'Maybe the chain has power': Garcia's bat roaring with Yanks

This story was excerpted from Bryan Hoch's Yankees Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

NEW YORK -- Luis García Jr. was digging through his Yankee Stadium locker early on Tuesday afternoon when he spotted a weighty piece of jewelry: a chain bearing his initials, with the design of a lion in the center.

The piece had been in García's possession for some time, dating back to his time with the Nationals. It had made the trip with him up to New York, and García decided it was time to put it in the lineup.

“I looked at it, and it looked very nice, so I put it on,” García said through interpreter Marlon Abreu.

The shiny chain bounced around García's neck as he moved around the bases for his first four-hit performance as a member of the Yankees. It was there again on Wednesday, when García homered for the fourth time in six games.

“Maybe the chain has power,” he said. “I’m going to keep wearing it.”

Chain or no chain, the Yankees believe they have something special in García, who is beginning to deliver the type of impact they envisioned when he was acquired from the Nationals ahead of the Trade Deadline.

With a two-run shot in the eighth inning of Wednesday’s 9-3 victory over the Astros, García homered in consecutive games for the third time this season, part of a campaign that has already seen him launch a career-high 28 homers.

García didn’t have much to show for his first dozen games with the Yanks, when he went 10-for-46 (.217), but he’s quickly making up for it. His bat has sizzled, with 12 hits in his last 30 at-bats (.400), including a double, four homers and eight RBIs.

“He’s got some serious thunder coming through the zone,” manager Aaron Boone said. “He’s a really good hitter. I hope our fan base is starting to see what a live bat that we’ve got in here. He’s hit some balls really, really hard since he’s been here.”

Yankees hitting coach James Rowson said that García combines high confidence with hitting ability, making him dangerous in every at-bat.

“It’s just how fast his bat moves through the zone,” Rowson said. “He’s swinging to do damage; there’s no mistake. He’s not check-swinging or half-swinging. His mindset is to get a pitch he can drive, and that type of conviction in your approach is contagious.

“We really like what he’s brought to the table. I like the teammate he’s been to the other guys. If you watch him, he can be infectious to the other hitters around because he gets to the next at-bat. He doesn’t hold the last one, whether it’s good or bad. He just kind of moves on.”

Several times this week, García has said that he is growing more comfortable. That’s especially evident at Yankee Stadium, where García said he sees the ball well.

“He’s got serious juice,” Boone said. “I think he’s ready-made for this ballpark.”

As a left-handed hitter with power, there is a natural temptation to glance down the right-field line at the 314-foot marker. García said that while it’s nice to know the short porch is there, it doesn’t change his mindset. His focus remains on driving the ball through the middle.

“I’m always looking for a good pitch to hit,” he said. “I like making contact with the ball. I think I’m a contact hitter. Usually, I try to find them closer to me, where I can put a good swing on the ball. I think that allows me to generate power.”

So how much credit should the necklace really receive? Superstitions aside, probably not much. García's surge looks more like a talented hitter beginning to show what the Yankees believed they were trading for.

“He’s always been a great hitter, his whole career,” Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “I played against him when I was in Miami, and he was in Washington. I got to see him a lot. To see him come over here and shine the way he is, I’m just happy for him.”

García also credits the energy at Yankee Stadium, as well as the players alongside him, for helping make the transition work.

“They come and show up every night, and they’re there from the first pitch until the last,” García said. “And then in addition, the teammates I have -- these guys are always there for you, supporting you. When you take all of that into consideration, I think that’s what’s helping.”