Royals trade Maldonado to Cubs for lefty reliever Montgomery

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Kansas City Royals have traded veteran catcher Martín Maldonado to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for lefthander Mike Montgomery.

Montgomery, 30, has made 20 appearances out of the bullpen with the Cubs this season, going 1-2 with a 5.67 ERA (17 ER in 27.0 IP).

In 2017, Montgomery posted a career high in wins (7), saves (3), innings (130.2) and strikeouts (100) and posted a solid 3.38 ERA. The lefty recorded one of the biggest outs in Chicago Cubs franchise history, the final out of Game 7 of the 2016 World Series against the Indians.

The #Royals broke the news – Maldonado is headed to the Cubs in return for the big lefty Mike Montgomery. #AlwaysRoyal pic.twitter.com/RunupYkp8F

— FOX Sports Kansas City (@FSKansasCity) July 16, 2019

Montgomery was originally a Kansas City Royals’ farmhand. He was drafted by the Royals 36th overall in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft. He was later shipped to the Tampa Bay Rays in the deal that brought James Shields and Wade Davis to Kansas City.

Maldonado was pulled in the middle of the game against the White Sox. The catcher signed with the Royals as a free agent this winter. He’s batted .227  with 15 doubles, six homers and 17 RBI, while appearing in 74 games.