Francisco Pena will again have a chance to secure the role as Cardinals backup catcher.
The Cardinals have signed Pena to a minor-league deal for 2019 with an understanding that he will arrive at spring training with a chance to compete for the backup job, general manager Michael Girsch confirmed to the Post-Dispatch on Thursday.
Pena, 29, also signed a minor-league contract with the Cardinals last season, then went on to play in a career-high 58 games. He started 30 games at catcher, appeared in 56 total games there (327.2 innings) and appeared at first base twice.