HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610)- The Astros will hand the ball to Luis Garcia when their American League Division Series shifts to Chicago for game three on Sunday, Dusty Baker announced prior to Friday's second game.
"We discussed it on what his repertoire of pitches and decided to go with him in Game 3," Baker explained.
Garcia, 24, finished his rookie season 11-8 with a 3.30 ERA in a career-high 155.1 innings. He is likely to be a finalist for the American League Rookie of the Year.
The Astros right-hander faced the White Sox on June 18 at Minute Maid Park and held them to one run over seven innings with eight strikeouts. Despite the innings haul, Astros pitching coach Brent Strom says Garcia has held up just fine this season.
"If you notice during the season, very rarely did he throw over 80, 85 pitches. There were a couple of games, the Dodger games where he beat (Trevor) Bauer, which stands out as one of the highlights of the season for me."
Sunday will Garcia's second postseason start. He held the Tampa Bay Rays scoreless in the first two innings of game five of the 2020 American League Championship Series.
Baker said Jose Urquidy will "probably" start for the Astros if game four is necessary.