Nationals' Luis Garcia: Belts big homer in victory
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Garcia went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run against the Dodgers in Monday's 6-4 win.
Garcia produced the biggest hit of the contest for Washington, slamming a three-run homer in the fifth inning to extend the team's lead to four runs. The long ball was his first of the campaign, but he's also tied for third in the league with seven doubles. Garcia has looked good so far this season, slashing .318/.333/.545 with eight RBI, four runs and a stolen base through 45 plate appearances.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: On bench against lefty
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Garcia is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the A's, Andrew Golden of The Washington Postreports.
Lefty Alex Wood is taking the mound for Oakland, so Garcia will head to the bench, and he's now started just twice in seven games against southpaws. Ildemaro Vargas will handle the keystone Sunday for Washington.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Sitting versus southpaw
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Garcia is not in the starting lineup Tuesday against the Giants, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
Garcia will get a breather as the Nationals square off with lefty Kyle Harrison. The switch-hitting Ildemaro Vargas will replace him at second base, batting seventh versus the Giants.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Swipes first bag of season
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Garcia went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a stolen base in Monday's win over the Giants.
The 23-year-old swiped his first bag of the year on the back end of a double steal with Trey Lipscomb in the second inning. Garcia came into the season with a very tenuous grip on the starting job at second base, but so far he's risen to the occasion, batting .321 (9-for-28) with five doubles, four RBI and three runs scored. He hasn't hit higher than eighth in the order, however, so even if he does begin to put things together in 2024, his fantasy ceiling is capped unless he can earn a better spot in the lineup.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Gets breather against lefty
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Garcia isn't in the Nationals' lineup for Saturday's game against the Phillies.
With left-hander Ranger Suarez on the mound for Philadelphia, the lefty-hitting Garcia will step out of the lineup Saturday. Ildemaro Vargas will fill in at the keystone and bat seventh.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Platooning at second base
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Garcia is absent from the lineup in Thursday's contest against the Pirates.
The Nationals are facing lefty Martin Perez, so the left-handed hitting Garcia will take a seat. Garcia has been on the bench both times the Nationals have gone up against southpaws, so it would appear he'll be in a fairly strict platoon with the switch-hitting Ildemaro Vargas at second base.
Garcia is not in the lineup for Monday's game versus the Pirates, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
The Nationals are facing their first left-hander of the season in Marco Gonzales, so the lefty-hitting Garcia will take a seat for the first time. Ildemaro Vargas will handle second base in his place.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Set to retain roster spot
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Garcia is likely to begin the season as Washington's primary second baseman after Trey Lipscomb was reassigned to minor-league camp Tuesday.
Garcia entered camp as the presumed starter at the keystone, but he struggled in Grapefruit League play with four errors and a .245 average. Lipscomb, meanwhile, came out of nowhere and made a strong push for a roster spot with a .995 OPS during spring training. Garcia will likely need to improve upon his .266/.304/.385 slash line from last season in order to retain the starting job throughout 2024.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Roster spot in jeopardy
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Garcia committed his fourth error of the spring Sunday, and he could lose his starting job at second base and potentially even his roster spot to Trey Lipscomb, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports reports.
Garcia hasn't had an impressive spring at the plate, batting .245 (12-for-49) with a 2:7 BB:K, but his defensive issues are the bigger issue as the Nationals finalize their Opening Day roster. Lipscomb's made a strong push for a spot, flashing a strong glove at multiple infield positions while batting a blistering .400 (20-for-50) with a 5:7 BB:K, but the organization wants him to play every day. If the Nats decide Lipscomb is ready, Garcia seems to be the most vulnerable starter on the infield, and he's out of minor-league options. The team could also elect to return Rule 5 pick Nasim Nunez to the Marlins to create a spot on the 26-man roster for Lipscomb, but Garcia doesn't have the defensive versatility to be a useful bench piece. Even if the 23-year-old keeps his starting job at the keystone to begin the season, Garcia figures to be on a very short leash.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Goes yard Friday
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Garcia went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets.
The second baseman slapped an Adrian Houser offering the other way in the first inning and watched it carry over the fence in the left-field corner. Garcia has picked up the pace at the plate after a slow start to his spring, and over the last eight games he's batting .370 (10-for-27) with three doubles and two homers. Still only 23 years old, the Nationals are hoping he can take a step forward as a hitter in 2024 despite an unimpressive .265/.295/.395 slash line through his first four MLB seasons.
Garcia went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins.
The second baseman took Jesus Luzardo deep in the third inning, the first of three Nats homers off the southpaw and Garcia's first long ball of the spring. The 23-year-old has had a sluggish start to camp, going 2-for-17 with five strikeouts against zero walks, but the team doesn't have an obvious alternative for him at the keystone and seems willing to give him at least one more chance to establish himself as CJ Abrams' long-term double-play partner.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Agrees to terms
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Garcia signed a one-year contract to avoid arbitration with the Nationals on Thursday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.
The Nationals have been open about the fact that Garcia is not guaranteed playing time this year, but he won't face stiff competition from Jake Alu, Ildemaro Vargas or Nasim Nunez. Garcia already has 325 MLB games under his belt and won't turn 24 until May, but he has been a replacement-level player for two seasons in a row (0.1 fWAR both years). He hit a career-high nine home runs with a career-high nines steals last year. The main thing Garcia offers is a decent batting average -- he has hit .266 or better in back-to-back seasons.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Not guaranteed second base job
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Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Monday that Garcia is not guaranteed the second base job going into next season, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
Garcia battled through a disappointing 2023 campaign, slashing just .266/.304/.385 while spending some time back in the minors. The 23-year-old remains talented and would seem to be the odds-on favorite to man second base on Opening Day for the Nationals, but the gig won't be handed to him. Jake Alu, Ildemaro Vargas and Jeter Downs represent potential alternatives to Garcia at the keystone.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Sitting out finale
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Garcia is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against Atlanta, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
Garcia started the past 13 games but will head to the bench for Sunday's series finale. The 24-year-old posted a .404/.440/.702 slash line during that stretch, which boosted his season-long OPS to .686 to go along with nine homers, nine steals, 50 RBI and 60 runs in 480 plate appearances.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Raps out two hits
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Garcia went 2-for-5 with a double and a run in Friday's 10-6 win over Atlanta.
Since returning to the majors Sept. 8 after a five-week stint at Triple-A Rochester, Garcia has restored some faith that he might be the Nationals' long-term answer at second base. After going just 2-for-22 in his first eight games following his call-up, Garcia has caught fire at the plate and has climbed up the batting order accordingly. He's slashing .419/.457/.721 with seven extra-base hits over his last 12 games and has batted out of the No. 5 spot in five straight contests.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Stays warm Sunday
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Garcia went 4-for-9 with a solo home run, an additional RBI and an additional run scored over both games of Sunday's doubleheader versus Atlanta.
The infielder has hit safely in five straight games, four of which have been multi-hit efforts. Garcia is hitting .500 (11-for-22) over that short span, which has raised his batting average from .252 to .265 for the year. He's up to nine homers, 49 RBI, 59 runs scored and nine stolen bases over 117 contests this season. His improved stretch of hitting has helped him stay in the lineup regularly in recent weeks.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Homers again Sunday
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Garcia went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a stolen base in Sunday's extra-innings win over the Brewers.
He drove a Brandon Woodruff fastball out of the park to center field in the second inning, the only run the Nationals managed until they scored the game-winner in the top of the 11th. Garcia has gone yard in back-to-back games, but since rejoining the big-league roster Sept. 8 he's batting just .207 (6-for-29), and the 23-year-old's future as a starting-caliber player in the majors remains in doubt.
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Nationals' Luis Garcia: Goes deep in loss
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Garcia went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional RBI and a walk in a loss to the Brewers on Saturday.
Garcia recorded the only extra-base hit of the game for Washington with his third-inning solo homer against Corbin Burnes. The infielder added another RBI with a bases-loaded walk in the sixth. Garcia was recalled Sept. 8 from an extended stay in the minors and had been struggling since his return prior to Saturday, going 2-for-22 over his first eight games back.
