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SETBACK FOR GIANTS’ GARCIA: ROOKIE CATCHER SIDELINED WITH LEG INJURY

By Samuel T. Kingsley, Sporting Times, April 24, 1901

Brooklyn, April 23 – The young career of Regino Garcia, catcher of the New York Giants and one of the first men of color to don a Major League uniform, has met an early and cruel interruption. In yesterday’s hard-fought contest against the Brooklyn Superbas, an 8 to 6 victory for New York, Garcia suffered a serious leg injury that will keep him out of action for months to come.

The misfortune struck in the top of the third inning. Garcia, having reached base on an error, came storming home on a drive to center field. He beat the throw at the plate with a spirited slide, tallying his first Major League run. But as he slowed and rose to his feet, he began limping badly and clutched his right thigh. Teammates rushed to his aid as the Brooklyn crowd fell silent, and the catcher was led gingerly to the clubhouse.

Later examination revealed a torn thigh muscle, with doctors estimating a recovery of three to four months. For Garcia, whose Major League debut came only last week, the setback is a cruel blow. In his two games played, the 26-year-old Cuban backstop has yet to register a hit in five at-bats, but he showed hustle and determination in yesterday’s tally before fate intervened.

Speaking to the press afterward, Garcia remained stoic despite the disappointment. “This is not how I imagined my first days in the Major Leagues,” he admitted quietly, a bandage wrapped around his thigh. “But I will heal, and I will return. It is an honor just to have this chance, and I will not let it slip away.”

Giants’ manager George Davis expressed both sympathy and confidence in his young catcher. “It’s a hard turn of luck for the boy,” Davis said. “He worked tirelessly just to reach this level, and in two games he has shown heart enough for a season. We’ll miss his spirit in the clubhouse, but he’s young and strong. I’ve no doubt he’ll mend and be back behind the plate before long.”

For the Giants, now 3–2 on the season, Garcia’s absence will be felt in depth behind the plate. But for baseball at large, the injury delays the promise of one of the first new pioneers of the integrated game. Fans in New York, who had already taken to cheering Garcia warmly, will now wait patiently for his return.

As the crowd filed out of Washington Park last evening, a murmur passed among them: sympathy for a player whose time in the big leagues has barely begun, and whose courage has already been tested.