After leading all Red Sox minor leaguers in homers last season, and being named to the 2025 All-Star Futures Game this year, Jhostynxon Garcia could be playing 1B soon in Triple-A Worcester.
WORCESTER — The Password is?
“A good player, huh?” WooSox manager Chad Tracy said.
WooSox outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia — aka “The Password” — hit a 441-foot grand slam in the third inning of Worcester’s 5-1 win over Lehigh Valley Friday night. The ball exited Polar Park at 109.4 miles per hour.
“He smoked it,” Tracy said. “He just crushed it. It sounded like a shotgun when he hit it.”
The homer was Garcia’s 13th since being called up from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on May 20. After only hitting four home runs in 33 games with Portland this year, Garcia has more than tripled that amount in 52 games in Worcester.
“As soon as he got here, the home runs started showing up,” Tracy said. “He’s jumped right in and not just been good, but been one of our, if not our, best offensive players since he’s shown up here.”
Along with his flashy nickname and hitting, which includes a batting line of .298 with 41 RBIs and 21 walks in Worcester, Garcia also has flashed his glove in all three outfield spots with the WooSox.
Yet, the Red Sox’ No. 2 prospect (per MLB.com), could be flashing some new leather at a new position soon.
After Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reported Garcia may see some time at first base in the upcoming weeks, Boston Red Sox senior director of player development Brian Abraham confirmed with the T&G that Garcia could start taking ground balls at first base during Worcester’s upcoming home series with Buffalo, which begins Aug. 5.
Tracy verified that information ahead of his team’s game Aug. 2 but wants to discuss it further with WooSox defensive coach Iggy Suarez, and Garcia, before announcing any definitive next steps.
“If we start to do that, it’s likely going to be a slow start to introduce stuff to him and see how he even takes to it,” Tracy said. “And when we say that, it’s like if you take them over there and it looks awful or you feel it could be aborted right away. But it just might be something we start introducing to him here in the near future.”
Last year, Garcia led all Red Sox minor leaguers in homers and was added to Boston’s 40-man roster in the offseason.
“This guy loves the big moment,” Tracy said.
With Garcia staying with the organization, after reportedly being involved in a few possible proposals at Thursday’s MLB trade deadline, the Red Sox are opening the door for a possible path to Boston for their lone selection to the 2025 All-Star Futures Game — via first base.
With a crowded outfield in the major leagues at the moment, and a budding star with a popular nickname, the Red Sox are trying to find a solution for their outfielder nicknamed The Password.
—Contact Tommy Cassell at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Red Sox top outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia could be playing first base soon
Category: Baseball
