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AP: 82f1d121-78c3-420c-80b2-259376add670
Houston Astros' Chris Johnson celebrates as he heads to home plate for a run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Friday, July 27, 2012, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Kayne)

The Arizona Diamondbacks have acquired third baseman Chris Johnson from the Houston Astros in exchange for minor league outfielders Marc Krauss and Bobby Borchering.

"If you look at his numbers they've been pretty consisent numbers over the years," D-backs General Manager Kevin Towers said. "He's got power and I think this ballpark will help him."

The 27-year-old third baseman hit .279 with eight home runs and 41 RBI in 92 games with Houston this season. He ranked second on the Astros in RBI and third in batting average.

"A lot of people talk about his similarity to [San Diego Padres third baseman Chase] Headley, except he's not a switch-hitter," D-backs manager Kirk Gibson said before Sunday's game against the Mets. "He's had a pretty good season and he's still fairly young. We see a lot of potential in him."


The 6'3", 222-pound right-hander is a career .274 hitter with 26 home runs and 136 RBI in 304 games with the Astros from 2009-2012.

The D-backs, who have struggled to find the answer at the hot corner this season, hope Johnson can fill the void going forward.

"We believe he's going to help us obviously, make us a stronger and better team," Gibson said. "There's room for improvement. We like to think if we could plug him into a good environment that he would get even better."

Krauss hit .283 with 15 home runs and 61 RBI in 104 games with Double-A Mobile, while Borchering combined to hit .247 with 20 longballs and 68 RBIs in 102 games between Single-A Visalia and Double-A Mobile.

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    Rainex80 wrote...
    not bad...
    We can go back to Willie/Mcdonald swapping short, johnson 3rd with wheeler relief. Goldschmit and Hill everyday from here on out. Need to make the move. I would really like for Gibby to get a set outfield rotation because I feel at times, Parras energy on the bench hurts rather than helps. Time to gain on the two ontop with a big series with LA coming up.
  • Abuse
    Rainex80 wrote...
    then again
    just remembered drew is still there. Were screwed.
  • Abuse
    mostpatriotic wrote...
    Not bad
    This is not a bad pick up. The BA and OBA look good. Problem is, his numbers against LA and SF SUCK in a big way. Maybe, with a better line up than what he had in Houston these numbers will improve. Again, he is not a bad pick up. I like the 274 BA. He looks steady.
  • Abuse
    the cooker wrote...
    Bad Feeling
    Got a bad feeling Towers is getting ready to ship Willie out of town because nobody is ready to take Drew off his hands
  • Abuse
    mesadude wrote...
    keep willie !!!
    they better not think about shipping willie...kinda disappointed they just gave drew his position back....maybe it's cuz the money he makes....willie should be on the field every game....he did fine at third...not sure why they had to get this guy...
  • Abuse
    Erik J. wrote...
    Won't trade willie
    Drew is as good as gone this offseason, even if they don't trade him. Willie is here to stay if he wants to.
  • Abuse
    DrSublime wrote...
    ehh
    I don't like giving up Borchering for a mediocre third baseman, its clearly a need, but giving up your best power hitter in the minors for a so-so player is never a smart idea long term. That said, he's an upgrade over any 3B on the roster right now.
  • Abuse
    Jarrod P. wrote...
    Great Move
    This guys is good for 20+ 80+ a year, especially at Chase. They need to move Drew for anything they can get at this point. Drew sucks anyway. They need to move Drew, Putz, Bloomquist, Young.. That would make this fan happy..
  • Abuse
    DrSublime wrote...
    @ Jarrod P
    20/80 a year? how are you projecting this, the guy career highs are 11/52 He only projects out at 13/64 this year and he's not he best defender at third by a long shot.
  • Abuse
    Sca8 wrote...
    Bochering
    Bobby Bochering is pretty much a minor league Mark Renolds so yeah
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