Luis García

Luis Amado García (born January 30, 1987) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Angels, Texas Rangers, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals, New York Mets, and Minnesota Twins.

García was originally signed by the Dodgers organization as an amateur free agent in 2004, at the age of 16. His initial MLB call-up occurred on July 9, 2013. García made his big league debut the next day against the Nationals at Citizens Bank Park. That day, he pitched one scoreless inning, in relief of Phillies ace, Cliff Lee.

García has had two stints playing professional baseball, initially from 2006–2010, and from 2013 to present. During the period in between stints, García was mostly out of baseball, working in the barbering and moving businesses, save for a brief, rocky 2012 comeback attempt in independent ball.

Professional career

Early professional career (2006–10) García was originally signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers organization as an amateur free agent on January 22, 2004, In total in 2009, García had six wins, three losses, with a 2.76 earned run average (ERA), and five saves, with the Great Lakes Loons and Potomac Nationals. He spent the 2010 season in the Nationals organization, playing for Potomac and the Hagerstown Suns

At that time, García's only baseball activity was teaching children and a few pickup games, yet Philadelphia Phillies international scouting director Sal Agostinelli heard about García and sent someone to watch him throw. After discovering that García consistently threw a fastball that was 94 miles per hour (mph) as well as an "impressive" slider, Agostinelli had García come to Phillies spring training. The Phillies signed him to a minor league contract and assigned him to the Clearwater Threshers, their High-A affiliate, on March 25, 2013. Agostinelli was quoted as saying, "It's literally one of those things as a scout that you dream about." Beginning the year in Clearwater before earning promotions to the Double-A Reading Fightin Phils and the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, García combined to post a 1.67 ERA and 9.3 strikeouts per nine innings pitched (K/9). He was called up to the Major Leagues on July 9, 2013. He made his debut the following day, working a scoreless eighth inning versus the Nationals and recording his first MLB strikeout against Ryan Zimmerman. He pitched in 24 games that season, allowing 13 earned runs in innings for a 3.73 ERA

García was optioned to Lehigh Valley to begin the 2014 season, where he produced a 0.96 ERA (five earned runs in innings) in 39 games. and appeared in 13 games for the Phillies, allowing 10 runs in 14 innings. His performance during the first half of the season was characterized as "inconsistent" by then-interim manager Pete Mackanin, who said García had been hanging too many sliders. Nevertheless, he remained with the Phillies all season, appearing in 72 games with a 3.51 ERA in innings and a 4–6 record.

García returned to the minors to start the 2016 season and was up and down between the Phillies and Lehigh Valley all season. Though he wound up spending most of the season with the Phillies, appearing in 66 games with a 2–5 record and 2.65 ERA. García made 64 appearances for the Angels in 2019, posting a 2–1 record and 4.35 ERA.

Texas Rangers On January 9, 2020, García signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers that included an invite to Spring Training. With the minor league season cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, García began the season at the Rangers alternate training site. He was added back to the major league roster on August 18 On September 15, García was designated for assignment after struggling to a 7.56 ERA in 11 games. He was granted free agency on September 17.

New York Yankees On December 12, 2020, García signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees organization. He was assigned to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders to begin the 2021 season, where he made 18 appearances, logging a 1–2 record and 3.63 ERA.

St. Louis Cardinals On July 9, 2021, García signed a major league contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. He debuted for the Cardinals against the Chicago Cubs on the same day and hit the first batter he faced, Willson Contreras, in the head with a fastball. He wound up pitching in 34 games for the Cardinals in 2021, with a 3.24 ERA in innings. He pitched in 37 games during his contract, with a 6–9 record and 3.73 ERA.

Los Angeles Angels (second stint) On December 13, 2023, García signed a one-year, $4.25 million contract to return to the Los Angeles Angels. He made 45 appearances out of the bullpen for the Angels in 2024, compiling a 3.71 ERA with 40 strikeouts and 4 saves across innings pitched.

Boston Red Sox On July 30, 2024, García was traded to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for minor league players Niko Kavadas, Matthew Lugo, Yeferson Vargas and Ryan Zeferjahn. In 15 appearances for Boston, García struggled to an 8.22 ERA with 13 strikeouts across innings pitched. On March 17, the Dodgers selected his contract after he made the team's Opening Day roster. In 28 appearances for Los Angeles, he compiled a 2-0 record and 5.27 ERA with 24 strikeouts across innings pitched. he was released by the team after clearing waivers on July 4.

Washington Nationals On July 8, 2025, García signed a major league contract with the Washington Nationals. García made 10 appearances for the Nationals, recording an 0.90 ERA with seven strikeouts across 10 innings pitched.

Los Angeles Angels (third stint) On July 30, 2025, the Nationals traded García to the Los Angeles Angels, along with Andrew Chafin, in exchange for Jake Eder and Sam Brown. García made 20 relief appearances down the stretch for Los Angeles, compiling an 0-2 record and 2.00 ERA with 17 strikeouts and two saves over 18 innings of work.

New York Mets On January 21, 2026, García signed a one-year, $1.75 million contract with the New York Mets. He made six appearances for New York, but struggled to a 7.11 ERA with four strikeouts across innings pitched. On April 12, García was designated for assignment by the Mets. He was released by New York on April 15.

Minnesota Twins On April 22, 2026, García signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins. After two appearances for the Triple-A St. Paul Saints, the Twins added García to their active roster on April 28. He made nine appearances for the Twins, struggling to an 0-1 record and 10.38 ERA with two strikeouts and two saves across innings pitched. García was designated for assignment by Minnesota on May 23. He elected free agency after clearing waivers two days later.