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Cardinals, Brayan Pena agree to 2-year deal

Steve Mitchell / USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals added to their catching depth Monday, agreeing to a two-year deal with Brayan Pena worth a reported $5-million.

Pena is familiar with the National League Central after spending the last two seasons with the Cincinnati Reds, hitting .263/.313/.339 with five home runs and 35 doubles over 223 games.

"I would have loved to have him back, he was a great teammate and made some great contributions the last few years, but sometimes you just have to move on," Reds president Walt Jocketty told C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Inquirer.

The 33-year-old provides the Cardinals with a solid backup behind Gold Glove winner Yadier Molina, who caught 134 games for St. Louis in 2015. Pena also offers a significant offensive improvement over Tony Cruz, who hit .204/.235/.310 over 69 games last season.

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