Willy Garcia
|
Position:
OF
Born:
09/04/92
Height:
6'2"
Weight:
215
B/T:
R/R
Acquired:
Claimed off waivers from the Pirates January 6, 2017, when OF Jason Coats was designated for assignment (CHW). Originally signed as an international free agent (Dominican Republic) on May 18, 2010 (PIT).
Most Recent Stats at Time of Debut
| 2016 Season Stats: Hit .245 with six home runs, 43 RBIs and five stolen bases along with 30 doubles in 129 games at Indianapolis (Triple-A). In seven games at Charlotte (Triple-A) in 2017, was hitting .423 with nine runs scored, two home runs and six RBIs. |
Info & MLB Debut Date
|
Recalled from Charlotte April 14 when OF Melky Cabrera went on the Paternity List. MLB Debut Date: 04/14/17 |
Debut Details
| April 14, in a 2-1 win over the Twins. The starting left fielder, he batted seventh and went 1-for-4 with a double while also making baseball history in the process (see the introduction for details!). In the second inning, he doubled to left-center field with two outs off of left-hander Adalberto Mejia but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. In the fourth, he struck out swinging with one out. In the seventh, he lined out to right field against right-handed reliever Ryan Pressly. In the ninth, with one on and one out, he grounded into an inning-ending 1-4-3 double play back to right-handed reliever Brandon Kintzler on the mound. |
Player Notes
| Garcia's name will go down in the baseball history books (arguably three times) thanks to the lineup decision regarding his debut, and you can read all about that in the introduction to this week's column. Once considered a top prospect with the Pirates' system for his double-plus arm and enticing raw power, his free-swinging ways coupled with minimal plate patience saw him drop off the uber-prospect lists and he eventually wound up on waivers, and claimed by the White Sox. His numbers in the past have been intriguing, as he hit .271 with 18 home runs and 63 RBIs at Altoona (Double-A) in 2014 and a combined .275 with 15 home runs and 67 RBIs between Altoona and Indianapolis in 2015. Though his stats dipped in 2016, he was off to a red-hit start in 2017 and perhaps has finally got it figured out. |