LAKELAND, Fla. — Deivi Garcia looked sharp in three shutout innings Tuesday in the Yankees’ 6-5 loss to the Tigers at Joker Marchant Stadium.
The right-hander struck out five and allowed just a pair of hits in another solid outing in his attempt to make the Opening Day rotation.
“I felt really good,’’ Garcia said through an interpreter. “All my pitches were working exactly the way I wanted them.”
Garcia was also able to avoid the mistakes he made in his previous start, when he allowed a pair of homers against the Phillies in an otherwise solid two-inning performance.
“One of the things I wanted to do in this outing was make better decisions regarding certain pitches and counts,’’ Garcia said. “Today, I felt like there was quality behind those pitches. I was commanding in areas I wanted to attack.”
Garcia topped out at 95 mph in his 37-pitch outing, slightly more velocity than the 21-year-old typically shows.
Garcia was so efficient, manager Aaron Boone said, that he threw some more pitches in the bullpen following the outing.
He also went up against 37-year-old Miguel Cabrera in the second inning and allowed a single.
“It was fun to face a legend like that,’’ Garcia said.
