The Milwaukee Brewers acquired catcher Victor Caratini and cash from the San Diego Padres on Wednesday in exchange for two minor leaguers.
Also on Wednesday, Milwaukee added catcher Alex Jackson in a trade with the Miami Marlins for two more minor leaguers.
Caratini hit .227 with seven homers and 39 RBIs in 116 games for the Padres last season. He will back up Omar Narvaez, who was a National League All-Star last season. Jackson batted .157 with three home runs and 12 RBIs in 42 games last season and is expected to open the season in the minor leagues.
The moves come one day after Brewers catcher Pedro Severino was suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball for violating the league policy on performance-enhancing drugs. MLB said the 28-year-old Severino tested positive for Clomiphene, a medication primarily used to stimulate ovulation in women.
San Diego received outfielder Korry Howell and catcher Brett Sullivan in the Caratini deal. Howell, 23, batted .244 with 16 homers and 51 RBIs in 97 games between Class-A and Double-A last season, while the 28-year-old Sullivan played 593 minor-league games in the Tampa Bay Rays organization before signing with the Brewers on Nov. 30.
The Marlins obtained infielder Hayden Cantrelle and right-hander Alexis Ramirez in the Jackson deal. Cantrelle hit .171 with seven home runs and 34 RBIs in 90 games over two levels of his minor-league debut last season. Ramirez, who last pitched in the Brewers system in 2019, is 4-6 with a 4.91 ERA in 23 outings (20 starts) over two seasons.
Caratini, 28, spent his first four big league seasons with the Chicago Cubs before being traded to the Padres prior to last season. He has a .242 career average with 22 homers and 112 RBIs in 362 games. Jackson, 26, has batted .132 in parts of three major league seasons, playing 19 games for the Braves from 2019-21.
–Field Level Media
