The Red Sox have announced that they acquired catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia from the Texas Rangers in the moments just before the 4 p.m. trade deadline passed.
In return for the 25-year-old backstop, the Red Sox parted ways with two minor leaguers — right-handed pitcher Roman Mendez and first baseman Chris McGuinness — in addition to a player to be named later and cash.
Once a highly-touted catching prospect in the Rangers organization, Saltalamacchia comes to the Red Sox after spending the majority of the 2010 season in the minors. With Triple-A Oklahoma City, Saltalamacchia hit .244 with 11 home runs and 44 RBIs.
He started the season in the majors, only playing in five games before injuring his back and has been in the minors since then.
Saltalamacchia was a first-round draft pick of the Braves in 2003. The switch-hitter made his major-league debut in 2007 with the Braves and was part of a deadline deal brought first baseman Mark Teixeira to the Braves for the stretch run.
