The Jaime Garcia era has mercifully come to an end

When the Blue Jays signed Jaime Garcia to a one-year deal with an option for a second year back in February, it seemed that they had found a nice bargain option for a veteran back-of-the-rotation starter. To put it bluntly — they didn’t.

Garcia made a solid debut for the team in his first start, allowing just one run against the White Sox. After that, the wheels fell off quickly. He would post a 7.16 ERA over his next seven starts before going on the disabled list for left arm shittiness. He was activated, made an excellent seven-inning start against the Phillies, and then started to suck again.

By the time July rolled around, Garcia was relegated to the bullpen. Honestly, he wasn’t bad in that role at all. As a reliever, he had a 4.85 ERA with virtually all of the damage coming in one outing in which he got spanked by the Oakland Athletics. He’s currently on a six-outing streak in which he hasn’t given up a run.

That streak will end, though, as the Jays have designated Garcia for assignment. I can’t imagine anyone will take on Garcia’s contract, which features an option and a $2 million buyout for next season. Garcia will more than likely be stashed in Triple-A Buffalo for the rest of the season as younger pitchers get a look with the club.

All told, Garcia tossed 74 1/3 inning with the Jays, posting a 5.93 ERA, and picking up three wins. He’ll finish his Blue Jays career tied for 142th in franchise wins with guys like Chad Jenkins, Dana Eveland, and Butch Edge.

This was done, not only because Garcia has been bad, but also to make room for Aaron Sanchez on the 40- and 25-man roster. Sanchez hasn’t pitched since June 21 because he got attacked by a suitcase. Since he had been injured for two months, the Jays tossed him on the 60-day DL last week to open up a short-term spot on the 40-man for someone else.