Los Angeles Dodgers and longtime backup catcher Austin Barnes have agreed to a two-year contract extension, sources confirmed to ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez on Sunday.
The financial terms of the agreement are not immediately known.
Barnes was supposed to be a free agent after the 2022 season, but will now live in Los Angeles for at least the 2024 campaign.
The Dodgers acquired Barnes in 2014 through a trade with the Miami Marlins. A year later he made his major league debut and spent all eight of his major league seasons in Los Angeles.
Barnes has split most of the time behind the plate for the Dodgers, with his 102 games in 2017. During that time he worked primarily as a personal catcher for Clayton Kershaw.
A light hitter – his career average is .224, a total of 28 home runs – Barnes, 32, is considered an excellent defensive catcher with a strong presence in the clubhouse.
He entered Sunday, splitting time on the back of the plate with Will Smith to score .188 with four home runs.
Fanside announced the first deal on Sunday.