Brewers add bat, claim Stephen Vogt off waivers from A's

The first-place Milwaukee Brewers added a veteran bat Sunday when they claimed catcher Stephen Vogt off waivers from the Oakland Athletics, the team announced.

Vogt, 32, has a career .251/.312/.409 slash line over six seasons with the A's and Tampa Bay Rays. He was an American League All-Star in 2015 and 2016 and a fan favorite in Oakland, but he became expendable this year when the A's decided to give Bruce Maxwell, 26, the majority of the team's at-bats at catcher.

The A's designated Vogt for assignment on Thursday. He is signed to a one-year, $2.965 million contract this season.

Vogt has played primarily at catcher in the big leagues, but he also logged some time at first base, designated hitter and the outfield in Oakland.

Manny Pina and Jett Bandy, Milwaukee's catchers, rank 13th in the majors at the position with a combined .717 OPS. But Bandy is 2-for-38 with 17 strikeouts in June.