Pirates officially sign Jarlin Garcia, DFA Bryse Wilson

After weeks of waiting, the Pittsburgh Pirates officially announced the signing of LHP Jarlin Garcia on Wednesday.

The 25-year-old Garcia, also known as The Elephant, adds much-needed depth to the Pirates lackluster bullpen. Last year with the San Francisco Giants, the Dominican-born reliever went 1-4 in 58 games with a 3.74 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and a 0.4 WAR.

In six seasons with both the Giants and Miami Marlins, he’s posted a collective 17-15 record with a 3.61 ERA and 1.15 WHIP over 322 innings. Garcia’s best season came in the truncated 2020 campaign, where he went 2-1 with a 0.49 ERA in 19 games.

He also made seven starts in his career, all coming in 2018 with Miami.

Garcia joins Rule 5 selection Jose Hernandez as the Pirates’ only two left-handed relief options heading into 2023.

For those wondering why there was an extensive delay in Garcia’s signing, John Dreker said that he and his wife had a child on December 26, which could have paused negotiations.

In a corresponding move, Bryse Wilson was designated for assignment.

Wilson struggled heavily since coming to Pittsburgh in 2021 as part of the Richard Rodriguez trade. The 25-year-old had a rocky start to the season in the starting rotation, prompting a move to the bullpen and, eventually, a demotion to Triple A.

Overall, he went 3-9 this past season with a 5.52 ERA and 1.42 WHIP. He also gave up a career-high 20 home runs in 2022. Prior to that, Wilson gave up 15 home runs the year before.

Wilson’s struggles can be traced back to comfort level, as he expressed multiple times during the season that he preferred to be used out of the bullpen. However, the Pirates continued to use him in the starting rotation.