Deivi Garcia
AP Photo/Darron Cummings

Deivi Garcia’s meteoric rise through the New York Yankees farm system could result in a significant role down the stretch.

Anyone who follows the New York Yankees farm system knows the name Deivi Garcia. The starting pitcher is currently the top-ranked prospect in the Yankees system according to MLB.com.

But the starter is transitioning to a bullpen role with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, per Conor Foley of the Times-Tribune. The organization is making this move for two reasons, as RailRiders manager Jay Bell told reporters on Wednesday.

“It’s a couple different reasons,” Bell said. “One, just to preserve pitches and that kind of stuff. But they also want to see if he’s an option in New York in September. So, we’ll see what happens there.”

Garcia, 20, is still so young. It’s no surprise that the Yankees are looking to limit his innings the rest of the way. He’s already well past his career-high at 103.2 innings.

The young right-hander is pitching to a 4.08 ERA this year at three different levels, but he’s turning heads with his electric stuff. Garcia has struck out at least 10 batters in four games this year.

His most impressive performance came in a Double-A game for the Trenton Thunder. He allowed one hit and one walk in six innings of work. Garcia also tallied 15 strikeouts against the 21 batters he faced. That June gem captured everyone’s attention.

Although Garcia will have to pitch well in September to join even join the conversation for a postseason roster spot, the Yankees may not have ruled it out yet. With the state of the starting rotation, the pitching staff will likely be an all-hands-on-deck affair in the postseason.

The Yankees will need to add Garcia to the 40-man by Aug. 31, but that seems like a serious consideration. How the phenom fares after a potential September call-up should be an interesting sub-plot to the final month of the regular season.


NY/NJ hoops reporter (NBA/NCAA) & sports betting writer for XL Media. Never had the makings of a varsity athlete.