Astros righty Luis Garcia makes triumphant return in front of mom
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José de Jesus Ortiz, Founder & Editor in Chief
- September 1, 2025
Luis Garcia earns victory in first MLB start since May 2023
HOUSTON – Whenever Luis Garcia doubted if he would return to the majors, he found comfort by calling his mother Luisa Maestre in their native Venezuela. As he struggled to return from right elbow surgery, especially through multiple setbacks last year, the Astros right-hander was reminded that he wasn’t alone.
“She would simply tell me to stay positive and to pray and to take it day by day,” Garcia recalled Monday afternoon after beating the Angels 8-3 in his first appearance in the majors since May 1, 2023.
Garcia is taking nothing for granted, so he was especially grateful that his mother finally watched him pitch in person in the United States. Maestre arrived in Houston over the weekend, and her son didn’t disappoint.
Garcia, 28, held the Angels to three runs on three hits with six strikeouts over six strong innings. He was efficient while throwing 52 of his 79 pitches for strikes before a Labor Day crowd of 33,247 at Daikin Park.
Grateful son
“To have not pitched in so long and then to know your mom is here, it’s like a lot more special, truly,” Garcia said in Spanish. “For your mom to come and see you do a good job, it makes it so much better.
“I’m happy about it. Simply, it’s what I’ve always done. She had seen it on television, and now she was able to see it in person.”
Garcia, who helped the Astros win the 2022 World Series, pitched parts of four seasons before he needed season-ending elbow surgery in 2023. Pitchers usually return from Tommy John Surgery after a year, but Garcia couldn’t bounce back well enough to return late last season.
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He slowly worked his way back this season. Garcia had nine rehab appearances, eight of them starts, while building his endurance in his return from the right elbow surgery he underwent in 2023. The native of Bolivar, Venezuela, showed the form that helped him go 15-8 with a 3.72 ERA in 2022.
He made 69 starts from 2020 until he went on the injured list in 2023. It took him 854 days until he made his 70th big league appearance.
‘Strong kid’
“He’s been through this, the ups and downs,” Astros manager Joe Espada said of Garcia. “And he has leaned on a lot of people, not only the medical staff but the players and a lot of people who (are) his support system that have been here through these tough stretches.
“He’s a strong kid, physically and mentally. To get to this point, I just couldn’t be any prouder. After the game, I gave him a big hug, and I said, ‘Listen, it’s not easy to do what you did today.’ A lot of people start questioning themselves and start having doubts about if I’m ever going to get back on the mound. The fact that he did today, I’m proud of him.”
Garcia readily admits that he had doubts at times over the last two years. He is grateful for the support he received from his teammates, coaches and manager as he labored through the rehab process.
He didn’t always need his mother to give him encouragement over the phone over the last 28 months. Yet he offered a proud, innocent smile with a glance toward the sky while saying how his mother was always ready when he needed encouragement.
With Garcia’s brother Heribert and their mother Luisa among the crowd on Labor Day, Luis Garcia retired the first nine Angels in order. Zach Neto then led off the fourth with a home run to left to cut the Astros’ lead to 2-1. One out later, Mike Trout singled to left.
Joe Adell followed with a two-run home run to left, giving the Angels a 3-2 lead. Garcia settled down and retired the next eight Angels in order.
Ramon Urias, Jose Altuve homer
“After two years (on the injured list) I’m just happy for him,” said Ramon Urias, who gave the Astros the early lead with a solo home run in the second inning.
Urias drove in Yainer Diaz, who led off with a double, to tie the score at 3 in the fourth. The Astros then took the lead in the fifth inning. Yordan Alvarez hit a one-out single to center. He moved to second on Jose Altuve’s groundout to first. Then Carlos Correa hit an RBI single to center to go ahead 4-3.
“I’m really happy,” said Altuve, who had three RBIs and capped the scoring with a two-run home run in the eighth inning. “The whole team, the whole organization, is happy for him. He’s been working, obviously, his way back to … be part of the team on the field again.
“He’s a great guy, and he did amazing today. He gave us the opportunity to win, and I’m really happy for him.”
Featured art courtesy of Houston Astros.
José de Jesus Ortiz
Founder & Editor in Chief
Award-winning writer José de Jesus Ortiz, a former lead sports columnist at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, has covered Major League Baseball since 1997 in Los Angeles, St. Petersburg, New York and Houston. He was the first Latino to serve as president of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
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