Yankees acquire Anna from Padres

It wasn't really the second-base news Yankees fans were expecting to see Wednesday.

New York acquired Dean Anna from San Diego in exchange for right-handed pitcher Ben Paullus and added Anna to their 40-man roster in advance of the midnight deadline.

Anna, who has been with the Padres since being selected by the club in the 26th round of the 2008 Draft, is coming off his finest season as a pro, leading the Pacific Coast League with a .331 average for Triple-A Tucson. The 26-year-old second baseman finished third with a .410 on-base percentage and fourth with 240 total bases.

Anna was also one of the better defensive players on the circuit, posting a .982 fielding percentage in 72 games at second and a .979 fielding percentage in 60 games at shortstop.

In six Minor League seasons, Anna has batted .286 with an .810 OPS while slugging 40 homers and scoring 332 runs.

With All-Star Robinson Cano currently a free agent and shortstop Derek Jeter coming off a year in which he played just 17 games, Anna provides depth up the middle for the Yankees.

Paullus, a 19th-rounder in 2011, spent the season working out of the bullpen for Class A Charleston and Class A Advanced Tampa. The University of Memphis product was 6-3 with nine saves while posting a 3.01 ERA in 38 Minor League games. He struck out 66 batters in 71 2/3 innings and held batters to a .222 average.

In addition to Anna, the Yankees also added top prospect Gary Sanchez, No. 7 Slade Heathcott, No. 14 Jose Campos, No. 18 Bryan Mitchell and righty Shane Greene to their 40-man roster.