Trade Central: Cardinals Add Austin Allen As Catching Depth

The Cardinals closed their action at the deadline by adding catcher Austin Allen from the A’s in exchange for minor league righthander Carlos Guarate, who was with St. Louis’ Low-A affiliate in Palm Beach. 

Allen had been with Oakland’s Triple-A team in Las Vegas and was summarily assigned to the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate in Memphis. 

The Cardinals also dealt catcher Austin Romine to the Reds for cash considerations.

ATHLETICS ACQUIRE

Carlos Guarate, RHP
Age: 21

Guarate was originally signed by the Padres in 2017, then was selected by the Cardinals in the minor league phase of the 2021 Rule 5 Draft. He operates with a low-90s sinker that tops out around 92, a high-70s curveball with sharp downer break and a high-80s changeup with split-finger action. 

CARDINALS ACQUIRE

Austin Allen, C
Age: 28

The Padres’ fourth-round pick from 2015 out of Florida Tech made his big league debut on May 11, 2019, then was dealt to Oakland that winter as part of a deal that brought Jurickson Profar to San Diego. He’s gotten cups of coffee in each of the past three seasons, totaling 23 games. In the minors, Allen has shown bat-to-ball skills (he has an 18.9% strikeout rate over seven minor league seasons) and hints of power as well.