KOTTARAS TO A'S FOR DE LOS SANTOS
The Oakland Athletics acquired catcher George Kottaras from the Milwaukee Brewers for pitcher Fautino De Los Santos.
What does it give the Oakland Athletics
The A's have struggled mightily to get production out of their catcher spot, so maybe Kottaras can help. While he has struggled this season to hit for average, Kottaras has good power (18 homers and 34 doubles in 507 career at-bats), is a walks machine (which the A's love) and he hits from the left side, so he should be able to push for a platoon spot with either {P Kurt Suzuki} or {P Derek Norris} (both righties). De Los Santos was expected to be in the Closer mix for Oakland this year, but he has had a tough time at Triple-A (a 7.25 ERA in 28 games). This move also suggests Oakland may be looking to either trade Suzuki or demote Norris.
What does it give the Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee had a glut of good-hitting catchers on their roster before this trade (with {P Jonathan Lucroy} and {P Martin Maldonado} both hitting very well) so Kottaras became expendable. Adding De Los Santos is a solid risk here for Milwaukee, since their bullpen has been scuffling regularly this summer and bringing in his live arm for more organizational depth can't hurt.
Fantasy impact
