Indians acquire outfielder Chris Dickerson from Pirates

The Indians added necessary outfield depth this afternoon in trading for outfielder Chris Dickerson from the Pittsburgh Pirates for future considerations. The Indians will either give up cash or a player-to-be-named-later.

Dickerson, 32, has 314 games of major league experience with a healthy .262/.339/.406 batting line. He has played for four different MLB teams, the Reds, Brewers, Yankees and Orioles.

This season for Triple-A Indianapolis he was batting .309/.407/.479. In his 65 games, he has 15 doubles, seven homers and 12 steals. The Indianapolis Star’s Mark Ambrogi recently profiled the International League All-Star representative.

The move was helpful for the Indians who also announced some injury updates today. Michael Bourn’s MRI revealed a “mild to moderate hamstring strain” and he’ll be out at least 3-4 weeks. Bourn was placed on the DL on Friday, initially for Columbus outfielder Tyler Holt.

In addition, Nyjer Morgan rehab was stalled and he’s getting a second opinion on his injured right knee. Morgan was initially placed on the disabled list on May 15, then transferred to the 60-day list.

Dickerson is just another replacement bat to provide short-term depth and assistance. He had been frustrated about not getting an opportunity at the big league level with Pittsburgh. A left-handed bat, he’s sure to get occasional at-bats for Cleveland in a backup role.

Of course, the Indians and Pirates are common trade partners. Pittsburgh’s GM Neal Huntington worked in the Cleveland system worked for a decade before his hire in 2007. The teams swapped Jeanmar Gomez and outfielder Quincy Latimore back in January 2013.

Update: To make room on the 25-man roster, the Indians designated catcher George Kottaras for assignment.

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Photo: Kim Klement, USA TODAY Sports