Boys’ Athlete of the Week : Garcia’s Time on Diamond Proves Well Spent

Ed Garcia of Brea-Olinda High School says he loves basketball.

Which shows just how serously he takes baseball.

As confusing as that seems, it makes perfect sense to Garcia, the Wildcats’ senior center fielder.

During his sophomore and junior years, Garcia played basketball at Brea, which drastically limited the time he spent on baseball.

“I’ve always played winter ball, but I would stop in November so I could play basketball,” Garcia said. “I wasn’t getting much good out of the baseball league I was in. This year, I played baseball all the way through January.”

It shows.

Garcia, The Times’ athlete of the week, had a career day in a 21-9 victory over La Habra last week. He hit three home runs, including two grand slams, scored five runs and drove in 11 more in one game. He also walked once and was hit by a pitch.

“I’ve never hit multiple home runs in a game,” Garcia said. “After I hit the first, I didn’t think much about it. After I hit the second, I wanted another.”

Brea Coach Steve Hiskey wasn’t surprised by Garcia’s performance. Hiskey said Garcia has the power but has lacked consistency.

“He hit two homers last season, so he can hit with authority,” Hiskey said. “But he seems a little more mature this year, a little more under control. Last year, if he was having problems hitting, he’d start pressing. He’d swing at pitches he had no chance of hitting and try to hit the ball too hard.”

Hiskey actually was more impressed with Garcia’s first at-bat the day after his three-home run game.

“First time up (against Gahr), he hit a line drive back through the middle,” Hiskey said. “The pitcher knocked it down. If he hadn’t, it would have killed him.

“I was waiting to see what type of day he was going to have. He wasn’t swinging for the fences. That was a good sign.”

Garcia said his improvement has been a direct result of the extra time he spent during the fall and winter. Besides playing for a team sponsored by the Seattle Mariners, he also put in more time at a baseball school in La Mirada.

“The extra at-bats I got this year really helped,” Garcia said. “I hit against junior college and college pitchers. I’ve cut down on my strikeouts and I hit more line drives now, putting the ball in play. It’s going to be a good year.”

And basketball?

“Well, I really love basketball. But I’m looking for a future in baseball,” Garcia said.

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Ed Garcia

Brea-Olinda High School

Position: Center fielder

Height, Weight, Class: 6-0, 180, Senior

Last Week: Garcia hit three home runs, including two grand slams, in a victory over La Habra. He also drove in 11 runs as the Wildcats defeated the Highlanders, 21-9.

Season: Garcia is hitting .400 with three home runs and 12 RBIs.