Brewers trade Kottaras for reliever De Los Santos

MILWAUKEE -- The Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, July 29th traded catcher George Kottaras to the Oakland Athletics for right-handed reliever Fautino De Los Santos. Santos will be optioned to Triple-A Nashville, and to make room on the 40-man roster, pitcher Shaun Marcum will be transferred to the 60-day disabled list.

26-year-old De Los Santos has spent most of the 2012 season at Triple-A Sacramento, where he was 1-3 with a 7.25 ERA in 28 relief appearances. He recorded 43 strikeouts in just 36.0 innings. He began the season on the Athletics’ Opening Day roster and posted a 3.00 ERA in 6 games before he was optioned on April 24.

Originally signed by the Chicago White Sox as a non-drafted free agent in 2005, De Los Santos made his Major League debut with Oakland last season as he went 3-2 with a 4.32 ERA in 34 relief appearances (33.1ip, 27h, 19r, 16er, 17bb, 43k, 4hr). Opponents batted just .220.