Rico Garcia gave the Orioles one of the steadiest bullpen seasons on the roster, and he finished it with numbers that stand out in more ways than one. He pitched in 75 games, tying for third-most in the American League and tying for fifth-most in the majors, and those 75 outings were the most by an Oriole since Jamie Walker logged 81 in 2007.
The early stretch of Garcia’s year was the kind of run that grabs attention fast. He didn’t allow a hit in his first 11 appearances, the most by an Orioles reliever, and then held opponents to just one hit over his first 20 games.
That made him the first pitcher since 1900 to give up one or zero hits in his first 20 outings. He also retired his first 32 right-handed hitters without a hit, walked only three, and opened the season with 11 straight hitless appearances at home, which was the best such run in team history and tied for the third longest in baseball since 1900.
He wasn’t just shutting down righties, either. Left-handed hitters managed only a .170 average against him, the fourth-best mark in baseball, and he limited inherited runners to scoring 15.8 percent of the time, seventh-lowest in the majors.
The season did not stay that clean. Garcia’s ERA climbed to 6.97 in June and 4.91 in July, and even though August brought a tiny sample line of .375, the middle months clearly dragged down what had been such a sharp start.
He steadied things in September, finishing that month with a 2.16 ERA. In June and July, he gave up eight home runs in 21 1/3 innings, but he did not allow another homer after July 29th over his final 20 1/3 innings.
By the end, Garcia had put together a 5-1 record, a 3.09 ERA and his first 10 major league saves. At 32, he completed his first full 162-game season, and he even drew at least one vote in the Most Valuable Oriole award, though Pete Alonso took all the first-place votes. He and Yennier Cano were the only relievers to stay with the Orioles all season.
Garcia’s path to that role was a long one. Before this year, he had pitched for Colorado, San Francisco, Oakland, Washington, the Mets and Yankees, along with six games for Baltimore in 2022. He rejoined the Orioles in August 2025 and made 20 appearances after that.
During the Orioles’ final weekend at Yankee Stadium last month, Garcia reflected on what the season meant to him.
“For sure, it was definitely a roller-coaster of emotions, from the beginning to that middle part and then to now. It’s a great learning season.
On top of that, just adding confidence to me, being a big leaguer. A lot of the time, it’s been one bad outing and then get [Designated for Assignment].
“This year, I had to battle through that rough patch. I think it was just a great season, personally.”
Asked whether he could have started any better, Garcia said, “I feel like you can always pitch better, but it was a good stretch. Like I said during that time, just try not to think too much into it just because it can change at any time.
It bit me in the butt a little bit. That beginning part of the season was just a great confidence for me.”
When the Orioles needed him in the late innings, Garcia leaned on a familiar role. He had been a closer at Triple-A Rochester in ’24, and he said that experience helped when the job came to him in Baltimore.
“I had that closer experience on a lower scale in ’24 when I was with [Triple-A] Rochester. I was the closer there. Being able to manage those emotions at that time, I think helped a lot for this year.
“My name’s called. I need to get these outs for the team, and that’s all it really came down to.”
He said the responsibility felt the same in the majors.
“Honestly, it was the same. It was just not putting too much pressure on myself.
I think when guys put too much pressure on themselves, it takes them out of their element, I guess you could say. Being ready when my name is called, that’s all I could do and just help the team win.”
And with the Orioles stuck in a difficult season, Garcia kept his focus on the one thing he could control.
“Obviously, at the end of the day, we want to win, and I want to win. It was one of those things where regardless of what I’m doing, I just need to keep being ready to help the team win. All we can do as players is, regardless of whether we’re having a good or bad season, how can we help the team at that specific day or game?”
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