Comfort level rises for Garza
Entering second season with Brewers, pitcher settling in
— Spring training was not kind to Matt Garza last year.
Fresh off signing the biggest free-agent contract in Milwaukee Brewers history, Garza arrived in Maryvale to sky-high expectations only to scuffle badly.
Yet after each outing, Garza was supremely confident.
Camp is a process, he said. It’s more about progression than statistics. He’ll be ready when the bell rings. And sure enough, he was right. The panic over a19.06 earned run average after his first three starts in spring training was allayed somewhat after a strong six-inning outing against the Cincinnati Reds in his fourth. Then, when the bell truly did ring for him on the season’s third day, Garza took a nohitter into the seventh inning before ultimately losing to the Atlanta Braves, 1-0.
It’s against that backdrop that the righthander will make his first Cactus League start on Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“I knew last year going in what my business was,” Garza said, reflecting back to last spring, when he finished with a 1-3 record and 8.80 in five total starts. He also started one minor-
“Last year they were a little confused about how I go about my things, but I always said when the bell rings, I’ll be ready.”
Matt Garza
league game.
“I wasn’t here to impress anybody. I was here to do my job, and that’s go get ready for a big-league season. I know last year they were a little confused about how I go about my things, but I always said when the bell rings, I’ll be ready.
“I definitely proved I would be ready.”
It was an interesting first season for Garza in Milwaukee.
There were stretches where he was absolutely dominant, like that game against the Braves as well as starts against the Cincinnati Reds and New York Mets. Then there were others, like the
1⁄3- inning blowup against the Washington Nationals, that left many scratching their heads.
When it was all said and done, Garza finished 8-8 with a 3.64 ERA in 27 starts. He pitched 163 1⁄ innings in all,
3 his most since 2011 when he threw 198 but missed nearly a month late in the season with a strained left oblique.
This spring, the 31-year-old Garza is savoring the security his four-year, $50 million contract provides him. He said he feels much more comfortable and at peace personally than he did a year ago, when he was suiting up for his third team in roughly six months.
“I think my world is settled, and it helps a lot,” he said. “Last year I was still in a transitional period with taking care of the family, moving them around, and we made the decision to stay home (in California). We bought a new place back home and set up shop, and now that huge world is in place.
“Everything else is fine. Financial security, job security. All I have to do is go play, and it’s fun.”
Garza now also has a year’s worth of familiarity with the Brewers’ coaching staff, and vice versa. Not that there was any strife between the two parties a year ago, but both sides now know better what to expect from the other.
Manager Ron Roenicke said growing pains are frequently a part of transitioning to a new team.
“The first year in camp, everybody is a little bit uncomfortable,” he said. “He had a lot to prove. You sign a contract like that, you have a lot to prove.”
As far as his goals heading into this season, Garza is taking a wide view.
“Everything,” he said simply. “You should never be happy where you’re at in anything. Try to get better in all facets of the game. For me, especially, my defense. I would like to really improve on that.
“It’s a progression, that’s all it is.”
In addition to taking the ball every fifth day, Garza will also be relied upon to make his veteran presence known on a somewhat remade rotation in the wake of the Yovani Gallardo trade. Budding ace Wily Peralta is still young at 25, and the still relatively untested Mike Fiers and Jimmy Nelson make up the back end.
Having been traded several times over the course of his nine-year career in the majors, Garza wasn’t necessarily surprised by the Gallardo move.
“They had the confidence in the young guys we’ve got, and they’ve all proven themselves,” said Garza, who started the spring by gifting the entire starting rotation custommade bathrobes complete with names and numbers. “They deserve a shot. Being a guy who was in that situation and got passed over, Nelson and Fiers did everything at Triple-A. There was nothing else.
“They had to unload somebody, and me and Lohse, I think, were in the best situation not to be unloaded because of the prices on our contracts. That’s it. Baseball is still a business.”
Nelson, despite his young age, is already gaining acclaim in the Milwaukee clubhouse for his intensity and focus on a day-to-day basis. Garza can relate to that — and appreciate it.
“I’m pretty sure I’ve got a different level than most guys,” said Garza, whose wild facial expressions on the mound have become a favorite of fans.
“So I know where that switch hits and it’s like, ‘Whoa, hey. Bring him back. Bring him back in.’ I don’t mind that. It’s good to have that. It’s passion. Man’s on a mission. I’d rather see that than a guy come in here and just make his way. He knows what he has to get done. It lets us know that he’s preparing to do battle, and that’s good.”
Asked if the Brewers can win the ever-competitive National League Central — which they led for150 days last season before fading late and falling out of the playoffs altogether — Garza left no doubt.
“Of course,” he said. “Me and (Carlos Gomez) were just talking, and our lineup is scary. Really scary. We didn’t do a lot (during the off-season), but what we added was real significant. We’ve got a power-hitting first baseman now, something we missed big time. More consistency in the lineup, less platooning.
“Guys know roles. Then having the bullpen we have, it matches anybody in the division, I’ll tell you that. It’s going to come down to these five (starters), the guys who wear the robes.”