The Braves shook up their roster a bit today by designating utilityman Emilio Bonafacio for assignment and optioning infielder Jace Peterson and right hander Matt Wisler to Triple-A. To fill their spots on the 25-man they called up infielder Johan Camargo and activated lefty Eric O’Flaherty and third baseman Adonis Garcia from the DL.
The Garcia/O’Flaherty moves were expected. The Bonifacio DFA was somewhat surprising given that the Braves have put up with low production from him for some time. Indeed, he seemed like one of those guys teams just keep around despite their offensive futility due to their defensive flexibility. Thing is, defensive versatility is not the same as defensive proficiency and no teams are likely to put up with the .171/.210/.211 line Bonifacio has sported for the Braves over the last two seasons.
As for Garcia: his being called up while his replacement at third, Rio Ruiz, remains with the team is somewhat interesting. Ruiz is not a good defender but he’s younger than Garcia and it would seem that the Braves just want to get a longer look at him in the bigs. The lefty Ruiz and righty Garcia will likely split time in a platoon going forward.