Adolis Garcia began the season as a pleasant surprise for the Texas Rangers and he’s closing 2021 like a cornerstone piece of the club’s future.
Garcia’s fifth-inning home run in Thursday afternoon’s 7-6 win over the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Field moved him ahead of Pete Incaviglia’s 30 homers and 88 RBIs in 1986. Both were the previous Rangers rookie records.
“It was a really special moment for me,” said Garcia, who now has 31 home runs with 90 RBIs and is hitting .244 on the season. “I wasn’t pressured to get it done, but anxious to get it done. I’m just grateful.”
He’s the 14th rookie in American League history with 30 or more home runs and 90 RBIs and just the third in the past 24 seasons. The others were Jose Abreu in 2014 and Aaron Judge in 2017.
Garcia, who made the All-Star team in July, is a leading candidate for the AL Rookie of the Year award.
“I’m very proud at what I’ve accomplished. I’ve worked very hard this past year,” he said. “To get some of these records is very special to me.”
