Orioles reliever Rico Garcia says his recent success comes from years of adjustments, failures and learning how to handle pressure in the major leagues.
Garcia, 32, has posted a 0.00 ERA in 2026 so far through eight appearances. He has allowed no hits in 7.2 innings, while striking out eight and walking three.
This comes after Garcia ended the 2025 season with a 2.84 ERA across 20 appearances with the Orioles. He allowed 21 hits, struck out 20 and walked six in 19 innings.
Garcia’s lessons throughout the years have helped shape him into the pitcher he is today. The 5-foot-9, 215-pound right-hander pitched for seven teams in the big leagues from 2019-2025 prior to being claimed off waivers from the Mets last August.
“Every year of my baseball career so far I think has taught me a different lesson,” Garcia said on Glenn Clark Radio April 10.
Garcia made his major league debut with the Colorado Rockies in 2019, appearing in two games (one start). He finished 0-1 with a 10.50 ERA across six innings, allowing nine hits, seven runs and three home runs. He struck out two and walked five.
Garcia moved up and down between the majors and minors after debuting with the Rockies, leading to 2023, which he called “probably my worst year” as a big leaguer.
In 2023, he split his time between the Oakland Athletics and Washington Nationals and had a combined 9.26 ERA in 10 appearances. He got another chance in the big leagues in 2025, spending time with the New York Yankees and Mets prior to coming to Baltimore.
His struggles at the major league level forced him to deal with pressure and failure.
“I kind of just put too much pressure on myself,” Garcia said. “If I do bad this game, they option me down again.”
Garcia said his mindset changed when he accepted the business side of baseball and stopped worrying about decisions that were beyond his control.
“Removing that added pressure kind of just took away all the things that didn’t really matter,” Garcia said.
Instead, Garcia said he focused solely on pitching, which improved his performance. Garcia said he learned a slider while in the minors in 2024, which he noted was a big development. He said that gave him a new way to approach hitters and also contributed to his overall growth.
Now, he said he emphasizes maintaining a consistent mindset.
“I kind of try to treat it all the same,” he said. “For me, that’s what works because I don’t want to have a different mindset based on [different] situations.”
That approach has helped Garcia handle high-pressure moments, including his first career save against the White Sox on April 8.
“That definitely was a new feeling for me, because that was my first save opportunity, so I didn’t really know how to navigate those emotions,” said Garcia, who threw seven balls to start the outing. “… I kind of found the groove and just stuck with what worked that day.”
Garcia mentioned that he sometimes doubts himself in difficult stretches. Just last season, he questioned how much longer he could even continue in baseball. He told his family, “I don’t know how many more years I’ve got in this.”
However, he said things “started slowly clicking,” which led him back to the majors.
Now, he is finding success in Baltimore, where he said the fan support has added to his confidence.
“It’s just a good feeling to be noticed by fans,” he said.
For more from Garcia, listen to the full interview here:
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