Jaime Garcia Trade Rumors: Twins Reportedly Agree to Swap with Braves

The Minnesota Twins are in the thick of the American League Central race and reportedly added pitching help as the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline approaches.

On Thursday, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reported the Twins reached an agreement to acquire Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Jaime Garcia. The news comes after Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported Minnesota was "discussing" a potential deal, and Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports noted the Twins were "finalizing" the trade.

Garcia sports a 4.33 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 81 strikeouts in 106 innings and 17 starts this season. Despite the pedestrian numbers, he impressed in his latest outing Sunday when he allowed just one earned run in seven innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He is a free agent after the season, and the 45-48 Braves are 11.5 games behind the Washington Nationals in the National League East and not serious World Series contenders. By moving the southpaw now, especially after he flashed his potential as an innings-eater in his last start, the Braves can net something in return before he potentially left this offseason.

Durability is a concern after Garcia missed the 2009 season and made just nine starts in 2013 and seven in 2014, but he adds a playoff-tested arm for the Twins entering the stretch run. He helped lead the St. Louis Cardinals to the 2011 World Series title and allowed just two earned runs in 10 innings in the Fall Classic against the Texas Rangers.

The Twins are just a single game behind the defending American League champion Cleveland Indians in the loss column but needed more depth in the starting rotation. According to ESPN.com, Minnesota's starting pitchers are a mere 24th in the Majors in ERA.

What's more, Marly Rivera of ESPN.com noted Bartolo Colon recently became the 28th pitcher and 11th starter the Twins have used this season. Garcia provides manager Paul Molitor with additional arm to help stabilize the rotation.