Yahoo Lifestyle Astros acquire catcher Martín Maldonado for the second straight year
The Chicago Cubs have traded catcher Martín Maldonado to the Houston Astros, according to a move first reported from The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.
#Astros acquire catcher Martín Maldonado from #Cubs, sources tell The Athletic.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 31, 2019
If you’re getting deja vu, it’s not your brain playing tricks on you. The Astros traded for Maldonado before the 2018 trade deadline as well. He’s a light hitter, currently sporting a .217/.285/.349 triple slash and six home runs in 2019.
Maldonado has been on quite a journey over the past few seasons — and the past few weeks. He spent 2017 and part of 2018 with the Los Angeles Angels, who then traded him to the Astros in July 2018. The Royals signed him as a free agent in March 2019 as a replacement for Salvador Perez, who then traded him to the Chicago Cubs just two weeks ago. Maldonado’s trade to the Astros is his second team change in less than a month.
Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reported that the Astros will send second baseman Tony Kemp to the Cubs in return. Kemp, who can also play left field and center, hasn’t been able to replicate his solid 2018, and is currently hitting .227/.308/.417.
More from Yahoo Sports:
