Royals claim George Kottaras; designate Tony Abreu

The Kansas City Royals have claimed catcher George Kottaras off waivers from the Oakland Athletics, the team has announced.

To make room on their roster for Kottaras, the Royals designated infielder Tony Abreu for assignment.

Kottaras was designated for assignment last week by the A's in order to create a roster spot for John Jaso. The 29-year-old split last season between the Milwaukee Brewers and A's, hitting .211/.351/.415 with six doubles and nine home runs over 171 at-bats. Over parts of five seasons at the major league level he's hit .220/.320/.412.

Abreu spent the 2012 season with the Royals after signing as a free agent last winter. He hit .257/.284/.357 with four extra-base hits over 70 at-bats for Kansas City, but he spent a majority of his season with the team's Triple-A affiliate. In the minors he hit .322/.347/.492 with 36 doubles, five triples and nine home runs over 429 at-bats.