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Today In Brewer History: Happy birthday, Pedro Garcia

As a 1973 Brewer he was nearly the AL Rookie of the Year.

On this day in 1950 Pedro Modesto Delfi Garcia was born in Guayama, Puerto Rico. He was 19 when the Seattle Pilots signed him as an amateur free agent in 1969 and a few days shy of his 23rd birthday when he made his major league debut as a 1973 Brewer.

Garcia certainly wasn't eased into his first major league opportunity, as he appeared in 160 in 1973, all of them at second base. He led the American League with 32 doubles that season and, despite hitting just .245/.296/.395, was the runner-up for the American League Rookie of the Year Award. Orioles outfielder Al Bumbry took home the honor.

Unfortunately, Garcia's debut season was also his best one. He hit just .199/.248/.330 in 141 games in 1974 and .208/.253/.325 over the remaining four seasons in his major league career.

Thanks to the B-Ref Play Index for reminding me that Garcia turns 63 today. We'd also like to wish a happy birthday to:

Today is also the fourth anniversary of Gary Sheffield hitting his 500th home run in the Brewers' 5-4 loss to the Mets, which we covered in this space two years ago, and the 59th anniversary of Nino Escalera and Chuck Harmon becoming the first black players in Reds history in a 5-1 loss to the Milwaukee Braves, which we covered in this space last year.