Former Braves reliever Anthony Varvaro made the move from rescuing major league teams to protecting residents and visitors of greater New York.
According to a news release by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Varvaro joined its police force Friday, one of 80 officers in this year’s Port Authority training class.
Varvaro, who turned 32 on Halloween, is from Staten Island and pitched for St. John’s University.
Pitching for the Braves from 2011-14, Varvaro made 153 appearances, all in relief. He pitched 168 2/3 innings and compiled a 7-7 record with a 2.99 ERA. He mostly was a setup man, but he did record one save as a Brave.
The highlights of his time with the Braves came in 2013 and 2014, when he appeared in 62 and 61 games, respectively. In those seasons, he pitched in 128 innings and was 6-4 with a 2.74 ERA. He finished 47 of the 123 games.
In December 2014, the Braves traded Varvaro to the Red Sox for minor league pitcher Aaron Kurcz and cash.
An arm injury led Varvaro to retire from baseball in June of this year.
According to Baseball Reference.com, Varvaro was paid more than $2 million in the majors. Now he will help make New York and New Jersey safe. According to the port authority, its officers patrol “three major airports, four bi-state bridges and two tunnels, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, the PATH rail system, the regional ports in New York and New Jersey and the 16-acre World Trade Center site.”
