DALLAS — On Feb. 10, 2021, the Texas Rangers announced the signing of pitcher Mike Foltynewicz and, to make room for him on the roster, the team designated outfielder Adolis Garcia for assignment.
For a time, Garcia was free on waivers for any team willing to pick him up at the low, low price of a waiver fee and a roster spot. No team bit and a few days later, Garcia was outrighted off the big league roster but remained with the Rangers. That proved to be extremely fortuitous for Texas.
Garcia, 29, was signed as an international free agent out of Cuba by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2017 and made his Major League debut a year later, where he struggled with a .118/.118/.176 batting line in 21 games.
As a prospect, Garcia was expected to be a quick riser with a powerful bat. His adjustments to stateside ball proved slow and failed to hit a home run in his first taste of the big leagues with St. Louis.
After spending the entire 2019 season at Triple-A Memphis, where he hit 32 home runs, the Cardinals removed him from their roster that winter and the rebuilding Rangers were happy to acquire him for cash considerations.
The 2020 season was wiped out for minor leaguers due to the COVID-19 outbreak, but Garcia was called up by the Rangers late in the truncated season where he managed a walk in seven plate appearances spanning three games. At that point in his career, Garcia looked to be nothing more than roster churn fodder as evidenced by the fact that he was cast off the following spring.
And yet, after retaining a place with the Rangers, Garcia started to show signs of blossoming during spring training last year. Garcia hit .375/.389/.781 in 22 games with three Cactus League home runs. However, as his earlier DFA suggested, Garcia was lower on the totem pole than others so he was beat out for an Opening Day roster spot by the likes of Khris Davis, Eli White and Ronald Guzman.
It wouldn’t take long for Garcia to make his mark with the Rangers in 2021. Guzman, playing out of position for his first career start in left field against the Tampa Bay Rays, came up lame on the Tropicana Field carpet with a meniscus tear in his right knee. That injury allowed Garcia to make his 2021 debut the following night.
After hitting his first career big league home run to put the Rangers ahead for good in the 10th inning just two nights after his call up, Garcia was red hot through the season’s first six weeks. In 45 games through May, Garcia batted .286/.323/.589 with 16 home runs, some of which included the most memorable moments of the season for Texas.
By the end of the first half, Garcia had an OPS of .840, 22 home runs, and was named to the All-Star team. Not bad for a guy who had been removed from the roster just five months prior. Of course, as usually happens when a player comes out of nowhere for a great half, the league began to adjust to Garcia and he hit just nine more home runs with a .627 OPS in the second half last season.
Eventually, Garcia finished fourth in the American League Rookie of the Year voting, produced 2.9 WAR in value, and was ranked among the best defenders among outfielders in the league. Overall, Garcia tied with Boston’s Hunter Renfroe with 16 outfield assists which showed that his arm can be a weapon.
Now, in 2022, the question becomes can Garcia shrug off his summer slump and produce enough to retain his spot as an outfield mainstay or was he a one season wonder for the Rangers in 2021?
If Garcia hits respectfully and provides powerful surges with his bat when he gets hot, he can be a valuable member of the team as his defense is a plus at a premium position where he likely should have been a Gold Glove candidate had he played one position rather than splitting time between center and right field.
If Garcia’s second-half slide continues in 2022, the Rangers could look to White or prospect Leody Taveras in center field. If Taveras shows signs of improvement in the minor leagues, it’s possible that he could shift Garcia back to right field depending on how Kole Calhoun performs in that spot.
But the leash will be lengthy for Garcia this season. He earned it after the legend of El Bombi grew last summer.
Do you think Adolis Garcia can avoid the dreaded sophomore slump with the Rangers in 2022? Make your predictions with us on Twitter @BaseballTX.
