CLEARWATER, Fla. - The drive from South Philadelphia to Allentown is 70 miles, and Luis Garcia knows how it feels from each direction. The Phillies signed the righthander from independent ball, brought him to the majors on July 9, 2013, and sent him back 47 days later to triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Garcia has been optioned to or recalled from the minors 17 more times since.
"Right now," Garcia said, "I'm not thinking about tomorrow or what's going to happen, if I'm going to make the team."
The Phillies purged half of their 40-man roster this winter, and Garcia is still here.