Yankees Acquire Dean Anna From San Diego

(Courtesy of Val Valdez Photography)

It's not in the same universe as trading for Chase Headley, but the Yankees and Padres hooked up for a small trade yesterday that does bring a little more infield depth to the Yankee roster.  The Yanks acquired MiL infielder Dean Anna from San Diego in exchange for High-A pitcher Ben Paullus.

Anna is a 26-year-old, lefty-swinging utility infielder who has most of his experience at second base and shortstop.  He had been in the SD system since 2008 and worked a slow and methodical climb up the ladder until he reached Triple-A last season.  In 582 PA there, Anna hit .331/.410/.482 (.400 wOBA) with 9 HR, 38 2B, 90 R scored, and solid BB and K rates (10.5% and 11.2% respectively).

He's never been much of a power guy and will likely be even less of one at the Major League level, but Anna does appear to be a step up from Corban Joseph, the player whose spot he essentially took on the 40-man roster.  He can play more positions defensively, and the fact that shortstop is one of them suggests he's got a better arm than CoJo.  While I wouldn't anticipate Anna seriously factoring into any 25-man roster competitions, he's a nice utility piece to have on hand in case of injuries.