The Red Sox have reached a deal to acquire right-handed reliever Anthony Varvaro from the Braves, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported on Twitter. Righty Aaron Kurcz and cash make up the return for the Braves, according to the official announcement.
Varvaro, 30, was designated for assignment two days ago. A deal to move him was widely said to be in the works after the Braves removed him from the 40-man roster.
He produced an attractive 2.63 ERA over 54 2/3 frames last year on the back of 8.2 K/9, 2.1 BB/9, and a 49.7% groundball rate. ERA estimators generally viewed him as an above-average arm, with FIP (3.21), xFIP (3.15), and SIERA (2.86) all coming in above his ERA but at solid rates.
Kurcz, 23, threw 42 innings of 2.14 ERA ball last year at the Double-A level, with 11.6 K/9 against 4.7 BB/9. He missed the previous season as he recovered from Tommy John surgery.
