Luis García Jr. hits two doubles in Yankees’ win

Jazz Chisholm Jr. grabs a seat on the bench as well with veteran southpaw Chris Sale toeing the rubber for Atlanta in this one. García went deep in his Yankees debut earlier this week and has gone 4-for-17 with a pair of RBI in four contests since being acquired from the Nationals last weekend. He’s He’ll continue playing everyday against right-handed starters with Paul Goldschmidt seeing opportunities against lefties for the final two months. His left-handed swing feels perfectly suited for Yankee Stadium and he has a realistic shot at reaching the 30-homer plateau for the first time in his career.

Garcia Jr. is going to like hitting in Yankee Stadium. The 26-year-old has had a breakout season, in part, because he’s pulling the ball in the air more often. That’s going to work well in his new home park. Garcia Jr. now has 24 home runs and 78 RBI on the season.

García will make his Yankees debut batting in the heart of the lineup after being acquired from the Nationals in a trade over the weekend. The 26-year-old’s left-handed swing should fit beautifully in hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium and he’s in the midst of a career year at the dish, posting an .873 OPS with 23 homers in just 374 plate appearances. His fantasy stock increases exponentially with the move to New York, especially with Aaron Judge (rib) and Cody Bellinger (hamstring) on the shelf for a couple weeks.

García has been excellent in 2026 with an .873 OPS and 23 homers over his 374 plate appearances. He’ll be in the lineup everyday against right-handers, and the short porch in Yankees Stadium should play well for the 26-year-old. Just keep in mind that he likely won’t play much against southpaws, with Paul Goldschmidt getting those starts against lefties.

The Yankees will be send the Nationals four pitchers in exchange for Garcia according to Spencer Nusbaum of the Washington Post: right-handers Ben Grable, Yovanny Cruz, Jack Cebert, and Jake Bird. The 26-year-old has had a breakout season in 2026 with 23 homers and an .873 OPS over 374 plate appearances, and gives the Yankees a needed boost to their lineup. He’s played exclusively first base in 2026, but he’s played both second base and shortstop at times with the Nationals. It seems more likely that he’ll be lining up at the cold corner than those positions up the middle with New York.

García was scratched from the Nationals’ lineup on Sunday, presumably as the two sides were getting deeper into discussions. Sherman also notes that Yankees’ Double-A starter Jack Cebert has been included prominently in those discussions. Stay tuned, as when there’s this much smoke, there’s usually fire.

No word yet on the reason for the late scratch, but the Nationals indicated that he will still be on the bench for the game, so it’s unlikely that it’s an injury situation, though he left Friday’s game due to mild soreness in his right knee. The more likely scenario is that the Nationals are discussing him in trade talks and he could soon be on the move. Stay tuned.

The 26-year-old infielder was pinch-hit for in the seventh inning after experiencing the soreness. It’s not believed to be a major issue and García is currently considered day-to-day.

The 26-year-old infielder obliterated an 0-1 curveball from Grant Holmes for a 455-foot (111.1-mph EV) solo shot in the third inning that extended the Nationals’ lead to 2-0. He also delivered an RBI triple in the seventh inning that pulled them to within a run at 5-4. That would be as close as they would get. With his three-hit attack, Garcia is now slashing a healthy .286/.316/.566 with 23 homers, 76 RBI and four swipes on the season.

García and Dylan Crews went back-to-back in the fourth inning, though it was off different pitchers after CJ Van Eyk replaced Mason Fluharty. The two-run shot for García gave him 73 RBI, tying him for fifth in the majors. He’s already three ahead of his previous career high for 70 RBI in 140 games in 2024.