Braves Complete Late-Night Trade to Acquire Veteran Catcher

The Atlanta Braves bring a new veteran catcher into the fray ahead of their upcoming series against the Brewers

The Braves add another catcher via a trade | Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Braves are working through the night to improve the roster. They announced that they have acquired catcher Joey Bart from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for right-hander Hunter Stratton.

In a corresponding move, catcher Sandy León has been designated for assignment.

This move also brings in a local. Bart is originally from Buford, where he was born and raised. He attended Buford High School and went to college at Georgia Tech.

A clear move was made here. They went out and got a catcher who provided solid defense along with a stronger contribution on offense.

León was popular with pitchers behind the dish, but the offense was nonexistent. He was 4-for-44 (.091) across 21 games this season. Meanwhile, Bart is batting .259 with a .670 OPS in 62 plate appearances. That’s a solid enough option to back up Drake Baldwin.

With Sean Murphy set to be out for a while longer, it made sense to go ahead with this type of trade.

Knowing that Baldwin is expected to be a designated hitter at times, too, they needed to ensure that there was someone who could contribute in the lineup from the catcher position.

Meanwhile, Stratton returns to the team that flipped him to the Braves midway through last season. He’s made one appearance in the majors this season, giving the Braves a scoreless inning on May 2 against the Colorado Rockies.

In 21 Triple-A appearances, Stratton has a 4.38 ERA. Perhaps the Pirates will give him a shot at more major league action than he was getting in Atlanta.

The Braves make the move as they get set for a three-game series against the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. They’re coming off dropping two games against the San Francisco Giants. The series finale on Thursday was rained out.

First pitch on Friday is set for 7:15 p.m. EDT. Martín Pérez is scheduled to go up against one of the top pitchers in the National League, Jacob Misiorowski.

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