AL WILD CARD SERIES: RED SOX VS YANKEES

September 30, 2026

Luis García Jr.

Yankee Stadium

New York Yankees

Pregame Press Conference

Q. Can you take us inside the clubhouse now? What's the feeling in there knowing that you guys, with a win, can punch your ticket to the next round of the postseason?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: The energy is great. The feeling inside the clubhouse is a very positive one especially after you're able to get the first win of the series yesterday. Everybody is focused and energized about it.

Q. Sonny Gray on the mound. You get the nod at first base in that lineup. What's one of the more difficult things in facing a guy like Sonny Gray when you know he can spin it?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: He's a guy that competes. He's a true competitor. The idea is to go out there with a plan, battle for every pitch, find yourself in a situation, and I think the key is that, take a plan into the plate and hopefully execute.

Q. Taking into consideration yesterday was the first game, playoff game, did you feel you had a bigger responsibility understanding that Aaron Judge was not in the lineup for you guys as a team to produce?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: It was definitely a great experience. Very happy experience to be part of my first game in the playoffs, especially wearing the Yankees uniform. So about the experience, it was just a really good one.

Having Judge not be in the lineup, at the same time we still have a big responsibility to do our job and go out there and do the best we can on the field.

But I can tell you that even though he's not in the lineup, he's still there for us, and he's always around providing a lot of support for us.

Q. Heliot was in here yesterday talking about how, ever since the trade two months ago, he'd been thinking about getting that experience to play in a playoff game here. Is that similar to you, and how did it compare to what you might have thought coming into it?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: Yeah, thinking about that, all those conversations, actually, the experience is very different, actually. Just seeing the atmosphere around the ballpark, the fans standing from pitch one all the way to the end, very different. At the same time, very exciting. You can feel the excitement in the air, if you will.

Q. You mentioned Judge is still around to support you guys. Yesterday Boone was saying that Judge is front and center in the hitters meetings. Just wondering what that experience is like for you, watching him go about that?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: It's impressive. Although he's not in the lineup, in the roster right now, to see how much he's around us in those meetings, he's around us around the cage, it doesn't even feel like he's not in the roster. It's very impressive to see up close. But at the same time it's the main reason why he's the captain.

Q. What was the hardest part of switching teams and cities in the middle of a season on the fly and getting settled?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: I would say it's probably like dealing with all the differences that you're going to find. You come from a team and you're joining a new team. But not just that, but all the teammates that you're leaving behind, all the relationships you've built over the years, you're leaving behind and you're starting from zero.

So coming in, you feel a little afraid, if you will, that you have to do that over again. But I can tell you that from the moment that I walked into the clubhouse, that went away, that fear went away very quickly because the guys make me feel as part of this team immediately.

Q. And are you still in a hotel, or do you have an apartment in the city or Westchester?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: I have a lot of family members here in New York. So we were able to get a house, and I still have a lot of family members around me. So I feel at home.

Q. Did you ever imagine being part of understanding the rivalry between the Red Sox and the Yankees? Did you ever imagine being part of this rivalry facing this team and now in the playoffs as a Yankee?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: No, no, not at all. Never thought I was going to be part of it. But my mom has a good saying, and she's always telling me never stop dreaming.

But at the same time, now having this opportunity to be here, being able to go out there and be part of the playoffs, go out and represent the Yankees, it feels great. And just hoping that I'm able to go out there and do the little things that can help us keep winning.

Q. How do you describe being part of such a historic rivalry between these two teams, understanding the atmosphere, understanding how you find yourself playing at home in front of such a large crowd with all the energy and emotions in the air?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: Like I said before, I think being part of -- it's a historic rivalry between these two teams etched in history. So just proud of that opportunity to be able to be part of it.

You could feel the energy throughout the stadium, and just being within the experience of what the rivalry actually is, I feel very proud of that. I'm very proud of what we're doing as a team. And the word that I can use to describe everything is it's exciting.

Q. Your bat speed is way up this year. Was that a goal of yours? And how did you do that?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: I think the biggest difference has to be using my back leg in a better way to help me generate more bat speed. Previously, since I think I was able to use my hands, the quickness of my hands and rely on that more. But I worked really hard on incorporating my lower part of the body, especially my back leg, and I think that's what helped me get to where I am today.

Q. The roster for this series, it's very deep and flexible with a lot of position players on it. But in playoff baseball, sometimes things happen and maybe you'll be playing in the next round. Do you still do work at second base? Do you think you'd still feel comfortable at second base? And how would you respond to being asked if you could play second base?

LUIS GARCÍA JR.: Yeah, definitely. The truth is that, from day one, I felt that coming here I was going to play wherever the team needed me. It's one of the things that I do during practice. I try to take ground balls around the whole diamond.

And, like you said, these are the playoffs. So if I have to play a different position to help the team, if they need me to do so, I'm going to be ready to do that.