ST. LOUIS — While the Cardinals' two big deadline deals brought them two lefty starting pitchers, another move that flew under the radar brought a St. Louis native into the organization.
The Cardinals announced on Monday evening they had acquired catcher Austin Allen from the Oakland Athletics for minor league pitcher Carlos Guarate, and sent catcher Austin Romine to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for cash considerations. The Cardinals assigned Allen to Triple-A Memphis.
Allen, 28, is a St. Louis native and graduate of Chaminade High School. According to Baseball Reference, Allen is the only Chaminade graduate to appear in a Major League Baseball game.
In five games this season for the A's, Allen is 1 for 14. For his career in 57 games with Oakland and San Diego, Allen is a .195 hitter with two home runs and seven RBIs.
Romine appeared in just 11 games for the Cardinals in 2022, hitting .154 with a double.
The Cardinals did make a few other significant moves at the trade deadline, trading Johan Oviedo and prospect Malcom Nunez to the Pittsburgh Pirates for lefty starter Jose Quintana and reliever Chris Stratton, and sending outfielder Harrison Bader to the New York Yankees for lefty starter Jordan Montgomery.