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Edward Miguel "Mike" Garcia (November 17, 1923 – January 13, 1986), nicknamed "Big Bear" and "Mexican Mike", was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). Garcia grew up In Orosi California and entered minor league baseball at the age of 18. After one season, he joined the U.S. Army and served for three years. Following his military discharge, Garcia returned to baseball. He was promoted to the MLB in 1948. He played 12 of his 14 major league seasons for the Cleveland Indians. From 1949 to 1954, Garcia joined Bob Lemon, Early Wynn, and Bob Feller on the Indians' "Big Four" pitching staff. Historians consider the "Big Four" to be one of the greatest starting pitching rotations in baseball history. During those six seasons with the "Big Four", Garcia compiled a record of 104 wins against 57 losses. He had two 20-win seasons and led the American League (AL) in earned run average (ERA) and shutouts twice each. Garcia's best season came in 1954 when the Indians won a league record 111 games. Baseball historian Stephen Lombardi said that Garcia may have been the best AL pitcher that year. Garcia remained with the Indians until 1959, but never duplicated the success he had achieved in 1954. In his last five seasons with Cleveland, he finished with losing records three times. After leaving the Indians, Garcia spent a season with the Chicago White Sox and a season with the Washington Senators. Garcia retired from baseball in 1961. He developed diabetes within a few years and suffered from kidney disease and heart problems until his death. Garcia died outside of Cleveland at the age of 62 and was buried in his home state of California. He was the only member of the "Big Four" not elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, but he has been included on a list of the 100 Greatest Indians and has been inducted into the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame. Baseball experts and former teammates have commented on Garcia's overpowering pitching, his fine control and his low ERA. ==Early life== Garcia was born in San Gabriel, California. He grew up on a ranch in Orosi, California, where his Mexican father, Merced Garcia, moved the family when Mike was two years old. Mike's father raised horses, and Mike aspired to race them. He participated in one race and was thrown from the horse. Garcia played four years of high school baseball, the first three years at Orosi High School and the last at Visalia High School. Garcia was pitching in semipro baseball when Cleveland Indians scout Willis Butler noticed him in Tulare, California. In 1942 Butler signed him as an amateur free agent to the organization's Class D farm team, the Appleton Papermakers of the Wisconsin State League.〔 Garcia earned a 10–10 win–loss record with Appleton.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Mike Garcia Minor League Statistics and History )〕 He spent the next three years as a signalman in the United States Army during World War II. Garcia was discharged from the military at the age of 22 and returned to the Cleveland organization. He played for the Class C Bakersfield Indians of the California League. With Bakersfield, Garcia's ERA and strikeouts led the league and he earned 22 wins.〔 In 1947 he joined the Cleveland Indians during spring training, but he was assigned to the Class A Wilkes-Barre Barons of the Eastern League by Cleveland coach Bill McKechnie. He finished the season with 17 wins and a 3.24 ERA.〔 In 1948, he pitched for the Double-A Oklahoma City Indians of the Texas League and earned 19 wins.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mike Garcia (baseball, born 1923)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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