{"id":536569,"date":"2010-04-21T08:36:39","date_gmt":"2010-04-21T12:36:39","guid":{"rendered":"urn:newsml:sports.yahoo,yhoo:20050301:fantasy,article,yhoo-ept_sports_fantasy_experts-235456:1"},"modified":"2010-04-21T08:36:39","modified_gmt":"2010-04-21T12:36:39","slug":"flames-jaime-garcia-baseballs-latest-bionic-man","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/536569","title":{"rendered":"Flames: Jaime Garcia, baseball’s latest bionic man"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>
<\/p>\n

Want to ridicule the Noise for his Billy Butler<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> obsession or misguided
\n projections? Humiliate him in 140 characters or less on Twitter<\/a><\/em>. <\/p>\n

Roughly 17 months ago St.
\n Louis rookie Jaime Garcia<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> laid anesthetized on a
\nsurgeon’s table. His left UCL, stressed from overwork, was in desperate need of
\nrepair. Only a pup at 22, the Cardinals’ most promising pitching prospect had
\nreached a pivotal crossroads in his young professional career. Optimism turned
\nto uncertainty …<\/p>\n

Jump to the present. <\/p>\n

After two brilliant starts, the relative unknown
\nmay soon be mentioned alongside pitching junior heartthrobs Tommy Hanson<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> Brian Matusz<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span>
\nand Brett Anderson<\/a>(notes)<\/a>.<\/span> The sample size may seem insignificant, but over 13 innings
\nagainst two potent offenses (Milwaukee and New York) he’s exhibited
\nthe polish and poise of a cagy veteran surrendering
\njust one run with 10 strikeouts (highlights versus Brewers\/Mets
\nhere)<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Many pundits have already brushed off Garcia’s initial effort,
\nmislabeling it as nothing more than beginner’s luck. Even those close to the
\norganization have expressed cautious optimism. Still, despite the general
\npessimism, the southpaw’s glowing April shouldn’t be ignored. He could be this
\nyear’s Josh Johnson<\/a>(notes)<\/a>.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Garcia’s rapid recovery is a testament to the advancement of
\nmodern medicine. Thirty years ago a similar injury would’ve promptly ended a
\npitcher’s career. Even in the mid-90s, the chances of full Tommy John recovery
\nstood at approximately 60 percent. At the time, Screech had better odds of
\nhooking up with Lisa Turtle. <\/p>\n

But the former 22nd-round pick has climbed the mountain. Based
\non his phenomenal first impression, rumors he received a tendon from Steve
\nCarlton might actually be true. His expressionless cool and systematic elimination of hitters bears a resemblence.  <\/p>\n

On paper, Garcia is a blossoming prodigy. His terrific minor
\nleague strikeout record (8.26 K\/9 over 402 IP) combined with his ability to attract weak contact is very
\nappealing. Though the caboose’s fastball scores average, his offspeed
\nofferings, particularly his cutter, are downright filthy plus pitches. Corey
\nHart<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> commented earlier this month the kid’s breaking stuff was extremely
\n"tough to square up<\/a>." His resulting 63.8 groundball percentage this
\nseason flashes "excitement." Cardinals GM John Mozeliak commented via email Monday the hurler’s striking initial success is primarily due to two
\nkey factors: <\/p>\n

"Jaime has always been impressive and adding a slider
\nhas made him even more impressive. The big difference in Jaime is that he has
\nmatured both physically and mentally." <\/p>\n

Naturally, questions about Garcia’s projected workload are
\nunavoidable. In the recent past, pitchers who’ve undergone Tommy John have
\ntypically taken multiple seasons to  recover fully (e.g. Francisco Liriano<\/a>(notes)<\/a>).<\/span>
\nHowever, the Cardinals aren’t married to the idea of limiting their fifth starter to a specific
\ninnings cap. <\/p>\n

"We don’t have an innings gauge," said Mozeliak.
\n"We will monitor him and make sure he is provided a safe atmosphere to
\nlearn and grow in, without pushing him too fast." <\/p>\n

In all likelihood, Garcia will be lucky to surpass 170
\ninnings. Still, given his marvelous repertoire, placid demeanor and generous run
\nsupport, he could be one of the season’s surprise sensations. Having mound
\nMiyagi (Dave Duncan) around certainly doesn’t hurt. After all, two years ago
\nthe esteemed pitching coach impossibly turned Todd Wellemeyer<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> into a reliable
\nstarter. And last season he resurrected the nearly deceased career of Joel
\nPineiro<\/a>(notes)<\/a>.<\/span> The 23-year-old is a less challenging project.  <\/p>\n

Overshadowed by Chris Carpenter<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> and Adam Wainwright<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> Garcia is
\nhardly a household name. But sizzling out of the gates, the 18-percent owned hidden
\ntreasure could soon become indispensable in mixed leagues. <\/p>\n

Many hungry owners may be preparing to sacrifice useful apendages for Ike Davis<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> but the St. Louis upstart could be the <\/em>NL rookie
\nhoisting the hardware come October. <\/p>\n

Fearless Forecast (full
\nseason): 159.1 IP, 11 W, 3.68 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 138 K<\/strong><\/p>\n

—
<\/strong><\/p>\n

Discount Den <\/strong>
\nQuality commodity owned
\nin fewer than 30 percent of Yahoo! leagues<\/em>.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Marlon Byrd<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> ChC, OF
\n(24 percent-owned)<\/strong>:  When compared to middle digit flasher<\/a> Milton Bradley<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> Byrd is Mother Theresa. His
\ninfectious attitude and productive play has been a breath of fresh air on the
\nNorth Side. Those who drafted him in the Old Style hazy hours of drafts house
\nsimilar feelings. Since April 12, he’s notched four multi-hit games with four
\ndoubles, a homer and six RBI. He’ll be hard-pressed to match last year’s career
\nnumbers playing in the National League, but very useful OF4 or UTIL totals will
\nlikely be accumulated, especially considering his excellent peripheries. An end
\nline around .290-18-80-65-10 is very possible. <\/p>\n

Ooh Stream Weaver…<\/strong>
\nWidely available plug
\nn’ play starter heading into the weekend.<\/em> <\/p>\n

<\/a>Livan Hernandez<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> Was
\n(4\/22 vs. Col, six percent-owned): <\/strong>Consuming week old cashew chicken may
\nseem less risky than trusting the services of an elderly contact pitcher who’s
\nposted a morbidly obese ERA since 2008. Both could lead to painful indigestion.
\nHowever, in two starts against quality opponents (Milwaukee
\nand New York),
\nthe former World Series MVP has been surprisingly terrific. Though his
\nstrikeout totals are unsightly, he’s yielded just nine hits and has yet to
\nallow a run over 16 innings. He also has two wins. Colorado is a formidable offensive club,
\naveraging 4.6 runs per game. Also, with Ubaldo Jimenez<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> fresh off a no-no taking
\nthe mound for the Rockies, Livan’s third
\nstraight W could be elusive. But the crafty veteran has been untouchable. Go
\nahead. Play with fire.  <\/p>\n

Middle Relief Magic <\/strong>
\nERA\/WHIP savior,
\npotential saves\/wins vulture<\/em>. <\/p>\n

<\/a>Carlos Villanueva<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span>
\nMil (six percent-owned)<\/strong>: Collectively, the Brewers staff may be scrapping
\nthe bottom of the barrel. They currently rank near the league bottom in hits
\nand homers allowed. However, Villanueva has been a bright spot. The righty has
\nthrown with more power and purpose this season. Over seven innings he’s induced
\nnumerous groundballs and posted an otherworldly 14.14 K\/9. Leaning more heavily
\non his curve, the 26-year-old may be reaching maturation. He, not LaTroy
\nHawkins<\/a>(notes)<\/a>,<\/span> could be next in line if Trevor Hoffman’s<\/a>(notes)<\/a><\/span> bones finally liquefy. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Image courtesy of US Presswire <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Want to ridicule the Noise for his Billy Butler(notes) obsession or misguided projections? Humiliate him in 140 characters or less on Twitter. Roughly 17 months ago St. Louis rookie Jaime Garcia(notes) laid anesthetized on a surgeon’s table. His left UCL, stressed from overwork, was in desperate need of repair. Only a pup at 22, the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5446,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-536569","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536569","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5446"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=536569"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536569\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=536569"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=536569"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=536569"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}