FORT MYERS, Fla. -- It hardly qualifies as a blockbuster, but the Red Sox bolstered their catching depth Monday morning by acquiring catcher Sandy Leon from the Washington Nationals.
The Red Sox confirmed the deal was for cash considerations.
Leon will likely compete with Humberto Quintero to be the primary backup catcher to Ryan Hanigan.
Christian Vazquez is scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion on his right elbow, but the supposition is that Vazquez has a torn ligament in his elbow that will require season-ending Tommy John surgery, leaving the Red Sox thin behind the plate.
The Red Sox placed Vazquez on 60-day DL to make room for Leon on 40-man roster.
Leon is out of options and the Red Sox cannot send him to the minor leagues without first passing him through waivers. That was one of the reasons he was made available by the Nationals.
He also has another advantage over Quintero in that he is a switch-hitter, giving the Red Sox balance behind the plate. Leon, though, is not much of an offensive threat: in parts of three seasons in the big leagues, Leon has a slash line of .189/.280/.253.
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He has hit somewhat better this spring, going 6-for-21 (.286) in limited playing time with the Nationals.
Like Quintero, Leon is viewed as a defense-first catcher. He's thrown out 6 of 15 would-be base-stealers in the big league, a 40-percent rate. He's also praised for his receiving and pitch-framing skills.