By Will Kimmey
December 15, 2003

Three weeks after dealing all-star catcher Ramon Hernandez to the Padres, the Athletics found his replacement. Oakland picked up Michael Barrett from the Expos in exchange for a player to be named later.

Montreal's primary concern was clearing Barrett's pending salary arbitration case from its docket. He made $2.6 million during a dismal 2003 season and the Expos likely would have nontendered him later this month. His salary can't be cut more than 20 percent, so he'll earn at least $2.08 million in 2004.

Barrett, 27, hit just .208/.280/.398 with 10 home runs and 30 RBIs in 70 games this year, battling hip and finger injuries while losing his job to Brian Schneider. He has a level stroke good for producing line drives to all fields, but never has shown the power or on-base ability that A's general manager Billy Beane usually seeks. Barrett is a career .253/.310/.388 hitter with 38 homers and 193 RBIs in 542 games. He's a good athlete for a catcher and also has seen extended time at third base. He blocks balls well and calls a solid game, but he doesn't have a great arm. He threw out a career-high 39 percent of basestealers in 2003 and has erased 25 percent during his career.

Dec. 19 update: Baseball America has learned that the Expos will receive lefthander Brett Price to complete the deal. The Athletics would have owed Montreal a second player had they signed Barrett, but they negated that by trading him to the Cubs the day after they acquired him. Price, 24, signed as a 14th-round pick out of the University of South Carolina in 2001. He repeated high Class A at Modesto in 2003, going 2-1, 2.98 with one save in 41 appearances. In 54 innings, he had a 64-38 strikeout-walk ratio and a .205 opponent average. Though his command needs improvement, he made good strides in instructional league, where he showed a 90-92 mph fastball and a tight curveball.