The San Diego Padres have acquired outfielder Ryan Ludwick from the St. Louis Cardinals. In the three-team transaction, the Padres send left-handed pitcher Nick Greenwood to St. Louis and right-handed pitcher Corey Kluber to the Cleveland Indians. Executive Vice President/General Manager Jed Hoyer made the announcements.
To complete the three-team transaction, the Indians sent right-handed pitcher Jake Westbrook to the Cardinals.
Ludwick, who turned 32 on July 13, is hitting .281 (79-for-281) with 20 doubles, two triples, 11 home runs, 43 RBI, 24 walks and 64 strikeouts with the Redbirds in 69 games (67 starts) this season. Ludwick has made 63 of his 67 starts in right field for St. Louis this year. He’s batting .302 (62-for-205) with eight homers and 29 RBI vs. right-handed pitchers this season.
In 592 Major League games over parts of eight seasons with the Texas Rangers (2002-2003), Indians (2003-2005) and Cardinals (2007-2010), Ludwick has batted .272 (529-for-1942) with 118 doubles, seven triples, 98 homers, 349 RBI, 181 walks and 487 strikeouts. He’s hit .307 (111-for-361) with 24 homers and 82 RBI in 106 career games vs. National League West teams. A 2008 National League All-Star and Silver Slugger Award winner, Ludwick finished 16th in MVP voting that year while ranking second in the NL with a .591 slugging percentage (behind Albert Pujols).
Greenwood, 22, was selected by the Padres in the 14th round of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft. This season, he is 4-4 with a 4.15 ERA (44 ER/95.1 IP) over 21 games (17 starts) with Single-A Fort Wayne.
Kluber, 24, is 6-6 with a 3.45 ERA (47 ER/122.2 IP) in 22 games (21 starts) with 40 walks and 136 strikeouts at Double-A San Antonio. He was originally signed by San Diego in the fourth round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft.
In addition, the Padres today designated outfielder Quintin Berry for assignment. In 13 games with Double-A San Antonio this season, Berry hit .170 (8-for-57) with one RBI and eight runs scored.
The Padres will make a corresponding 25-man roster move when Ludwick reports to San Diego.
