As they try to make up for the loss of Endy Chavez, the Seattle Mariners acquired outfielder Ryan Langerhans from the Washington Nationals in exchange for AAA utilityman Mike Morse.

It's likely Langerhans, 29, will join the Mariners in New York before Tuesday's game there to give manager Don Wakamatsu more options off his bench.

"That's possible, but this is a Triple-A trade," general manager Jack Zduriencik said. "At this point, Langerhans will report to Tacoma. He can play all three outfield positions, as well as first base. He adds to the depth in our system."

Langerhans is a 6-foot-3, 220-pound left-handed hitting outfielder who was batting .278 with 9 home runs and 40 RBI in 64 games.

The deal signals two things: The Mariners know they need an outfielder not named Wladimir Balentien an they don't think anyone in their minor league system is quite ready yet.

Langhans has spent part of seven season with the Braves, Athletics and Nationals, playing 474 big-league games and batting .233 with 24 home runs and 105 RBI.

Langerhans was originally a third-round draft pick by the Atlanta Braves in the June, 1998 draft.

Morse was hitting .312 10 home runs and 52 RBI in 66 games with the Rainiers this season. In parts of the past four seasons with Seattle Morse batted .300 3 home runs and 37 RBI in 107 games.

He first came to Seattle in the Freddy Garcia trade with the White Sox, and while he hit well, this spring fell into disfavor with the new manager and coaching staff.