While on the hunt for a starting pitcher, Brewers general manager Doug Melvin decided to give his offense a boost today by trading for Arizona second baseman Felipe Lopez.

Melvin sent Class AAA Nashville outfielder Cole Gillespie and Class A Brevard County reliever Roque Mercedes to the Diamondbacks for Lopez, who should help fill the void created when second baseman Rickie Weeks was lost for the season with a wrist injury in mid-May.

Manager Ken Macha has struggled to find a right-handed hitter to put atop his lineup when the Brewers faced lefties, so the switch-hitting Lopez will fill that gap, also. Left-handed hitting Craig Counsell had been playing second base against right-handed pitching.

Lopez, 29, is batting .301 with 18 doubles, six homers, 25 RBI and a .367 OBP for the D-Backs. He is batting .313 from the right side of the plate and .298 left-handed. He is expected to join the Brewers tomorrow in Pittsburgh.

Lopez entered play Sunday ranked second in the NL with a .372 OBP from the top spot in the batting order. He is a free agent after the season