DALLAS ¨C The Cubs have continued their search for catching reinforcements here at these Winter Meetings and look to have identified a solution.

According to multiple sources, the Cubs were nearing an agreement with free-agent catcher Carson Kelly on Monday. Details of the contract were not immediately known between Kelly and the Cubs, who have not confirmed the potential deal.

Kelly would join Miguel Amaya as the Cubs¡¯ top catching options, giving manager Craig Counsell flexibility to distribute playing time more evenly, as opposed to a traditional starter-backup setup. That was the conceptual goal for the Cubs as they tackled the catching situation this winter.

After a handful of other free-agent catching options came off the board -- Travis d¡¯Arnaud (Angels), Kyle Higashioka (Rangers) and Danny Jansen (Rays), among them -- Kelly looked like the logical target for the North Siders.

In the name of depth, the Cubs also swung a deal in November to acquire Matt Thaiss from the Angels. Thaiss is out of Minor League options, adding a complicating factor for Chicago to sort out before next season.

The Cubs also have a bat-first catching prospect in Moises Ballesteros (Pipeline¡¯s No. 4 Cubs prospect and No. 44 on the Top 100 list), but he is still only 21 years old and profiles more as a designated hitter and part-time catcher. While Ballesteros could push for an MLB debut in 2025, he is not part of the immediate plans.

Amaya, who will turn 26 in March, enjoyed a strong offensive finish (.761 OPS in the second half) to his season, but still has room to grow as an everyday catcher. He also hit .163 (.462 OPS) against left-handed pitching, so finding a catcher to help balance the workload and production made sense for the Cubs.

Kelly hit .302 (.806 OPS) in a limited sample (49 plate appearances) against lefty pitching last season, while batting .227 (.655 OPS) against right-handers. Overall, the 30-year-old catcher hit .238/.313/.374 with nine homers and 37 RBIs in 91 games between stints with the Tigers and Rangers last season.

Defensively, Kelly turned in above-average numbers across the board last season. Per Statcast, he posted a fielding run value of four overall, with one framing run, two caught-stealing runs and one blocking run to his credit. Kelly threw out would-be base-stealers at a 26.3% clip last season.

Kelly has appeared in parts of nine seasons in his career between stops with the Cardinals, D-backs, Tigers and Rangers, hitting .224 (.681 OPS) overall. His best offensive season came in 2019, when the catcher belted 18 homers and put up an .826 OPS in 111 games with Arizona.