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--> --> Seattle thinks its ace right-hander has Cy Young potential SEATTLE (AP) - When Freddy Garcia came to Seattle, fans didn't exactly greet him with open arms. Aghast that the team was giving up Cy Young winner Randy Johnson for three minor leaguers, fans were critical of then-general manager Woody Woodward, who made the trade. Three years later, Garcia is the ace on a pitching staff for a team with the best record in the majors. He was the winning pitcher in the All-Star game this year, and teammates aren't shy about shouting his praises. "Freddy has dominant stuff," said second baseman Bret Boone. "On any given day, he can dominate any lineup in the world - even an All-Star team. If he ended up winning the Cy Young Award, it wouldn't surprise me." Garcia improved his record to 12-3 Sunday with a complete-game, 10-2 victory over Minnesota. In his first 22 starts this season, Garcia has a career-best 3.31 ERA. His confidence is soaring. He has a 95 mph fastball, with a sinker, curveball and changeup. "This year, I have a little more experience," he said. "I have more concentration and focus on what I do. So far I'm having a great season. I got a chance to pitch and I'm still here." At 24, the 6-foot-4, 235-pound right-hander from Venezuela is maturing in his game. He shrugged off two recent defeats in a row to the Royals. "He's come a long way," said Aaron Sele, also a 12-game winner for the Mariners. "He's gone from being a power pitcher to being a pitcher who pitches with power. The guy's got a ton of ability and he's really using his head." In three seasons with the Mariners since being acquired as part of the trade on July 31, 1998, that sent Johnson to the Houston Astros, Garcia is 38-16. And Garcia is 14 years younger than Johnson, 38. "He's really matured," catcher Dan Wilson said. "Things that used to rattle him on the mound, things that used to shake him a little bit, don't any more. He pushes right through them now." And since Garcia's emergence as the Mariners' No. 1 starting pitcher, fans have to admit the trade has worked out well. The Mariners reached the AL championship series last season and they take a 20-game lead in the AL West into a road trip starting in Detroit Tuesday night. Shortstop Carlos Guillen and left-hander John Halama also came to Seattle in the deal for Johnson. Guillen is Alex Rodriguez's replacement this season, while Halama has gone 32-25 in Seattle. "Right now, it looks like a tremendous trade," said pitching coach Bryan Price, who was the Mariners' minor league pitching coordinator when the Mariners traded Johnson. "I'd never seen Freddy before," Price said. "I didn't know what we were getting. He was a guy who had Double-A experience so it had to be a real strong projection." And Garcia said he didn't feel any pressure when the trade was done. "I was in the minor leagues," he said. "Nobody knew who I was or what I could do." Guillen, Garcia's friend who also is from Venezuela, confirmed Garcia didn't feel intimidated by being traded for Johnson. "He didn't care who he was traded for," Guillen said. "That didn't bother him at all. All he wanted was his chance to pitch." Garcia won 17 games and pitched 201 1-3 innings in 33 starts for the Mariners as a rookie in 1999, but he missed almost the first three months of last season because of a stress fracture in his right tibia. He finished 9-5 in 20 starts and then won two games against the New York Yankees in the 2000 ALCS. Nicknamed "Chief" because of his resemblance to actor Will Sampson's "Chief Bromden" character in the 1975 movie "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," Garcia still has to prove himself to current GM Pat Gillick. Gillick said on June 9 that he was looking for a No. 1 starting pitcher before the trading deadline. Unless the Mariners pull off a deal to get that No. 1 starter that Gillick was talking about, it will be up to Garcia to try to help get the Mariners into their first World Series. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing