The Arizona Diamondbacks announced Sunday that southpaw reliever Philip Abner has been optioned to the Triple-A Reno Aces, leaving Brandyn Garcia as the lone lefty arm in bullpen barring a late addition.
There was recent precedent for the club adding a lefty to its bullpen room so close to Opening Day, Arizona signing Jalen Beeks one day before the first game of the 2025 season.
The Diamondbacks also reassigned catcher Aramis Garcia and infielder Jacob Amaya to minor league camp, which brought its camp to 33 players.
Each MLB team has until Opening Day to trim its roster down to 26.
Abner, 23, totaled a 4.66 ERA in nine Cactus League appearances, getting in 9.2 innings pitched and striking out 12 batters.
The former 2023 MLB Draft sixth-round pick by Arizona had five major league outings last season, racking up a 4.91 ERA in 3.2 innings pitched. He struck out five and walked three across his performances.
Abner will next have a chance to pitch in the Aces’ season-opener on Friday against the Tacoma Rainiers, which is the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners.
Amaya, a 27-year-old originally drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2017, had a productive spring with a .341 batting average (15 for 44), batted in 10 runs, and scored 10 runs on the bases.
His reassignment signals that Ildemaro Vargas will likely be the backup shortstop behind Geraldo Perdomo to start 2026.
The 33-year-old Garcia made 10 Cactus League appearances for the D-backs after receiving a non-roster invitation. He batted .200 (5 for 25) and committed one error in 62 fielding chances.
Garcia had been designated for assignment by Arizona last June before being outrighted by the Aces four days later.
