'He's An Emotional Player.' Adolis García's Struggles Leave Huge Hole In Texas Rangers Lineup

Texas Rangers slugger Adolis García is a streaking hitter, but his current slump has dragged on for six weeks, leaving a massive hole in the middle of the lineup.

Jun 2, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Texas Rangers right fielder Adolis Garcia (53) looks on from the dugout against the Miami Marlins during the eighth inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

ARLINGTON — The Texas Rangers have multiple issues with their offense, but one of the most glaring is the downward spiral of slugger Adolis García.

Since May 1 — or the past 40 games — García is batting .158 with five homers, four doubles, and 15 RBI. His slugging percentage has dropped from .613 on April 24 to .407.

That's a big hole in the middle of the Rangers lineup, which has struggled to score runs for most of the past month.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy gave García the night off for Tuesday's game against the New York Mets, a day after he was 0 for 3 with a strikeout in the Rangers' 14-2 loss. Of course, unless your name was Robbie Grossman, you didn't have a good night at the plate. For García, however, the bad nights have been piling up since his fast start in April went from a sizzle to a fizzle.

The most vexing aspect of his decline? There is no obvious fix.

"If we had the silver bullet, we'd have this fixed," Bochy said. "He's working hard to get on track. Last year, we saw him go through similar times like he's going through now."

The easiest explanation for García's struggles is his chase rate. But it's more than that. Even when he was hitting 39 homers, 29 doubles, and driving in 107 runs in 2023, he was prone to chasing pitches outside the strike zone. The difference is, during this recent slump, he's not routinely hitting the ball hard or for much power.

"I think it's a case of where if he gets a couple of good games under his belt, gets his timing down [it would serve him well]," Bochy said, underscoring the mental aspect of his slugger's slump. "He's an emotional player. I think he'll tell you sometimes he doesn't handle some things as well as he should."

"When it doesn't go well, he wears it a little bit too long," Bochy said. "The great players, and I consider him a great player; those guys put that behind them and focus on the next one."

"He's in between the slider and the fastball, and that just goes to show that his timing is off, that it's all that is," Bochy said.

With left-hander Sean Manaea starting for the Mets in Wednesday's series finale, García will likely be back in the lineup, Bochy said. "But I'm going to have a conversation with him."

Lowest June BABIP

1. Adam Duvall .147
2. JP Crawford .159
3. Abraham Toro .167
4. Chris Morel .182
5. Adolis Garcia .189
6. Ryan Mountcastle .190
7. Maikel Garcia .192
8. Nolan Gorman .194
9. Willy Adames .194
10. Matt Vierling .195

— Jon Anderson (@JonPgh) June 17, 2024

You can follow Stefan Stevenson on X @StefanVersusTex.

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