VIERA, Fla. -- Nationals right-hander Christian Garcia will be shut 10-to-14 days to rest his strained forearm, manager Davey Johnson said this morning.Garcia has been experiencing pain just above his right wrist for the last week, though only when he throws fastballs, not offspeed pitches. An MRI revealed a minor strain, and after receiving a second opinion from a specialist in Baltimore, Garcia has been told he needs to rest his arm for as many as two more weeks.
"It's going to be on how he feels before he starts taking it up a notch," Johnson said. "I think probably 10 days to two weeks, to be on the safe side. But it's just going to be totally up to him."
The Nationals still hope to be able to stretch Garcia out this spring in their attempt to convert him into a starter at Class AAA Syracuse. Though this temporary shutdown would appear to hinder that plan, Johnson said there's still enough time in spring training for Garcia to build up his stamina.
"Shoot, we've got five weeks," the manager said. "I'm not going to worry about it. He's throwing the heck out of the ball. This is just a bump in the road, not a big deal."
Garcia, who had Tommy John surgery twice while in the Yankees farm system, made his big-league debut with the Nationals last September and posted a 2.13 ERA in 13 relief appearances.
Meanwhile, newly signed right-hander Chris Young is expected to throw a bullpen session tomorrow, then another one before facing live hitters for the first time.
Johnson said the club plans to have the 33-year-old veteran (who signed a minor-league deal on Thursday) take over Ross Detwiler's rotation spot when the latter leave camp to join Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. Young would likely pitch March 9 against the Marlins.
7 comments:
Shut 'em down. Turn 'em off. Then prime 'em up and turn 'em back on. Just like I do with my car. GO NATIONALS!!
So much promise!
According to Davey, Garcia's fastball, curve, and change rival Strasie's.
I hope Christian can avoid the star-crossed career of former Nat John Patterson and his injury-riddled career.
Whenever a pitcher goes to the doc for soreness, the automatic thing is "take 10 days off." That of course is after he tells you "The human arm is not made to throw a baseball."
I don't know about Garcia as a starter. He's lights out in the pen. I would baby him. Its a loooong year and this guy has some nasty nasty stuff
According to the famous orthopedic guy, Dr. Andrews, the success rate from 2 TJ surgeries is about 20%, quite distinct from the success rate of 1 TJ surgery.
Like BigCat I'd keep Garcia in the pen.
It may be the place were his arm is least stressed. Davey thinks otherwise, and sees starting pitching as being less stressful to his arm than coming out of the pen. Garcia seems to prefer the pen.
In his last 10 appearances in Syracuse last year he never pitched in consecutive games. I don't think you can have that luxury in the bigs, where its win at all cost. Maybe that is what Davey sees.
Did somebody say John Patterson and Sean Hill?
from what I saw of Garcia last year, he did indeed have Monster stuff. Injury prone he is -- i agree with other posters who say 'keep him in the pen." get him well, and turn him loose,!
Post a Comment