Biography
Maikel Jose García (born March 3, 2000) is a Venezuelan professional baseball infielder for the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.
Career
García signed with the Kansas City Royals as an international free agent on July 27, 2016. He made his professional debut with the Dominican Summer League Royals, hitting .223/.277/.242 with no home runs, 7 RBI, and 9 stolen bases.
García split the 2018 season between the DSL Royals and the rookie-level Arizona League Royals, hitting a cumulative .222/.311/.260 with no home runs, 11 RBI, and 20 stolen bases in 52 contests. In 2019, he spent time with the Idaho Falls Chukars and Burlington Royals, both rookie-level teams, and batted .284/.349/.367 with one home run, 35 RBI, and 19 stolen bases in 57 games. García did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
García split the 2021 season between the Single-A Columbia Fireflies and the High-A Quad Cities River Bandits, slashing .291/.380/.405 with 4 home runs, 50 RBI, and 35 stolen bases. The Royals added him to their 40-man roster after the 2021 season.
García was assigned to the Double-A Northwest Arkansas Naturals to begin the 2022 season. On July 14, García was recalled and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his MLB debut the next day against the Toronto Blue Jays, striking out in his lone plate appearance. On July 17, he was optioned back to Double-A. In an 11-5 loss against the New York Yankees on July 30, García collected his first three career hits, the first of which coming off of Yankees starter Gerrit Cole.
García was optioned to the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers to begin the 2023 season.
On May 2, 2023, García was recalled to Kansas City following the placement of infielder Nicky Lopez on the 10-day injured list for appendicitis. Although his return to Kansas City wasn't intended to continue through the rest of the season, he slashed .267/.314/.333 in 35 plate appearances between May 2 and 8. On May 8, outfielder Franmil Reyes was designated for assignment, freeing a spot on the major league roster for García to stay.
García finished the season with the Royals, where he went .272/.323/.358, with 126 hits, 4 home runs, 50 runs batted in, 38 walks, and 23 stolen bases.
In 2024, García slashed .231/.281/.332 with seven home runs and 58 RBI in 575 at–bats. He had the lowest OPS in MLB, at .614. On December 5, 2024, García underwent surgery to remove a bone spur from his right elbow.
Personal life
García’s cousins include Alcides Escobar, who played 13 years in MLB, and Ronald Acuña Jr. of the Atlanta Braves.