Luis Garcia Jr. has first Yankees moment in wild-card series-clinching win vs. Red Sox

James O'Connell, New York Daily News on Sep 30, 2026

Published in Baseball

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NEW YORK — If you would’ve told Luis Garcia Jr. before this season what he’d be doing on Sept. 30, he probably wouldn’t believe you.

That’s because the 26-year-old was slated to bat in the middle of the order for the lowly Washington Nationals, who had virtually no aspirations of competing, with October as a good target month for a postseason vacation.

Instead, Garcia delivered one of the biggest swings of the night for the New York Yankees in their Game 2 victory on Wednesday to eliminate the Boston Red Sox and advance from the wild-card series to the ALDS to take on the Tampa Bay Rays.

The slugger launched a solo shot in the bottom of the fourth off of Red Sox starter Sonny Gray — who was cruising early — to jumpstart the Bombers offense that delivered another strong performance in their 9-2 victory, and hand them a much-needed early lead against an opponent that was on the ropes.

“No, no, not at all. Never thought I was going to be part of [the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry],” Garcia said before Game 2. “But my mom has a good saying, and she’s always telling me never stop dreaming.

“But at the same time, now having this opportunity to be here, being able to go out there and be part of the playoffs, go out and represent the Yankees, it feels great. And just hoping that I’m able to go out there and do the little things that can help us keep winning.”

It was Garcia’s first career homer in his first postseason start. He did get a taste of the playoffs during Tuesday’s victory, however, he was limited to just one pinch hit appearance.

“Yeah, [I was] thinking about [playing in the postseason when I was traded here], all those conversations, actually, the experience is very different, actually,” Garcia said. “Just seeing the atmosphere around the ballpark, the fans standing from pitch one all the way to the end, very different. At the same time, very exciting. You can feel the excitement in the air, if you will.”

On Wednesday, Garcia was one of the main reasons for the fans excitement in the Bronx. The left-handed hitter went 3 for 5 with a homer and two singles.

The first baseman entered the postseason struggling mightily as he slashed .229/.250/.343 in 19 games during September. However, it was largely a solid run for Garcia during his first stint with the Yankees as he posted a .736 OPS in 43 games with the team.

Garcia is expected to pick up a bulk of the offensive load left behind by the injured Aaron Judge, who’s status remains uncertain heading into the upcoming series against the Rays.

Aaron Boone will almost certainly continue to pencil Garcia’s name into the third spot in the order, especially against right-handed pitching, for as long as this postseason run continues for the Yankees.

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