The Milwaukee Brewers acquired outfielder Carlos Gomez from the Minnesota Twins on Friday in exchange for shortstop J.J. Hardy.

Gomez, 23, just finished his second season with the Twins after coming to Minnesota via the Mets in the trade that sent perennial Cy Young Award candidate Johan Santana to New York. In 137 games for the AL Central champion Twins in 2009, Gomez batted .229 with a .287 on-base percentage, three homers and 28 runs batted in.

"Carlos brings to our club great speed, athleticism and energy at a position that we needed to fill," said Brewers general manager Doug Melvin. "His defense will serve as a key component to us improving our pitching. At only (23) years of age, Carlos can further develop the offensive aspect of his game and give us a different look to our lineup."

Hardy, 27, heads to Minnesota after an embattled season in Milwaukee that saw him sent to the minors. An All-Star in 2007, Hardy, who has spent his entire five-year career with the Brewers, batted just .229 with 11 homers and 47 RBI in 115 games this season.

"J.J. has been a steady performer for the Brewers," Melvin said. "His professionalism and popularity with our fans and his teammates made this difficult, but he has been given the opportunity to go to a great organization to play and perform at the high level he is capable of playing."

The Twins are hoping Hardy will be able to replicate his offensive output from 2007 and 2008, when he hit a combined 50 home runs and had 154 RBI. Minnesota may be in need of a starting shortstop for 2010, as Orlando Cabrera is set to become a free agent.

Milwaukee has several young infield prospects who may have made this deal possible, as Alcides Escobar and Mat Gamel both saw significant playing time down the stretch in 2009.

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