PITTSBURGH — The Pirates have signed catcher Joe Hudson to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training.

Pittsburgh announced the deal on Monday. The 29-year-old Hudson has appeared in 18 major league games for St. Louis, Seattle and the Los Angeles Angels.

Hudson is a career .167 hitter with one RBI in 30 career at-bats. He will be in the mix to compete for the backup job behind Jacob Stallings, a Gold Glove finalist last year.

Hudson was a sixth-round pick by Cincinnati in the 2012 first-year player draft.

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