Brandon Phillips Traded to Angels; Braves Get Prospect Tony Sanchez

The Los Angeles Angels remained aggressive Thursday, acquiring veteran second baseman Brandon Phillips in a trade with the Atlanta Braves, the Braves announced.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic was the first to report the deal which also sees Angels minor leaguer Tony Sanchez head to Atlanta.

"This was harder than leaving the Reds," Phillips said of the trade, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com.

Los Angeles also announced a trade for Justin Upton from the Detroit Tigers earlier Thursday.

Aug. 31 represents the last day for clubs to add players who can be eligible for the playoffs. With the Angels sitting just 1.5 games back of the second wild-card spot through Thursday's action, it makes sense for them to be aggressive.

Phillips might not be the elite two-way player he was in his prime, but he was in the midst of a solid first season with the Braves. In 120 games, the 36-year-old hit .291 with 11 home runs, 27 doubles and 52 RBI.

Rosenthal reported earlier in the day the veteran was considering using his no-trade clause to veto the trade, although Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports outlined his reasons to leave:

The second baseman—who spent 11 years with the Cincinnati Reds before an offseason trade to Atlanta—eventually decided to accept the deal shortly before the deadline.

With the Angels' disappointing second base corps of Danny Espinosa, Cliff Pennington and Kaleb Cowart, Phillips could help solidify the position. The team's .196 batting average from the position is easily the worst in the majors, per ESPN.

Meanwhile, the Braves add organizational depth with Sanchez, a 29-year-old catcher who has hit .259 in 51 major league games. The former first-round pick is hitting .272 with four home runs for the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees.