At age 36, with 19 years of treadwear and a 5.39 ERA over his past two major league seasons, Freddy Garcia – a.k.a. “Big Game Freddy” – doesn’t know how many more big games he’ll pitch. So, joining a first-place Braves team in the throes of a pennant race is not something the well-traveled veteran takes lightly.
“I’m really excited to be here,” Garcia said Sunday morning, after having his contract purchased from Triple-A Gwinett and becoming the Braves’ first September callup. “I’m going to try to help the team, pitch some innings, do some work here, man. Whatever they need me to do.”
The Braves needed him right away for long relief Sunday, and Garcia responded in impressive fashion with 4-2/3 scoreless innings (three hits, one walk) against the Marlins, after rookie starter Alex Wood got knocked around for seven runs in 2-1/3 innings.
The Braves got Garcia in an Aug. 23 trade from Baltimore, and he gave up seven hits, eight runs and five walks in 3-2/3 innings in his only start for Triple-A Gwinnett. He has 155 wins in 15 major league seasons, and a 6-3 record and 3.28 ERA in 10 postseason starts.
Manager Fredi Gonzalez said the Braves could use Garcia in long relief or to start if they want to give a young starter a few extra days of rest or skip a start to keep innings down.
“Whatever we see fit,” Gonzalez said. “He’s a veteran guy that can navigate through a major league lineup. He could spot-start if somebody needs it, you could plug him in there.”
Garcia was 3-5 with a 5.77 ERA in 11 appearances (10 starts) for the Orioles before being outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk in late June. He was 8-3 with a 2.84 ERA in 13 starts for Norfolk.
With the big-league Orioles, he allowed two runs or fewer in six or more innings in three of six starts in May. That included eight scoreless innings in a May 30 win against the Nationals. He struggled soon after.
“I was down in Norfolk when I got the call that I’d been traded,” he said. “To a good organization, a first-place team. You’ve got to be excited.”
The Venezuela native has a 155-106 record and 4.18 ERA in 370 major league games (354 starts) with six teams, including consecutive 12-win seasons with the White Sox and Yankees in 2010-2011. At the start of his career with the Mariners, he won 16 or more games three times in a four-year span through 2002.
Garcia is the first to admit he doesn’t throw anywhere near as hard as he once did.
“I do anything to get people out,” he said. “Whatever it takes. It doesn’t matter how hard you throw, it’s how you get people out. Some guys throw hard and don’t get anybody out. I used to throw hard; I don’t anymore. But I figured out how to get people out.”
C. Johnson back in batting lead: When he saw that Chris Johnson wasn't in the lineup Sunday, Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman couldn't resist razzing his teammate, saying Johnson was "sitting on" his league-leading .331 average.
Freeman was joking. The Braves know the batting race is not something their third baseman dwells upon.
Johnson was out of the lineup after getting four hits in Saturday’s 11-inning, 5-4 win against Miami.
“It’s just pretty much a day off, really,” said Johnson, adding that it wasn’t related to a turf-toe condition he got stumbling over first base a week ago. “Long game yesterday, lot of running. Sore legs. Just tired.”
Johnson moved back ahead of St. Louis’ Yadier Molina (.328) entering the final month of the season.
“It’s cool,” Johnson said. “I mean, I don’t know if it’s (serious) yet. When you’ve got two weeks left, that might be the time to say there’s a shot. But right now? A lot can happen in a month. You can be hitting .330 at the beginning of the month and be hitting .315 at the end. Or you can be hitting .340, something like that.”
Gattis and more callups: The Braves are expected to add two or possibly three more callups in the next several days, after minor league seasons conclude. That's in addition to catcher/outfielder Evan Gattis, who will rejoin the team Tuesday, along with pitcher Brandon Beachy and outfielders Jason Heyward (broken jaw) and Reed Johnson (Achilles tendinitis), all of whom the Braves hope to have back later this month.
Gattis was sent to Gwinnett over the weekend to play three games and get a dozen or so at-bats, after not seeing much playing time in recent weeks. He had doubles in his first two at-bats for Gwinnett on Saturday.
Gonzalez said he hoped to have Reed Johnson back by the middle of the month and Heyward by late September, although there is no specific timetable for either. The other callups are likely to include at least one position player and another pitcher.
