St. Petersburg, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Tampa Bay Rays announced on Thursday that the club has traded catcher Jose Lobaton to the Washington Nationals in a four-player deal.
Washington will also receive minor league pitcher Felipe Rivero and outfielder Drew Vettleson in exchange for pitcher Nathan Karns.
The 29-year-old Lobaton, who has spent the last three seasons in Tampa Bay, holds a career average of .228 with nine homers and 52 RBI in 191 games played.
Lobaton is most remembered in Tampa for his game-winning home run off of Boston Red Sox closer Koji Uehara in Game 3 of the 2013 American League Division Series. He is expected to backup Wilson Ramos in the nation's capital.
Karns, taken in the 12th round of the 2009 First Year Player Draft out of Texas Tech, was regarded as one of the Nationals' top prospects and made his big league debut this past season. The 26-year-old right-hander went 0-1 with a 7.50 earned run average in three starts for Washington in 2013.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.