THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 3, 1995 TAG: 9505030559
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines
Last season, Norfolk Tides first baseman Omar Garcia left people wondering what the fuss was about. The kid who earned a midseason promotion by ravaging Double-A pitching at a .358 clip hit more than 100 points lower than that in 67 games with the Tides.
Though his .242 average in Norfolk still allowed him to finish at a combined .302 for the year, Triple-A clearly got the best of him.
Garcia, a 23-year-old from Puerto Rico, seems on the road to making amends. He lashed two triples Monday night and scored three times to lift his average to .324 after 10 games and extend his hitting streak to six games.
His chance to push it to seven comes tonight, as the Tides and Pawtucket Red Sox were rained out Tuesday.
Surprisingly for a fielder who made only two errors with the Tides last season, Garcia already has four. But the righthanded hitter is swinging with authority, lining pitches the opposite way, as is his trademark. His second triple Monday, in fact, hit off the top of the rightfield fence almost at the foul pole.
``He's just a good-looking hitter,'' Tides manager Toby Harrah said. ``As a hitting instructor you try to teach guys to hit the ball the other way, and this kid does it naturally. You're a much better if you use the whole field. I like his swing and I want him to stay just the way he is.''
Garcia said he played again in Puerto Rico this winter and was glad for the time off that the players' strike provided. Diving right into another league didn't leave him much time to contemplate his initial stay in Norfolk, but Garcia said he thought it over and came to grips with his disappointing performance.
``No matter how I do, I always rewind, check everything about the season before,'' Garcia said. ``I didn't do well here. I don't really know why. It's the kind of thing that happens.
``If you're a player, it's going to happen to you. You're going to have your slumps, ups and downs. It's something you've got to handle the best way you can.
``I don't want to put too much pressure on myself. But I wanted to come back and do the best job I could.''
DOUBLEHEADER TONIGHT: Tuesday's postponement due to rain means the Tides, who have won six in a row, and Pawtucket will play two tonight beginning at 6:15.
Paul Byrd (2-1, 3.54) will pitch for the Tides in the first game against Gar Finnvold, making his first start for the Pawsox. Dave Telgheder (1-2, 3.04) will start the second game vs. Joel Bennett (0-0, 0.00). by CNB