A's Add Catcher in Trade With Miami Marlins
The Athletics will have a new backup catcher for the 2025 season, with the club announcing that they have acquired catcher Jhonny Pereda from the Miami Marlins in exchange for cash. To make room on the 40-man roster, the A's designated Kyle McCann for assignment.
Pereda made his Major League debut with Miami last year and hit .231 with four RBI in 20 games over four stints with the Marlins. He spent the balance of the season at Triple-A Jacksonville where he batted .297 with four home runs, 14 RBI and an .829 OPS in 49 games.
Opponents were successful in just 4-of-8 (50.0%) stolen base attempts with him behind the plate with the Marlins and 34-of-50 (68.0%) with the Jumbo Shrimp
The 28-year-old right-handed hitter was originally signed by the Cubs out of Venezuela in 2013 and has played in the Cubs, Red Sox, Giants, Reds and Marlins farm systems in his 11 seasons as a professional. Pereda is a .260 hitter with 29 home runs and 279 RBI in 731 career games in the minors.
Last season in Triple-A, Pereda walked an impressive 14.4% of the time while striking out 20.5% of the time, which is a solid combo of skills. FanGraphs deemed him a bat-first catcher and an honorable mention on numerous prospect lists.
In an odd coincidence, this is the third player involved in an A's transaction today that spent time either with the Marlins or in Miami's system in 2024. Earlier the A's claimed Elvis Alvarado from the Pittsburgh Pirates after he spent last year with the Marlins in Triple-A, and to make room for him on the roster, the A's DFA'd Anthony Maldonado, who made his MLB debut with Miami last season.
As for McCann, it's not like this move was unforeseeable. The backup catcher got off to a hot start in 2024, homering off Baltimore Orioles closer Craig Kimbrel, but in the second half of the season his playing time really dwindled as his stats declined.
Overall McCann hit .236, but he fared much better against right-handers, batting .244 with a .327 OBP. In the second half of the season, his walk rate fell ten percent to 3.9%, his strikeout rate spiked to 47.1%, and he went just 6-for-48 (.125), good for an 11 wRC+ (100 is league average).
The A's needed to make an upgrade behind the dish, and while Pereda may not necessarily be the guy that ultimately fills in for starter Shea Langeliers, this does signal that the A's will have an open competition during camp.
Pereda will most likely battle Willie MacIver to be the backup option for the Athletics to begin the season, while 2022 first-rounder Daniel Susac could also be in that mix.
Two of those three will start the year in Triple-A Las Vegas, and given that Susac has yet to appear in a game with the Aviators, it will likely be him and one of the other two fighting for a promotion of their own when the season begins.
Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. He also covers the Stanford Cardinal as they attempt to rebuild numerous programs to prominence.