Red Sox catching prospect Johanfran Garcia has been named the Eastern League Player of the Week for the week of June 8-14, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.
Garcia tore the cover off the ball for Double-A Portland last week. Appearing in all six of the Sea Dogs’ games on the road against Reading, the 21-year-old slugger went 14-for-27 (.519) with four doubles, two home runs, 10 RBIs, four runs scored, and five strikeouts. He recorded multiple hits in five of the six contests and is now riding a 10-game hitting streak dating back to June 2.
After beginning the season in extended spring training, Garcia reported to Portland for his first taste of the Double-A level on April 21. In 36 games since then, the right-handed hitter is batting .309/.356/.570 with six doubles, 11 home runs, 31 RBIs, 22 runs scored, one stolen base, eight walks, and 44 strikeouts through 160 plate appearances for the Sea Dogs. That includes a .235/.316/.500 line in 38 plate appearances against lefties and a .330/.369/.591 line in 122 plate appearances against righties.
Among the 94 hitters who have made at least 160 trips to the plate in the Eastern League this season, Garcia ranks seventh in line-drive rate (29.8%), 10th in batting average and slugging percentage, 11th in isolated power (.262) and OPS (.926), 12th in wOBA (.399), 15th in wRC+ (137), and 28th in on-base percentage, according to FanGraphs.
Defensively, Garcia has seen most of his playing time come behind the plate for Portland, where he is primarily splitting catching duties with Nate Baez and Ronald Rosario. In 22 starts at catcher, the stocky 5-foot-11 backstop has allowed just one passed ball and thrown out 11 of 41 would-be base stealers. He has also made 14 starts at DH and has prior experience at first base.
Garcia, the younger brother of former Red Sox-turned-Pirates outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia, originally signed with Boston for $850,000 as an international free agent in January 2022. The native Venezuelan got his professional career off to a strong start before tearing two ligaments in his right knee while running the bases and undergoing season-ending surgery in May 2024. He returned to action as a rehabber in the Florida Complex League last May, moved up to High-A Greenville in June, and ended the year with a stint in the Arizona Fall League.
Garcia entered 2026 as Baseball America’s No. 27 Red Sox prospect. He has since fallen out of the publication’s top 30, though MLB Pipeline and SoxProspects.com currently have him ranked at No. 26 and No. 34 in Boston’s farm system, respectively.
Taking into account that he can become Rule 5-eligible for the first time this winter, it would not be terribly surprising to see Garcia — who turns 22 in December — leverage his performance at Portland into a promotion to Triple-A Worcester before the end of the season.
(Picture of Johanfran Garcia: Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)
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