Brewers acquire Jonathan Villar from Astros

The Brewers have acquired shortstop Jonathan Villar from the Astros in exchange for right-hander Cy Sneed, according to a team announcement. The deal is the first between Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and his former assistant David Stearns, who is the new general manager in Milwaukee.

Villar, who played five positions for Houston last season and is primarily a shortstop and third baseman, was expendable due to Carlos Correa and Luis Valbuena holding down the left side of the infield for Houston. He will likely receive more playing time in Milwaukee, where Elian Herrera is projected as the club's starting third baseman and Jean Segura is the shortstop.

In 53 games for Houston last season, Villar hit a solid .284/.339/.414 with two home runs while seeing time at shortstop, third base, second base, center field and left field. He is a veteran of three major-league seasons with Houston and is a lifetime .236/.300/.353 hitter.

Sneed, 23, was the Brewers' 3rd-round pick in the 2014 draft but was not ranked by MLB.com as one of the organization's top 30 prospects at the time of the deal. The 6-foot-4 right-hander spent his season split between Single-A Wisconsin and High-A Brevard County, posting a 2.58 ERA in 26 appearances (24 starts).