Is Matt Garza That Good?

On the fast track?

Here are the numbers:
Single-A Advanced (04/06/06 - 05/15/06)
5-1 1.42 ERA 0.862 WHIP 53 K's in 44.1 IP
Double-A (05/15 - 07/13)
6-2 2.51 0.946 68 K's in 57.1 IP
Triple-A (07/13 - 07/24)
2-1 2.05 0.773 21 K's in 22 IP

The hard throwing righty has looked dominant throughout the year at all levels. Is he the next to arrive in the bigs? If Twins manager Ron Gardenhire has anything to say about it, the answer is a resounding yes. In his last 3 press conferences coinciding with a start by Garza in the minors, Gardenhire has mentioned the pitching prospect each time; talking about when he will arrive and how much it would help the ball club. Really? Gardenhire? The guy who wanted Francisco Liriano to start in the minors and who has perpetually mishandled Scott Baker? Astounding!!!

Keep your ear to the ground on this one. While the Twins are still in the running, I think it would be tough to put that much pressure on a guy who started the year in Single-A. But if they start to fall out of it, we could see Garza sooner than later. The next 2 weeks for the Twins will be a strong determination, but if you have somwhere to stash him away, you might want to start thinking about it.