usage after the trade. He did fairly well in quite high leverage (2.27) in Miami and then they changed quite a bit about what he was doing and he didn’t fare well in much lower leverage (0.99) situations. If you are a competitive team entering the stretch run and you acquire a guy at the deadline, is it a better idea to just leave well enough alone?
Trouble with the long ball and AL East don’t seem to go together well.
good get, decent price.
Good move, not a cost heavy risk.
I don’t like this deal, Garcia isn’t what I was hoping for and on a 3 year deal? Hopefully this is just the first acquisition to the pen.
We need a left handed bat desperately in the lineup!! I hope this is only the beginning
I wanted Colin McHugh I guess this closes the door on that.. I think this could be the only bullpen addition, considering the bullpen was already improved at last years deadline with Cimber and Trevor Richards. And if the other guys stay healthy, with the addition of Yimi Garcia, I think the bullpen overall should have a much better season as a group. Health is key as always for the guys in the pen.
Great for the Marlins. No so great for the Astros. It’s almost like….. Yimi Garcia can’t handle playing for a playoff team….
Funny, he doesn’t look Swedish !! -Yimi Yensen, the Swinging Swede……