Veteran Cardinals Catcher Elects Free Agency After Short Stint In St. Louis

The St. Louis Cardinals will have to add one more position to their shopping list this winter after one member of their organizational depth has decided to part ways with the team. 

Cardinals catcher Tres Barrera elected free agency on Friday according to the MiLB transaction log, leaving the club a little short-handed at a key position. 

The 29-year-old backstop lasted just one season with the organization and logged just six games with St. Louis. The rest of his time was spent at Triple-A Memphis, where he showed impressive pop but struggled to make contact consistently.

Barrera hit .213 with 14 extra-base hits including seven home runs, 33 RBIs and a .649 OPS in 60 games for the Redbirds.

The former Washington Nationals sixth-round pick in the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft made his big-league debut in D.C. but never latched on, leading him to sign a minor-league deal with St. Louis last offseason. Now he's looking to do the same with a new team, hoping that he can find a bigger role.

As it stands now, the Cardinals have catchers Willson Contreras, Andrew Knizner and Iván Herrera on the 40-man roster. That trio is good enough to enter next season with but they will need to add another backstop to aid Triple-A Memphis and serve as fourth on the Cardinals' depth chart.