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Cubs Acquire LHP Mike Montgomery From Mariners

(CBS) The Cubs have acquired left-hander Mike Montgomery from the Mariners in a four-player deal that includes sending Triple-A first baseman/designated hitter Dan Vogelbach to Seattle.

In the trade, Chicago also received Double-A right-hander Jordan Pries while shipping out Double-A right-hander Paul Blackburn.

The 27-year-old Montgomery is 3-4 with a 2.34 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 32 appearances this season, two of which have been starts. He has 54 strikeouts in 61 2/3 innings and will immediately slot into the Cubs' bullpen. He's expected to join Chicago in time for its series that starts Friday in Milwaukee.

Montgomery debuted in 2015 and has a career 3.68 ERA. He's under team control through 2021.

Montgomery and Cubs manager Joe Maddon have some shared history. Originally drafted by the Royals in the first round in 2008, Montgomery was traded to the Rays back in December 2012 as part of the blockbuster James Shields-Wil Myers deal. Montgomery then spent 2013 and 2014 in the Rays minor league system while Maddon was the manager at the big league level.

Vogelbach, 23, has played well in the minor leagues, but he was blocked by All-Star first baseman Anthony Rizzo at the big league level in the Cubs organization. Vogelbach is hitting .318 with 16 homers, 64 RBIs and an .875 OPS in 89 games at Triple-A Iowa this season. He hasn't yet appeared in the majors.

"I wasn't going to play first base for the Chicago Cubs," Vogelbach told the Des Moines Register. "It just wasn't going to happen."

Pries, 26, has gone 7-3 with a 4.93 ERA in time split between Double-A and Triple-A in the Mariners system this season. Seattle selected him in the 30th round in the 2011 draft.

The 22-year-old Blackburn was 6-4 with a 3.17 ERA at Double-A Tennessee in the Cubs system this season. Chicago drafted Blackburn in the first round of the 2012 draft.

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