The hours upon hours, nights and weekends of policing ballgames for players of all ages and listening to the howls from the bleachers didn’t diminish his enjoyment of the craft - it only refined it.
This week the 42-year-old Temple native will don the blue uniform at the highest event a Texas high school umpire can call when he joins a contingency of other selected umpires for the University Interscholastic League State Baseball Tournament at Dell Diamond and Texas’ Disch-Falk Field.
“I never thought I’d get called for the finals,” Garcia said last week. “When I got the call I just fell to my knees. It’s a very big honor. I’m still overwhelmed.”
Garcia is the first umpire from the Temple chapter to get the nod since David Wesson and Chuck Douglas called state tournament games from 2003-2005.
“You don’t become a good umpire just calling a lot of games,” Wesson said. “It’s more about how hard you work at getting better each time you take the field, learning from your mistakes or your partner’s mistakes and remaining open to input from other officials and their experiences.
“As a high school umpire, the state tourney is our World Series and Mike has put a lot of time and effort into becoming the type of umpire that deserves to be there.”
Garcia won’t know until he gets there which games he will call or even what other umpires he will work with in the rotation. He and fellow four-man crew members are guaranteed four games, assuring one game behind the plate.
It was Garcia’s uncle, Bert, a former coach in Temple and Waco University, who got him started calling games. He joined the local chapter in 1990 and has steadily progressed ever since. He is now the assignments chief for the chapter.
“David and my uncle Bert keep me on my toes,” said Garcia, who tends the athletic grounds for Temple ISD during the day. “They taught me to just be consistent behind the plate.”
Garcia said that he approached Mike Cousins of the UIL during state meetings in January, not so much for himself but to remind the state’s governing body of what the chapter has done for them. Last year during the playoffs, the Temple chapter was awarded five assignments in situations in which coaches from the two teams were unable to agree upon an officiating crew.
“They know about our chapter,” he said.
Garcia’s season for calling games generally runs from February to September - picking up youth tournaments throughout the summer. It’s the kind of work that keeps him sharp during the heart of the high school season spring season. With some down time in the playoffs, he’s picked up some youth tournaments to keep him in shape for the state tournament.
Umpires from the larger, metropolitan chapters of the Texas Association of Sports Officials typically garner a number of the spots for the state tournament. Once chosen for state, it’s usually good for at least two years. The smaller chapters tend to get whatever is left of the remaining openings, which makes Garcia’s selection that much more exclusive.
“I know Mike will do well,” Wesson said. “I am happy he is getting this opportunity. Unless things change, we will only have one umpire from the Temple chapter every eight years.”
Garcia doesn’t expect this mountaintop experience to deter his desire to continue to call games once he’s finished with his term as part of one of the state tournament crews.
“Hopefully, this is not the end of what I’m doing,” Garcia said. “I still love the game.”
