The Marlins sent right-hander Luarbert Arias outright to Triple-A Jacksonville, according to the MLB.com transaction log. He’d been designated for assignment last weekend when Miami called up Freddy Tarnok.
Miami added Arias to the 40-man roster at the beginning of last offseason. He was coming off a 3.04 ERA over 68 Triple-A innings and would have qualified for minor league free agency if the Fish didn’t select his contract. That put him on the doorstep of the majors, and he received his first MLB call within the season’s first week. Arias began his career with a three-inning scoreless appearance against the Mets on March 31. He gave up runs in each of his next three outings and was optioned back to Triple-A by the middle of April.
The 24-year-old had another brief MLB stint at the end of April. He’d been on optional assignment in Jacksonville since the start of May. Arias hasn’t had the same success he had there a year ago. His 3.93 ERA over 18 1/3 innings isn’t terrible, but he has recorded only seven strikeouts while issuing 13 walks. MLB opponents tagged him for 11 runs through 9 1/3 frames.
Arias has never been outrighted and has almost no MLB service time. He therefore doesn’t have the right to elect free agency. He’ll remain in Jacksonville without occupying a 40-man roster spot and try to recapture last year’s form. He would qualify for minor league free agency at the beginning of the offseason if he doesn’t get back onto the roster before then.