The Red Sox added some extra speed to their lineup on Tuesday, completing a deal with the Royals for outfielder Quintin Berry.
As a rookie last season, Berry appeared in 94 games for Detroit, hitting .258 and going a perfect 21-for-21 in steal attempts. He was claimed off waivers by Kansas City this June and assigned to Triple-A Omaha, where he hit just .193 in 311 at-bats but stole 28 bases.
The Red Sox are expected to promote Berry to the big league club when rosters expand on Sept. 1 for use primarily as a pinch runner and defensive replacement.
Heading to Kansas City in the trade is right-handed Clayton Mortensen, who posted a 5.34 ERA in 24 relief appearances for the Red Sox before being optioned to Pawtucket in late June. Since then, Mortensen has appeared as both a reliever and starter at Triple-A, going 3-0 with 2.47 ERA in 43 2/3 innings pitched.
