Phillies: Kyle Garlick trade no longer most recent in MLB

Up until June 30, the Phillies had made the most recent trade in MLB

In mid-February, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired outfielder Kyle Garlick from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for southpaw prospect Tyler Gilbert.

Due to the pandemic and the recently lifted transaction freeze, the trade had been the most recent across Major League Baseball. But, nearly four and a half months later on Tuesday night, that no longer became the case. The San Diego Padres acquired longtime high-ranking infielder prospect Jorge Mateo from the Oakland Athletics for a player to be named later, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Garlick is among the 50-plus players the Phillies have invited to their summer camp, which starts this week. He was dealt to the Phillies shortly after being designated for assignment by the Dodgers as a corresponding move to their multi-player acquisitions that included stars Mookie Betts and David Price from the Boston Red Sox.

Making his MLB debut last season, Garlick slashed .250/.321/.521 with three home runs and six RBI through 53 plate appearances as a Dodger. He shined more so through 81 games at the Triple-A level, however, posting a .314 batting average with 23 home runs and 59 RBI.

Competing for a backup outfield job on the Phillies, the 28-year-old collected five singles, two RBI, two walks and 12 strikeouts through 24 plate appearances earlier this year down in Clearwater.

Garlick was among six players the Phillies optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley in late March ahead of the transaction freeze, joining fellow outfielder Nick Williams, southpaws Cole Irvin and Austin Davis, and right-handed pitchers Reggie McLain and Edgar Garcia. Davis is not part of the Phillies’ initial player pool for summer camp, despite being on the team’s 40-man roster.

Now, it appears manager Joe Girardi is giving Garlick one more look. With the Opening Day roster to allow up to 30 players, he could don red pinstripes at the onset of the 60-game sprint.