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Jeff PassanESPN
The Chicago Cubs have acquired receiver Martin Maldonado for left-handed Mike Montgomery, the reliever who secured the final outing of the 2016 Cubs championship season and will join the Kansas City Royals, teams announced Monday. .
Maldonado, a 32-year defensive catcher, is expected to immediately replace All-Star receiver Willson Contreras, who struck the injured list on Monday with a sprained right foot arch. While Contreras should not waste much time, Maldonado is a solid insurance policy.
"It was something we wanted to quickly finalize once it became clear that Willson was going to miss a moment," said Cubs president, Theo Epstein, after Chicago's 6-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. "He is a confirmed receiver in this league who does a lot of good things behind the plate, he can really get in. He can really kick in. He has managed some of the best pitchers in the game."
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Maldonado was one of the best baseball defensive coaches this season and was traded last July from the Los Angeles Angels to the Houston Astros. He signed a one-year contract with a $ 2.5 million budget with Kansas City and took the place of Salvador Perez, who has been absent for a year for the Tommy John operation. .
Montgomery, 30, was on the mound when Kris Bryant threw the ball to Anthony Rizzo to secure the final of the 2016 season. It was his first career stop and culmination of his tenure with the Cubs, who started this season. Montgomery confirmed to ESPN that he had asked to be traded early this season as he was interested in the next stage of his career.
"From a professional point of view, looking at how that was taking shape, I thought I was best placed to become a starter," Montgomery said.
He started 19 games with the Cubs in 2018, but healthy Yu Darvish, combined with the presence of Cole Hamels and Tyler Chatwood, left him with few opportunities this year.
"I understood, according to what they had here, that it might not happen for me," Montgomery said.
The Cubs tried to appease it, but an agreement took months and was concluded strictly as needed, when Contreras broke down.
Chosen by the Royals in the first round of the 2008 draft, Montgomery was a potential candidate before being treated in a transaction that reported to Kansas City. James Shields and Wade Davis. Shortly after, he was treated in Seattle and arrived in Chicago a year later, in 2016. Montgomery hesitated between starting rotation and a roll-over role until this season.
He has struggled this season, posting an average of 5.67 points in 20 relief matches and seeing his peripheral numbers also suffer, probably because of his desire to move on. He started the season on the injured list with a painful shoulder.
Montgomery has two more seasons of club control, which has made him attractive to Kansas City, while Maldonado will be a free agent after this season.
Epstein said that he did not think that Contreras would be absent longer than the minimum of 10 days required to be on the wounded list.
Jesse Rogers of ESPN contributed to this report.
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