Former Yankees Player Erik Kratz Slams Team For ‘Mishandling’ Catcher Deivi Garcia

Erik Kratz, a former Yankees catcher, criticized the group for how they handled pitcher Deivi Garca.

On Thursday’s episode of “Foul Territory,” Kratz, who adoringly refers to Garca as his “son,” stated, “That was my hijo.”

Former Yankees Player Erik Kratz Slams Team For ‘Mishandling’ Catcher Deivi Garcia

The Yankees moved Garca, the team’s third-ranked prospect for 2021, to the 40-man roster on Monday to make place for Jonathan Loáisiga’s return from the 60-day disabled list.

Garcia’s 11-year major league career came to an end in 2020, with Kratz serving as the catcher for his MLB debut.

Garcia looked up to Kratz, who even went so far as to refer to him as his “hijo,” or son, and blamed the front office for his career’s derailment.

“They didn’t want to trade him because they felt like there was so much upside for him, and now he’s been DFA’d,” Kratz said.

“They did him wrong in the organization,” in the sense that the coaches had to help him adjust to playing in the major leagues at the age of 20.

“It’s a prime example of a guy they could’ve traded for whatever the Yankees needed, it would’ve been a big piece coming off the  years he was having in the minor leagues. They didn’t do it and now anybody can have them,” Kratz concluded.

When Kratz watched Garca make his MLB debut against the Mets in August 2020, he developed a unique relationship with the pitching prospect, who refers to Kratz as his “padre.” Garca contributed to the Yankees’ 5-2 victory by tossing six shutout innings.

The Yankees, for whatever reason, tried to change Garcia’s pitching mechanics following his successful 2020 season, fans soon realized after Garcia’s DFA. Garcia had a peculiar windup that worked for him despite his size disadvantage. It led to deceit. His pitches gained some velocities as a result. That is the preferred strategy for certain players. Not everyone needs to be placed under a microscope in a lab.

Garcia would not have raised a fuss if he had been left unclaimed. However, he was claimed by the White Sox, a team with one of the poorest records in the league, indicating that there may have been demand as teams with the worse win-loss records are given precedence in the claiming process.

 

FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE- 

Patrick Mahomes On Bengals’ QB: Calls His Record ‘Stone-Cold Killer’