Washington Nationals Acquire RHP Brian Bruney From New York Yankees.

The Washington Nationals broke the ice at the Winter Meetings, pulling off the first trade by acquiring right-handed reliever Brian Bruney from the New York Yankees in exchange for a PTBNL. Bruney, a D-Backs' Draft pick from 2000, who was released by Arizona in 2006 and signed by New York, is the second member of the '00 Diamonbacks' Draft Class to join the Nationals this winter along with LHP Doug Slaten who signed earlier this fall. Both pitchers were drafted by Arizona while current DC GM Mike Rizzo was the D-Backs' scouting director. 

Here's what Ed Valentine of the SB Nation's New York Yankees blog, Pinstripe Alley, had to say about the newest addition to the Nationals' bullpen:

"I think the Brian Bruney acquisition is a very good one for the Nationals. Bruney in a very hard thrower with a high ceiling. At times the past couple of seasons, he has performed well enough to be the Yankees' primary setup man. At other times, he has been so terrible I wished he would disappear.Thing is, for a team like the Nationals he is a great gamble. He is still only 27, has pitched in a lot of big, pressure situations and when he is good, he is dominating. The Yankees have never been able to harness his ability consistently, and the Nationals are in a position where maybe they can be more patient with him if/when he struggles. No real down side to this move for Washington. At least none I can see."

Thanks, Ed. 

• More on Bruney, an XM interview with Jim Riggleman and any other news out the Winter Meetings later today.

• Check Out The Washington Post's Dan Steinberg's D.C. Sports Bog post on an XM interview Former DC GM Jim Bowden conducted with Stan Kasten this afternoon...

• I'll keep updating things in the Twitter Post I put up this morning until then...