Who Is Julian Garcia? Reds Add Veteran Right-Hander to Bullpen

The Cincinnati Reds have made a move to add a reliever to the bullpen. Not via trade, but by calling up 31-year-old right-handed pitcher Julian Garcia to make his major league debut, according to Ken Rosenthal.

Garcia was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 10th round of the 2016 MLB Draft out of Metropolitan State University of Denver. He was released by the Phillies on July 13, 2022, and spent multiple seasons playing independent ball, with a stint in the Puerto Rico Winter League in 2024.

The Reds signed him to a minor league contract on Aug. 26, 2025. He then spent another stint in the American Association with the Kansas City Monarchs before suiting up for the Louisville Bats this season.

Garcia has posted a 3.03 ERA in 35.2 innings pitched, allowing just 12 earned runs with a 54-12 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He features a four-seam fastball, cutter and slider. In his last appearance with the Bats, he threw 16 pitches, including seven sliders, five cutters and four fastballs. His four-seam fastball sits around 93-94 mph, according to Baseball Savant.

Garcia heavily leans on his slider and cutter.

The decision to promote Garcia was well received by Cincinnati fans, with some even saying it should have been done a month ago, given that he is a seasoned, experienced pitcher who has been shockingly consistent during his time in Triple-A.

The Reds called up two relievers less than a month ago, each of whom pitched once before being designated for assignment: Yunior Marte and Lyon Richardson.

Cincinnati has been without Pierce Johnson and Emilio Pagan for more than a month, while Graham Ashcraft was placed on the 60-day injured list on May 29.

The Reds bullpen has been pitching better of late, with Tony Santillan finding success in high-leverage situations and Tejay Antone remaining reliable. Antone has allowed just one earned run in his last five appearances, spanning 6.2 innings pitched. Santillan has not allowed a single earned run in his last five appearances, spanning 5.2 innings.

Cincinnati is still in last place in the NL Central, 9.5 games behind first place and one game behind the Pittsburgh Pirates in fourth place. The Reds recently won a series in New York against the Yankees, taking the final two games behind strong starts from Andrew Abbott and Chase Burns.

Garcia joins the team as the Reds sit one run away from being comfortably back in the NL Central race and the postseason picture.