NEW YORK (AP) – The New York Yankees acquired pitcher Shawn Chacon from the Colorado Rockies for a pair of minor leaguers on Thursday night, filling the opening in their injury-ravaged rotation.

In exchange for Chacon, a 27-year-old right-hander, the Rockies get Ramon Ramirez and Eduardo Sierra.

Chacon was an All-Star for the Rockies in 2003, when he had 11 wins at the All-Star break. But he didn’t get another victory and finished 11-8 with a 4.60 ERA.

Colorado moved him to the bullpen the following year and while he had 35 saves, he also had nine blown saves to go along with a 1-9 record and a 7.11 ERA.

He is 1-7 with a 4.09 ERA this year in 12 starts and one relief appearance.

Chacon has not won since beating the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 23 in his third start of the season. He strained a hamstring running the bases May 26 and was on the disabled list from June 3 to July 6 because of the injury.

Chacon’s last outing was Sunday at Pittsburgh, and the Yankees hope to start him Saturday against the Los Angeles Angels.

“It is hard to put it out of your mind,” Chacon said of trade rumors after a loss at Washington on July 19. “It is hard not to think about it.”

With Byung-Hyun Kim starting and Aaron Cook due back this weekend from blood clots in his lungs, Chacon became expendable.

He joins a rotation that includes Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina along with newcomers Al Leiter and Aaron Small. New York hopes to get Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright back from shoulder injuries in the next few weeks.

Sierra, 23, was acquired by the Yankees in December 2003 in the deal that sent pitcher Chris Hammond to Oakland. With a fastball clocked at 94-96 mph, the 6-foot-3 reliever had 28 saves last year for Tampa in the Class-A Florida State League and is 3-1 with a 3.28 ERA and two saves this year for Trenton in the Double-A Eastern League. He struck out 50 in 57 2-3 innings.

Ramirez, also 23, began the season with Triple-A Columbus of the International League. After going 1-3 with a 5.33 ERA in six starts, he was demoted to Trenton on May 7 and went 6-5 with a 3.84 ERA in 15 starts. The Yankees acquired him from the Hiroshima Carp of Japan’s Central League two years ago for $350,000.

AP-ES-07-28-05 2208EDT