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By Noah Camras
Contributing Sports Writer
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The San Diego Padres and Pittsburgh Pirates have made a trade involving non-roster players.
The Padres have sent catcher Brett Sullivan to the Pirates in exchange for outfielder Bryce Johnson and cash considerations, per Pirates beat writer Noah Hiles.
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The Padres are in desperate need of center field help with both Jackson Merrill and his replacement, Brandon Lockridge, on the injured list due to hamstring issues.
The Padres may have found a temporary solution in Johnson, a former Padre who has 36 career games in center field.
Johnson appeared in 47 games with the Padres in 2024, slashing .206/.286/.238 with 13 hits, two doubles, and four runs batted in. Across his three-season MLB career, he's appeared in 88 games with the Padres and San Francisco Giants, hitting .177 with an OPS of .474.
The Padres have used Tyler Wade and Jason Heyward in center field in Lockridge's absence. However, Johnson could be a solution moving forward until one of Lockridge or Merrill is able to return.
As for Sullivan, the 31-year-old didn't have much of an opportunity to play with the Padres as two catchers — Elias Diaz and Martin Maldonado — are on the active roster. Additionally, the young Luis Campusano is on the 40-man roster as a third catching option.
Sullivan has appeared in just 40 MLB games with the Padres since 2023, slashing .206/.243/.299 with two home runs and eight RBIs.
In Triple-A this season, Sullivan is hitting .231 with an OPS of .570 across 10 games.
Pirates catcher Joey Bart has missed the team's last five games due to lower back tightness. While he's not yet on the injured list, this move could hint at Bart heading to the IL to get healthy.
As of now, Henry Davis is the only other catcher on the Pirates roster. The only other catcher on the 40-man roster, Endy Rodriguez, was placed on the injured list Tuesday with a lacerated finger.
This trade appears to be filling a need for each team as they deal with injuries. The Padres entered Wednesday's game with the best record in MLB at 14-4. The Pirates are in last place in the NL Central at 6-12.
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