Matt Garza says Jeff Samardzija needs to pitch his way out of Chicago

Matt Garza is currently employed to pitch baseballs for the Milwaukee Brewers.

He was previously employed to pitch baseballs for the Chicago Cubs. What has become clear in the time since Garza left Chicago is that the right-handed pitcher did not care for the Cubs organization. He did not care for it at all, in fact.

Garza was traded to the Texas Rangers last year and then signed a four year, $50 million deal with the Brewers this off-season. Given the opportunity to pitch in the same division as the Cubs, Garza has not been shy about what appears to be nothing short of disdain for the franchise. As one example, Garza said before the season started that he was looking forward to playing the Cubs so that he could “kick their teeth in.”

Now Garza has turned his attention to former teammate Jeff Samardzija, the Cubs’ current staff ace. The subject of a number of trade rumors the last year or so, Samardzija is off to a tough-luck start this season: he is 0-2 despite posting a 1.53 ERA. That is where Garza decided to chime in (from ESPN.com):

"All I can tell him is keep pitching – pitch your way out of it. Keep your eyes focused, your eyes straight ahead and just pitch. There’s nothing else you can do……I told [Samardzija], ‘It doesn’t matter, dude. You play in Chicago. I was there, and I lost 30 wins in three seasons. It’s not your fault. You pitch your way out of there.'”"

Let’s take a moment to partake in creative math with Matt Garza: in 60 starts on the Cubs, Garza went 21-18. If the Cubs cost him 30 wins (!), that means Garza believes that he should have won 51 games in 60 starts. Translation: Matt Garza thinks he’s Bob Gibson.

As for Samardzija, if he does continue to pitch well he may end up following Garza’s advice, whether he meant to or not. The Cubs appear to be done talking extension with the right-handed pitcher, so trade rumors are sure to heat up once again when the season approaches the July 31st trade deadline.