Rays acquire RHPs Adrian Sampson, Manuel Rodríguez from Cubs, add C Alex Jackson from Brewers

NEW YORK — The Tampa Bay Rays acquired minor league right-handers Adrian Sampson and Manuel Rodríguez in a trade with the Chicago Cubs, then later dealt a pitching prospect to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for catcher Alex Jackson on Tuesday.

The move to add Sampson and Rodriguez to the organization improves Tampa Bay's pitching depth as it tries to chase down AL East-leading Baltimore. Sampson is 11-19 with a 4.43 ERA in 72 major league appearances, including 44 starts. Rodríguez is 5-3 with a 4.88 ERA and five saves in 34 big league games.

The Rays later sent minor league pitcher Evan McKendry to the Brewers for Jackson, a 27-year-old catcher who has hit .141 with three homers and 12 RBIs over 163 major league at-bats with Atlanta, Miami and Milwaukee.

Tampa Bay also traded right-hander Luis Patiño, who is 7-5 with a 5.23 ERA in 38 games over portions of four seasons with the Padres and Rays, to the Chicago White Sox for cash.

In addition to landing Sampson and Rodríguez, the Rays received international signing bonus pool space from the Cubs for minor league right-hander Josh Roberson. The 27-year-old Roberson, a 12th-round pick in the 2017 amateur draft, went 2-1 with a 4.50 ERA in 31 appearances for Triple-A Durham this year.

Sampson and Rodriguez were assigned to Durham.

The 31-year-old Sampson recently returned to the mound after being sidelined by a meniscus injury. He went 4-5 with a 3.11 ERA in 21 games with Chicago last year, including a career-high 19 starts.

Rodríguez, who turns 27 on Sunday, made his big league debut with the Cubs in 2021. He went 2-0 with a 3.29 ERA and four saves in 14 games with Chicago last season.