NEW YORK – Luis García has faced 14 pitchers at least 10 times in his major league career. He’s had far more success against one of them than anyone else. And the identity of that one opponent may surprise you: Max Scherzer.
Yes, over the course of 11 head-to-head plate appearances against the three-time Cy Young Award winner and likely future Hall of Famer, García has six hits. One of those was a double. Two of them were homers.
Put that all together, and you’ve got a 1.727 OPS against one of the greatest pitchers of this generation. Even García has to smile and laugh when asked how he’s managed to do that.
“To be honest, I can’t even tell you,” he said, via interpreter Octavio Martinez. “I feel like maybe I go in there with greater focus, because it is Max Scherzer, and he’s a very good pitcher. I think one of his best pitches, if not his best pitch, is his fastball. And I’m a good fastball hitter, so maybe that’s it.”
García certainly handled Scherzer’s fastball well Friday night. He mashed one of them 406 feet to deep right-center, producing the Nationals’ one and only run off the 39-year-old right-hander during a 5-1 loss to the Mets.
García also doubled in his first at-bat, turning on a down-and-in cutter and sending it down the right field line for another extra-base hit. He would also add a single off reliever Brooks Raley in the top of the ninth, leaving him 3-for-4 on the night and a triple shy of the cycle.
This wound up being García’s best game in a while. He hadn’t homered since June 2. He hadn’t notched three hits since May 26, when he went 6-for-6 in Kansas City. He entered Friday night’s in an 0-for-11 rut.
“I’ve been struggling lately,” García acknowledged. “I work every day, and keep working on my swing. It’s been a little struggle trying to get back in a groove, but a game like tonight … I felt great tonight, and I think it adds a lot to my confidence. I feel good, and hopefully going forward it definitely helps me a lot.”
It’s an odd thing, for a hitter without a track record of success against most pitchers, to have such a dominant track record against one of the absolute best he’s faced in the big leagues.
It turns out only two hitters who have faced Scherzer at least 10 times own a higher OPS than García: Shin-Soo Choo (14-for-24, three homers, six walks, 1.792 OPS) and Jake Lamb (6-for-11, three homers, four walks, 2.212 OPS).
What can a performance like Friday’s do for a young hitter like García, who needs all the positive reinforcement he can get?
“Today, he really slowed his legs down, stayed behind the ball,” manager Davey Martinez said. “And he had something behind his swings. Hopefully tomorrow we can get him to do the same thing.”