Cubs trade for Martin Maldonado to add catcher depth, ship LHP Mike Montgomery to Royals

Willson Contreras has played a key role in the Chicago Cubs' season, but weren't going to let an injury to their starting catcher sabotage their chances in the ultra-competitive National League Central race.  

Contreras was injured on Saturday, with a MRI revealing a muscle strain in his foot. He was placed on the 10-day injured Tuesday. In the meantime, Chicago was proactive, acquiring veteran catcher Martin Maldonado late Monday night, shipping LHP Mike Montgomery to the Royals.

Contreras was injured Saturday and didn't play the following two games. Cubs GM Theo Epstein confirmed the MRI results, adding that it could become an issue if he plays on the strained foot.

"We have to get ahead of it, take it out of Willy's hands and get him off his feet," Epstein said. "…Maldonado is an established catcher in this league who does a lot of great things behind the plate."

They bring in one of the top defensive catchers around. Since his rookie year in 2011, Maldonado has thrown out 37.3 percent of all baserunners trying to steal, the best rate in MLB in that span. His bat has been unspectacular, hitting .219 with four home runs and 15 RBIs, roughly half the production of Contreras (.267, eight HR, 28 RBIs) in nearly the same number of at-bats. He'll split time behind the dish with Victor Caratini as Contreras heals.

Montgomery, meanwhile, was 1-2 with a 5.67 ERA in 20 relief appearances for Chicago this season. It's a return of sorts to the Royals, who drafted the left-handed pitcher in the 2008 MLB Draft. He was traded in 2012 and made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2015.

He'll get an opportunity to be a starter once again -- he started 33 games in 82 appearances in 2017-18 with the Cubs. Montgomery is slated to start Friday for the Royals against the Indians.

While the trade fills an immediate hole for Chicago, SportsLine data scientist Stephen Oh says the projections show the Cubs are overall worse without Contreras now, and one less left-handed veteran in the bullpen.

"The difference in the regular season was almost a full win less, but their chances of winning the World Series only dropped from 7.9% to 7.4%," Oh said. "While these projections say this was not a good trade, our analysis gives reasons why the move made sense."

The Royals, meanwhile, are well out of any playoff chase, though it is worth noting Oh's computer model moved the team's projected win total from 62.3 to 63.0.