Jaime Garcia finally a Twin as teams agree on trade

After a previous trade fell through due to medical concerns with a Twins’ prospect the Atlanta Braves and Minnesota Twins finally reached a deal for Jaime Garcia.

The original deal the Minnesota Twins had for Jaime Garcia was rumored to be for Twins prospect Nick Burdi. Burdi is undergoing Tommy John Surgery this year and won’t pitch again until 2018. After dealing with injuries in previous seasons the Braves had concerns over his ability to stay healthy.

Once that deal fell through many thought that the Twins front office would move onto Sonny Gray or another pitcher on the market. The Twins however, continued to work with the Braves to find common ground. They found it with Huascar Ynoa, a 19-year old pitcher from the Dominican Republic.

Included in the new deal the Twins also get a 33-year old catcher in Anthony Recker. Recker has been a borderline major league player throughout his career. The Braves sent along $100,000 to help cover the cost of Recker’s contract this year.

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The Twins will also pay the remainder of Garcia’s contract and will look to re-sign him heading into next season. In his last start, he went seven innings giving up three runs but the big news was his bat. Garcia hit a grand slam on an 0-2 pitch in the fifth inning and the Braves went on to win 12-3.

The Twins completed this trade to bolster their starting pitching and not for his swinging prowess. They also won’t need his bat unless he ends up pitching in inter-league play.

Where will he fit in the rotation?

With Ervin Santana and Jose Berrios firmly in the rotation it will come down to Adalberto Mejia, Kyle Gibson and Bartolo Colon. With Colon debating retirement after his first start with the Twins that could be a great option. Kyle Gibson moving to the bullpen could be another option as he has been inconsistent this year as a starter.

Mejia has been a pleasant surprise for the rotation as Hector Santiago and Phil Hughes both are on the disabled list. Santiago is on the 10-day DL until at least early August while Hughes is most likely out for the year but can return from the 60-day DL in September. Garcia provides a left-handed starter the Twins can add to the rotation with Santiago out.

This was the first move for the Twins in their pursuit of Cleveland in the American League Central Division. Kansas City also made a move acquiring Trevor Cahill and Brandon Maurer from the Padres. Look for the Twins to make at least one more move prior to the trade deadline.

UPDATE: Kyle Gibson has been sent to Triple-A to make room for Garcia. Garcia is set to make his Twins debut in a start on Friday against the Oakland A’s.

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