The Los Angeles Dodgers traded Kyle Garlick to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Minor League pitcher Tyler Gilbert. The trade comes five days after the Dodgers designated Garlick and Tyler White for assignment.
They were corresponding moves to creating room on the 40-man roster for the additions of Mookie Betts, Brusdar Graterol, David Price and Luke Raley. That left L.A. with seven days to trade, release or outright Garlick and White off the roster.
Garlick was among the nine rookies who played for the Dodgers throughout the 2019 season, and he was one of eight to make his MLB debut. The 27-year-old was drafted by the Dodgers in the 28th round in 2015 out of Cal Poly Pomona.
After a strong showing Spring Training and start to the season with Triple-A Oklahoma City, Garlick earned his first promotion to the Majors in the middle of May. After that he bounced to and from L.A. and Oklahoma City, making the most of limited opportunities.
Garlick hit .250/.321/.521 with three home runs, four doubles, eight runs scored and six RBI over 30 games with the Dodgers. He also played in 81 games for OKC, batting an impressive .314/.382/.675 with 23 home runs, 25 doubles, 54 runs scored and 59 RBI.
The Phillies selected Gilbert out of the University of Southern California in the sixth round of the 2015 MLB Draft. The left-hander has experience as a starter and relief pitcher, but was exclusively used out of the bullpen last season.
Gilbert spent all of 2019 with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he went 2-4 with a 2.83 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 1.11 WHIP with 46 strikeouts against 14 walks in 47.2 innings pitched across 36 relief appearances.
Gilbert figures to begin the 2020 season with Oklahoma City, but presumably could reach the Majors at some point during the year. While the Dodgers have a robust bullpen, the group doesn’t necessarily boast an abundance of left-handers.
At present time Scott Alexander, Caleb Ferguson and Adam Kolarek are the only obvious lefty relievers. That could grow to include Julio Urias or Alex Wood, dependent on how the Dodgers ultimately set their starting rotation.
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