Orioles acquire veteran catcher McCann from Mets

The Orioles checked off one other merchandise on their offseason to-do checklist on Wednesday night time. This time, they went to the commerce market to fill one of many holes on their roster.

McCann has two years and $24 million left on his contract, however the Orioles will assume solely $5 million of that complete, a supply advised MLB.com govt reporter Mark Feinsand. The participant the Mets will obtain is just not anticipated to be a notable prospect, based on the supply.

It’s a low-risk, doubtlessly high-reward transfer for Baltimore, which wanted a No. 2 catcher after Robinson Chirinos turned a free agent. McCann, a nine-year massive league veteran who has performed for the Tigers, White Sox and Mets, was an All-Star with Chicago in 2019, when he had a slash line of .273/.328/.460 with 18 homers and 60 RBIs in 118 video games.

However, McCann wasn’t fairly as productive over his two-year stint in New York. He was restricted to 61 video games in 2022, as a result of two journeys to the injured checklist (for a hamate bone fracture in his left wrist and a left indirect pressure). The right-handed batter slashed .195/.257/.282 with three homers and 18 RBIs in ’22.

In addition to backing up Rutschman behind the plate, McCann may get some begins at designated hitter, particularly towards left-handed pitchers. He has a .258/.325/.452 profession slash line towards southpaws versus a .237/.284/.351 line towards righties.

McCann additionally performed 9 video games at first base over the previous two seasons, so he could also be an choice to get a while there on Ryan Mountcastle’s days off.