Freddy García facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Freddy García |
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Garcia with the Baltimore Orioles
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| Pitcher | |||
| Born: October 6, 1976 Caracas, Venezuela |
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| debut | |||
| April 7, 1999, for the Seattle Mariners | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 24, 2013, for the Atlanta Braves | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 156–108 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.15 | ||
| Strikeouts | 1,621 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Freddy Antonio García, born on October 6, 1976, is a former professional baseball pitcher from Venezuela. He is well-known for playing many seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for teams like the Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, and New York Yankees. García also played baseball in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), Mexican League, and Venezuelan Professional Baseball League.
His best year was 2001. In that season, he led the American League in innings pitched and ERA. He was chosen for the All-Star team in both 2001 and 2002. In 2005, he helped the Chicago White Sox win the World Series. He was the starting pitcher in the final game of that series.
Contents
- Freddy García's Baseball Journey
- Starting with the Seattle Mariners
- Winning the World Series with the Chicago White Sox
- Time with the Philadelphia Phillies
- Playing for the Detroit Tigers
- Brief Stint with the New York Mets
- Return to the Chicago White Sox
- Years with the New York Yankees
- Playing for the Baltimore Orioles
- Time with the Atlanta Braves
- Playing in Asia and Mexico
- Freddy García's Pitching Style
- See also
Freddy García's Baseball Journey
Starting with the Seattle Mariners
Freddy García first signed with the Houston Astros in 1993. This was before he was drafted. In 1998, he joined the Seattle Mariners. This happened in a trade that sent Randy Johnson to the Astros.
During his first year, García pitched 201 innings. He had a record of 17 wins and 8 losses. He also got 170 strikeouts. His ERA was 4.07. After his second season, he had a 45–42 record with the Mariners.
His strongest season was in 2001. He won 18 games for the Mariners that year. The team set an American League record with 116 wins. He also led the AL in innings pitched and had a 3.05 ERA. He finished third in the voting for the Cy Young Award.
On June 27, 2004, García was traded to the Chicago White Sox. He left the Mariners with a 76–50 record. He also had a 3.89 ERA and 819 strikeouts.
Winning the World Series with the Chicago White Sox
García was the starting pitcher for Game 4 of the 2005 World Series. He pitched seven innings and didn't allow any runs. The White Sox won that game against the Houston Astros. This win completed a four-game sweep, making the White Sox World Series champions.
In 2006, he reached over 1,000 strikeouts in his career. In eight post-season games, he had a record of 5 wins and 2 losses. His ERA was 3.56 in 48 innings. On April 29, 2006, García got his 103rd career win. This made him the Venezuelan player with the most wins in Major League history. He finished the 2006 season with 17 wins and 9 losses. His ERA was 4.53. While with the White Sox, he was nicknamed "Big Game."
Time with the Philadelphia Phillies
In December 2006, García was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. He had a shoulder injury that affected his playing. He was placed on the disabled list in June. He had shoulder surgery in August. García made 11 starts for the Phillies and won one game.
Playing for the Detroit Tigers
In August 2008, García signed a contract with the Detroit Tigers. In his first game for the Tigers, he pitched 5 innings without allowing any runs. He got the win in that game.
Brief Stint with the New York Mets
In January 2009, García signed a minor league deal with the New York Mets. He was released in April 2009. This happened after two difficult starts for their minor league team.
Return to the Chicago White Sox
On June 8, 2009, Freddy García rejoined the Chicago White Sox. He signed a minor league contract. He made his first start back with the White Sox on August 18.
In his first game back, García pitched 4.1 innings. He allowed 5 runs. He finished the 2009 season with 3 wins and 4 losses. His ERA was 4.34. The White Sox kept him for the 2010 season. He became a free agent after 2010.
Years with the New York Yankees
On January 31, 2011, García signed a contract with the New York Yankees. He was added to the team's starting pitchers. He finished the 2011 season with a good record of 12 wins and 8 losses. His ERA was 3.62.
García lost his only playoff start in 2011. The Yankees were defeated by the Detroit Tigers in the playoffs. Even so, the Yankees offered him a new contract for the 2012 season.
In 2012, García was expected to be a starting pitcher. However, another pitcher was traded, and one got injured. This allowed García to be in the starting group.
García had a tough start to the 2012 season. He was moved to the bullpen (where relief pitchers wait). He improved a lot once he was pitching in relief. His sinker pitch also got faster.
An injury to another pitcher brought García back into the starting rotation. He finished the 2012 season with 7 wins and 6 losses. His ERA was 5.20. He became a free agent after the season.
Playing for the Baltimore Orioles
On January 28, 2013, García signed a minor league deal with the San Diego Padres. He was released in March. He then signed with the Baltimore Orioles. He was called up to play for the Orioles on May 4. He was later moved off the team in June.
Time with the Atlanta Braves
On August 23, 2013, García joined the Atlanta Braves. He pitched well for the Braves in September. He had 1 win and 2 losses, with a 1.65 ERA. He even started a playoff game for the Braves. He pitched well, giving up only 2 runs. The Braves lost the game, but García did a good job.
He signed another minor league contract with the Braves in 2014 but was released in March.
Playing in Asia and Mexico
On April 18, 2014, García signed with the EDA Rhinos in Taiwan. This was part of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). This deal was one of the biggest in CPBL history at the time. In his first game, he pitched six innings without giving up any runs.
In 2015, García signed with the Olmecas de Tabasco in the Mexican League. He made 6 starts there. Later, he signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He played a few games for their minor league team.
He rejoined the Olmecas de Tabasco in June 2015. Then he was traded to the Sultanes de Monterrey. In September, he played for the Tigres de Aragua. He won a league championship with Aragua. He retired after the 2016 Caribbean Series.
In April 2016, García came out of retirement. He signed again with the Sultanes de Monterrey in Mexico. He was released in May 2016. In March 2018, he signed with the Leones de Yucatán in Mexico. He was released in April 2018.
García was able to be voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019. However, he did not receive enough votes.
Freddy García's Pitching Style
When he was younger, Freddy García threw a fastball that was very fast. He also had a strong slider. He used other pitches too, like a two-seam fastball, a curveball, a split-finger fastball, and sometimes a changeup.
As he got older, García's fastball wasn't as fast. So, he learned to throw many different types of pitches. He used up to six or seven different pitches. In 2013, he used these pitches most often:
- Four-seam fastball — around 86–90 miles per hour
- Slider — around 78–82 miles per hour
- Curveball — around 72–76 miles per hour
- Splitter — around 78–82 miles per hour
- Changeup — around 80–84 miles per hour
- Sinker — around 86–90 miles per hour
García also learned to be very careful with where he threw the ball. He tried to keep his pitches on the edges of the strike zone. This made it harder for batters to hit them well.
See also
In Spanish: Freddy García para niños
- List of Major League Baseball players from Venezuela
