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The Houston Astros acquired Christian Vazquez from the Boston Red Sox for minor leaguers Enmanuel Valdez and Wilyer Abreu on Monday.
Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston first reported the deal.
Houston and Boston face off Monday night at Minute Maid Park, and Vazquez was taking batting practice when news of the trade broke.
Because he doesn’t have to travel far to change clubhouses, the 31-year-old could make his Astros debut in relatively short order.
Vazquez is in the final season of his three-year, $13.4 million contract and the Red Sox are last in the American League East at 51-52. The trade comes as little surprise, and the bigger shock would’ve been if he remained in Boston through Tuesday’s 6 p.m. ET deadline.
The 5’9″ backstop has put together a solid campaign. He’s batting .282 with a .432 slugging percentage and eight home runs in 84 games.
Vazquez’s defensive value is a little more limited. Per Baseball Savant, he’s tied for 40th in catcher framing runs but tied for a more respectable 15th in pop time to second base (1.94 seconds).
Catcher was an obvious position for the Astros to address at the deadline.
Martin Maldonado is a poor hitter across his career, with an OPS+ of 72 in 12 seasons, per Baseball Reference, and this year has been more of the same. The 35-year-old is once again on pace to finish below the Mendoza Line after batting .172 in 2021.
Vazquez will provide more punch to the lineup when he’s the designated catcher.
This is the Astros’ second notable move ahead of the deadline, as they also acquired Trey Mancini from the Baltimore Orioles.
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