Re: Jeff Nelson blasts Gillick for not making move with M\'s
I still believe that Freddy Garcia can be a great pitcher, but it isn't just "one bad year". To put it bluntly, he has been absolutely atrocious since the 2nd half of last year. In the first half of 2002, he looked more or less like he did in his great 2001 season. After that, it hit the fan though. He has been getting shelled repeatedly ever since that point.
He is getting way too many pitches up in the strike zone, his command isn't what it was, his mechanics are not consistent, and he also apparently tips a lot of his pitches somehow.
If he can get it figured out again, great, the Mariners have a guy that should win 20 games a year for the next 7-8 seasons. If he can't get it turned around by the end of this season, I say Seattle should start looking to deal him while other teams still consider his value to be somewhat high.
The Mariners are going to have a lot of holes pretty soon, with so many of their key players being so old. Olerud, Edgar, and Moyer are all gonna have to be replaced within the next few years. Mike Cameron is a free agent this year, and I doubt they will re-sign him. He is overrated anyway, but still a fairly big part of their team.
Their starting rotation actually looks pretty damn good for the future. If Meche stays healthy, he is a good one. Pineiro is really solid, and has 20 win potential in the next few years, Soriano should be starting, etc. So really all they will need to figure out is how much longer Moyer can be effective and whether Garcia will come out of his funk. I say Moyer should be effective for probably another two years. He doesn't throw hard, so his body doesn't face the stress a power pitcher's would.
Still, he is going to either break down or just stop being effective at some point. Everyone gets old. If Garcia can't step up and be the stopper on that staff, they need to get someone to be their clear #1 guy. It could be Pineiro, but I think he is better suited as a #2 or 3 starter.
I still believe that Freddy Garcia can be a great pitcher, but it isn't just "one bad year". To put it bluntly, he has been absolutely atrocious since the 2nd half of last year. In the first half of 2002, he looked more or less like he did in his great 2001 season. After that, it hit the fan though. He has been getting shelled repeatedly ever since that point.
He is getting way too many pitches up in the strike zone, his command isn't what it was, his mechanics are not consistent, and he also apparently tips a lot of his pitches somehow.
If he can get it figured out again, great, the Mariners have a guy that should win 20 games a year for the next 7-8 seasons. If he can't get it turned around by the end of this season, I say Seattle should start looking to deal him while other teams still consider his value to be somewhat high.
The Mariners are going to have a lot of holes pretty soon, with so many of their key players being so old. Olerud, Edgar, and Moyer are all gonna have to be replaced within the next few years. Mike Cameron is a free agent this year, and I doubt they will re-sign him. He is overrated anyway, but still a fairly big part of their team.
Their starting rotation actually looks pretty damn good for the future. If Meche stays healthy, he is a good one. Pineiro is really solid, and has 20 win potential in the next few years, Soriano should be starting, etc. So really all they will need to figure out is how much longer Moyer can be effective and whether Garcia will come out of his funk. I say Moyer should be effective for probably another two years. He doesn't throw hard, so his body doesn't face the stress a power pitcher's would.
Still, he is going to either break down or just stop being effective at some point. Everyone gets old. If Garcia can't step up and be the stopper on that staff, they need to get someone to be their clear #1 guy. It could be Pineiro, but I think he is better suited as a #2 or 3 starter.
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