Braves claim RHP Victor Arano, OF Kyle Garlick off waivers from Phillies

The Braves have claimed right-hander Victor Arano and outfielder Kyle Garlick off waivers, the Phillies announced.  Philadelphia recently designated both players for assignment.  The claims fill the final two open spots on Atlanta’s 40-man roster.

A member of the Phillies organization since August 2014, Arano has a 2.65 ERA, 26.3 K%, and 18.8 K-BB% over 74 2/3 career innings in the big leagues, all from 2017-19 (and mostly in 2018, when Arano tossed 59 1/3 frames).  Unfortunately, elbow surgery sidelined Arano for much of 2019 and kept him from making any MLB appearances in 2020.  If healthy, Arano could certainly be an interesting weapon for the Atlanta bullpen, as he has shown an ability to miss a lot of bats both in the majors and in the minors.

The right-handed-hitting Garlick also gives the Braves another option as they figure out their outfield situation.  With no sign that a reunion with Marcell Ozuna is forthcoming, the Braves have Ronald Acuna as a lock for one starting position in either center field or right field, and then a combination of Ender Inciarte, top prospects Cristian Pache and Drew Waters, and bench candidates Abraham Almonte and Johan Camargo all in the mix for outfield duty.  Garlick could conceivably share platoon duty with Inciarte (a left-handed hitter) or switch-hitters Almonte and Camargo, or Atlanta could just stash him in the minors as depth.

Garlick (who turns 29 later this week) has appeared in each of the last two MLB seasons, amassing a .214/.276/.414 slash line over 76 total plate appearances with the Dodgers and Phillies.  Originally a 28th-round pick for the Dodgers in the 2015 draft, Garlick hit a very impressive .288/.345/.536 over 1,846 PA in the Los Angeles farm system, but with the caveat that he was mostly playing against younger competition and that the Pacific Coast League is very hitter-friendly.