Red Sox’s Jhostynxon Garcia Making MLB Debut Day After Call-Up

Welcome to the big leagues, Jhostynxon Garcia.

The Boston Red Sox promoted Garcia on Thursday, and they’re wasting no time throwing the newcomer into a pivotal rivalry game against the New York Yankees.

Garcia is starting at center field and batting fifth on Friday night. The 22-year-old makes his MLB debut against All-Star pitcher Max Fried.

Known as “The Password” because of his hard-to-spell first name, Garcia ranks No. 77 among MLB’s top prospects. The 2019 international signing from Venezuela hit .303/.367/.564 with 17 home runs in 66 games for Triple-A Worcester.

Even as Garcia swung a scorching bat, the likelihood of a late-season promotion seemed stunted since the Red Sox had no room in their outfield to give him regular reps. However, a door opened when Boston placed Wilyer Abreu on the injured list with a calf issue.

“He swings a lot, but drives the ball to right center,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Garcia on Thursday. “He can do that with two strikes. He’s a great defender, a good baserunner.”

With Garcia joining Jarren Duran and Roman Anthony in the outfield, Ceddanne Rafalea moves back to second base on Friday. Meanwhile, the newly acquired Nathaniel Lowe takes a seat against a left-handed pitcher after tallying two clutch hits in a pair of starts against righties.

Cora told reporters that he’s comfortable using Garcia at any of the three outfield spots, but he wouldn’t confirm how much playing time the rookie will receive.

“I’ll do the lineup,” Cora said, “and if he’s playing every day, he’s playing every day.”

Starting against Fried indicates that the right-handed Garcia will at least play against southpaws. Friday’s game starts at 7:05 p.m. ET.