Greg

Garcia

Garcia exercised the opt-out clause in his contract and is now a free agent. The veteran infielder has a career .693 OPS over parts of seven seasons.

Garcia will report to the Phillies’ alternate training site. He can opt out of the deal on May 2 if he so chooses. The 31-year-old was released by the Tigers on March 26 after he was informed he would not be a part of the MLB roster. While he has no fantasy relevance, he can certainly help the Philadelphia bench because of his ability to play all over the field.

The 31-year-old was informed on Thursday that he wouldn’t be making the team’s Opening Day roster. Now that he has been granted his unconditional release, he’s free to latch on elsewhere in an effort to secure a utility role. Garcia hit just .143 (4-for-28) with seven strikeouts during Grapefruit League play.

Garcia has the ability to opt-out of his contract, so the Tigers are doing him a solid -- so to speak -- by giving him this information now. The versatile infielder will likely hit the free agent market and an org looking for depth will likely give him a look on a similar contract.

Garcia will be given a chance at a roster spot via more at-bats this spring, in part due to infielder Spencer Torkelson being sidelined after cutting his finger. In 2020 for San Diego, Garcia hit .200/.279/.250 in 71 plate appearances over 35 games. He’s a versatile defender that can play any infield position. Zack Short and Kody Clemens will also be given some at-bats in the Grapefruit League and have a chance to earn one of those final spots.

Garcia posted a weak .200/.279/.250 batting line over 71 plate appearances with the Padres last season, but he’s been a useful part-time player in the past. The 31-year-old will offer the Tigers some versatility going into camp.

Garcia wasn’t projected to earn very much in his final year of arbitration eligibility, but the Padres could probably find a better, cheaper player to take his roster spot. The utility infielder had just a .529 OPS in 2020.

Garcia has been getting some starts in the designated hitter spot since Eric Hosmer (finger) went down, which isn’t ideal given his ugly .235/.316/.294 batting line this season. That figures to change once Tommy Pham (hand) returns.

Hosmer was back in action Tuesday but not feeling well enough to give it a go in this one. He has yet to play consecutive games this season with an illness that the Padres insist is not COVID-19-related. Greg Garcia took his spot in the lineup, with Jake Cronenworth sliding over to first base.

He’ll take a seat while Edward Olivares plays right field and Jurickson Profar serves as the DH. Greg Garcia, fresh off a big hit on Sunday, will make the start at second base. Myers is 1-for-13 with a homer and five strikeouts through three games this season.