Houston Astros starting pitcher Luis Garcia made some history on Wednesday afternoon against the Texas Rangers.
He threw an immaculate inning by striking out Nathaniel Lowe, Ezequiel Duran, and Brad Miller.
He fanned them by using the minimum of nine pitches in an impressive display of pitching prowess.
Logging an immaculate inning requires some serious focus, stuff quality, control, command, and courage.
It has been done 104 times in the history of the game, but if you put that in context, the feat is actually somewhat rare.
This is the 104th immaculate inning in MLB history https://t.co/HtZJl0aioj
— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) June 15, 2022
For example, there have been 316 no-hitters in MLB history, so the immaculate inning is actually less common.
Garcia Is Showing Off His Considerable Talent To Throw A Baseball
The game is still underway as of the moment of writing this piece, with the Astros up 7-2 in the fourth inning.
Garcia ran into some trouble in the first inning, when he allowed an unearned run, and in the third frame, after Corey Seager belted a solo blast for the Rangers’ second run.
Otherwise, it has been a relatively quiet afternoon for the funky right-hander, who is trying to prove he belongs in the rotation for the long-term after a fine 2021 debut season.
This year, Garcia has a 3.60 ERA in 60 frames before taking the ball on Wednesday, with a strikeout per inning and a nice 1.07 WHIP.
Last year, he showed his pitching talent by posting a solid 3.48 ERA.
Innings like the one he had today serve as a reminder of Garcia’s incredible skill on the mound.
Houston is relying on him as part of their rotation, in their quest to return to (and win) the World Series in 2022.
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