When the Blue Jays traded Rowdy Tellez to the Brewers in June 2021, the move was mostly seen as a depth addition to stabilize first base after slugger Daniel Vogelbach went down with a hamstring injury. Now, over a year since that trade was completed, Tellez has blossomed into a righty-masher, posting a .222/.303/.498 (117 wRC+) slash line against right-handed pitchers in 2022, with a collective .219/.307/.462 line and 35 homers against all competition.
On the heels of such a productive season, Tellez will garner some trade interest. Predicted to earn only $5.3MM in his second trip through the arbitration process, Tellez projects as an affordable option in a thin first base market (recently analyzed by MLBTR’s Anthony Franco). Besides José Abreu, Josh Bell, potentially Anthony Rizzo if he executes his opt-out, and a few veterans coming off down years, there are few first basemen available that provide power similar to Tellez.
As for the Brewers, while they do not currently have any top prospects at first base, ranked by MLB.com, former Brewers’ top prospect Keston Hiura does not have a clear starting spot. Willy Adames and Luis Urías are penciled in as the starting shortstop and third baseman, respectively, and Kolten Wong is patrolling Hiura’s natural position, second base, with prospect Brice Turang waiting in the wings if the Brewers decline Wong’s club option this offseason. With a crowded infield, the Brewers may be forced with the tough call of starting Hiura, who hit .226/.316/.449 in 80 games last season, and trading Tellez, or potentially moving on from Hiura due to the logjam.
If the Brewers decide to trade Tellez, some teams that might be interested in the slugger include the Houston Astros and the San Francisco Giants.
The Astros relied on Yuli Gurriel to hold down first base during the 2022 season, but the 38-year-old, who will turn 39 during the 2023 season, showed signs of decline, hitting a meager .242/.288/.360 in 146 games. It’s a far cry from the strong .319/.383/.462 line the righty posted in the 2021 season, and more akin to his weaker, pandemic-shortened 2020 showing in which he hit .232/.274/.384 in 57 games. Internally, the Astros have Yainer Díaz and Joe Perez as potential heirs to Gurriel. Both players made their MLB debut in 2022, but neither progressed through the minor league system as first basemen. Díaz, who hit .294/.343/.587 in Triple-A Sugar Land this past season split time at catcher and first, after beginning his minor league career as a catcher. Perez spent time at the other corner infield position, third base, but is blocked by All-Star Alex Bregman. Perez spent the majority of the 2022 season at Doble-A Corpus Christi where he slashed .265/.355/.397 in 64 games.
The Giants primarily used a combination of Brandon Belt and Wilmer Flores at first base this past season. The lefty Belt hit an underwhelming .213/.326/.350 and underwent season-ending surgery on his right knee while the righty Flores hit a slightly stronger .229/.316/.394. With Belt a free agent, the Giants could trade for Tellez to platoon with utility man Wilmer Flores. However, the Giants may opt to bring back Belt in hopes of a rebound season after he slashed an impressive .274/.378/.597 during the 2021 season.
This guy always kills the Red Sox, I would kind of like seeing him mash for, rather than against us
While I think banning the shift will help lefties a bit, tellez is still a slow base to base and limited defensively. Nobody is trading for that in today’s baseball, not at that salary.
I always laughed when everyone’s best argument for the DH was look at free agency how many of these fat loafs would be signed if there was a DH? Ummm like none.
Have you seen Tellez play defense?
He is pretty good.
Boston needs pitching and outfield help.
Limited defender ei only 1b the lowest position on the defensive spectrum
“I always laughed when everyone’s best argument for the DH was look at free agency how many of these fat loafs would be signed if there was a DH? Ummm like none.”
I could’ve sworn that Vogelbach signed a free agent contract with the Pirates and appeared in the postseason with the Mets.
Because the Red Sox need a 4th 1B/DH?
I never said I hope the Red Sox trade for him, or that he would fit, I simply stated that it would be fun to watch him play 81 games at Fenway, and that it would be nice to not have to face him
They called it a productive season lol
Given that he was third in HR (tied with Goldschmidt), eighth in RBI, 16th in Runs and 16th in wRC+ among qualified first basemen, maybe they were right.
It would be funny if they trade Tellez to the Mets for Vogelbach.
Had him already….don’t need to see him again in MKE
Bro that’s the joke…
He’s Chris Carter from the left side. Astros are fine with their minor league options.
Probably won’t happen but I’d like to take a look at Hensley there because of his height.
I wonder how much eliminating the shift is going to help batting averages. .222 is not good.
Nor was his OBA.
His walk rate was over 10%, which is pretty good. If you add 50 points to his BA, his OBP would be .353, which is also pretty good.
If you add 50 points to a lot of players BA…they’ll look pretty good.
The point I was trying to make is that the difference between his BA and OBP is more significant than his raw OBP. He had a good walk rate.
.222 is as good as .300 to a lot of people these days. Seriously..
This could also be a landing spot for Yeli. There’s 3 OF pushing for MLB playing time and they are going to need a spot soon
I’m not sure anyone is going to trade for Yelich. The Brewers would have to cover part of his salary and/or include prospects. Don’t see that happening…
I think he means Yelich could land at 1st base.
Yelich almost surely learns to play some 1B in 2023.
Maybe even learn 3B as well.
Ah ok lol. Makes sense then.
I could see 1B potentially…Possibly… But a career outfielder learning/switching to 3B? Were they previously discussing such a possibility??
I don’t see Yelich learning anything new. He’s forgotten half of what he did know, and DH’ing almost seemed to be too much effort for him at times this year.
I’ll take Rowdy over Hiura. He (still) only hit within a week after each recall from AAA. And his defense at 1st was bad. Rowdy has limited range but he at least can take a iffy throw..and with Urias and Adames out there, it happens tok often.
Have you seen him throw? No way the ball makes it from 3rd to 1st on the fly in time to beat anyone except a few catchers
You do realize he is a gold glove finalist this year? I think his ability to throw a baseball is probably good.
You’d be wrong. He routinely lobbed balls in that allowed runners to score from second or singles stretched to doubles that never should have happened.
They put him in LF for a reason, and you know those things are all about name recognition. He should not be in any serious conversation about awards this year and I think he’d agree. He’s got a lot of work to do to live up to the contract he signed.
I’m not disagreeing that he doesn’t have the arm strength to play 3rd. I’m just saying he’s not Khris Davis out there either. The guy has thrown runners out at home this year.
I have never seen it done before. Outfielder converting to 3B later in his career. Anyone got historical examples??
Blind squirrels find nuts too. And Angel Hernández occasionally gets a call right. I wouldn’t ask the squirrel to drive a car, or Hernández to work the World Series.
Lol this might be one of my favorite replies I’ve read on here
I always loved how Angel Hernandez was on track to umpire in the 2018 WS before getting overturned three times at first base on video reviews during Game 3 of the ALDS.
Giants need to be like eff sentiment! It was great bumgarner didn’t retire with giants and neither of the Brandon’s need to retire giants if they want to keep playing beyond their current contracts! The only one who needed to retire a giant was buster and he actually went out strong and own his terms
Point is giants and the fans have no right or reason to want Brandon Belt back whatsoever ! Let him go the route of bumgarner, romo and linecum
Also wouldn’t mind outlawing sentimental decision making in sports
More like potential non tender candidate.
Huh? 35 home runs. Almost 100 rbi. He will be tendered. Do you even know baseball?
Apparently so. Have u seen his IQ ?
$5.3m.. idk maybe
Bat first firstbasemen are a dime a dozen he’s not a trade candidate. He’ll get offered a team friendly contract or non tendered. Speaking of power 1b’s wth happened to bobby Bradley he disappeared after being cut.
Rowdy Tellez vs. Cubs, Reds, Pirates: .920 OPS, 151 wRC+
Rowdy Tellez vs. EVERYONE ELSE: .681 OPS, 87 WC+
Everyone plays better vs the worst teams in baseball.
You’re right. And Rowdy Tellez plays like crap against all the others.
There’s like..57?..games vs those 3 teams though, so more than 1/3 of a season. Better than say 3 random AL teams he might face 8-10 games a year.
The Cubs pitching had a 103 ERA+ while St. Louis 101 and Milwaukee 104. They were below .500 because of their offense not their pitching.
I’ll never understand these articles… a righty masher at the insane avg of .220. But then someone else will go from .290 to .270 the next year and they call it an extremely disappointing season, so whack
It’s because it’s impossible to tell the quality season a batter had if you are only using batting average. You can be useless with a .270 BA or be one of the best players in the league with a .270.
But this masher is hitting .222! That should be the #9 hitter in every lineup, and typically that’s your catcher! When your best BA on the team is .255, there is something seriously wrong with your roster. That’s bush league.
I’m hopeful the end of the shift brings sanity back to offensive philosophy, at least for the Crew…
It’ll still be ‘swing for the fences or strike out, but whatever you do, DON’T BUNT (…until September and we’re 8 GB of the final wild card…).’
Grisham laid down a pretty ballsy bunt for SD in the 9th. 2 outs but put runners on 2nd and 3rd and a mere hit away from living to see another day. I don’t know who called the bunt, or if Grisham did it himself but it was smart and gutsy.
Again, those averages mean nothing without context. What if it’s .222 with a .950 OPS?
Do many players have that sort of slash line? Who?
I say trade Tellez to San Francisco for Villar. Move Yellich to first and DH. Yellich was drafted as a firstbaseman. Huira at DH with Renfroe at DH and RF.
stubby66 — You’re dreaming if you think the Giants would trade Villar for Tellez.
Too bad they can’t DH everyone. Also too bad they don’t have anyone who can hit consistently.
Rowdy Tellez can hit consistently???
The Brewers need LH hitters, preferably lead off hitters but Rowdy Tellez should not be traded.
not so fast on Urias playing third
eddiemathews;
If you could get his brother from the Orioles…..
We’ve seen enough of Urias. He’s not living up to his potential. Trade Tellez for a 3rd baseman and a prospect.
Is his nick name “piper”? Does he wear a kilt on the mound? I need answers
Odds of Tellez being traded. Zero point zero point zero point zero………
A 1b that bats 17% above league average against righties, is a “righty masher”?
For context: That put him 74th among players with 300 or more PAs in 2022.
OK, so Tellez splits are .222/.303/.498 against righties and that’s called “mashing”… and they are reluctant to replace him with someone with .226/.316/.449 splits overall?
The someone with the .226/.316/.449 overall struck out 50% of the time, and the majority of his “good” offense came within 7-10 days of the multiple recalls from AAA…and he was sent down multiple times because…he struck out 50% of the time.
Oh, and his defense at 1st (or anywhere) is the kind that makes me close my eyes every time a ball is hit or thrown his way. Translation: it’s not good.
No, the writers on this site constantly try to use adjectives incorrectly in these articles. I suppose no one above them cares, so I don’t blame them.
I don’t see many teams who need Tellez more than the Brewers.
At 3.5 mill 35 dingers, no brainer for a team with no other viable option at 1B.
Funny, he actually out homered Vladdy
How hard is it to find a guy that’s going to provide .8 fwar in 600 pas? I’d imagine you could probably do it for less than 3.5m rather easily.
I read a lot of Brewers voices and this is the first I’ve heard of him being a trade candidate. No rumors even on Twitter. Seems like HEAVY speculation on this writer’s part.
With how rough the Brewers offense has been (if it weren’t for some big games vs. Cincy and Pittsburgh last year, they’re a below-average offense), plus how affordable he is for 30+ HR, why would the Brewers trade him? He wouldn’t get you a big prospect load like their pitching surplus would, even if they’re more expensive in arbitration.
Burnes and Woodruff are by far the more notable trade candidates on that roster.
It’s a rumor site, and the off-season (for the Brewers). It also doesn’t mean he IS a trade candidate, just that because MKE is…cheap…and has other options, they might decide to see what his value is in the trade market.
If it makes you happy I’m sure there will be an article coming soon about Burnes and Woodruff. Heck, might be a separate story for each guy. Possibly a couple of the racing sausages and, if we’re lucky, 1 for Sophia Dingbat.
Sophia Minnaert is really good, what’s your problem with her?
Replacing her actual name with dingbat isn’t self explanatory enough for you? OK, she’s a dingbat. If you need more, how about the excessive use of “he said” in every report she gives?
lol that’s all you got? What a piddly reason to dislike someone. She’s the only reporter I’ve ever seen (at least for WI teams, anyway) who is fluent in Spanish and can interview and translate for Latino players. That makes an MVP sideline reporter IMO.
Did I say you aren’t allowed to like her? No, I said I don’t. Also, I don’t need your approval to dislike her, or why.
For the record, I think sideline reporters (and their reports), in general, are irrelevant.
No, you didn’t say that. You just insulted her. Personal attacks are whack.
Plus you don’t have a good, constructive reason to dislike her. Methinks it’s hard for you to see a woman who’s good at her job. Or did you stalk her on Twitter and she blocked you? I’m betting it’s the latter. Try slipping in someone else’s DMs, kid.
You don’t get it, I don’t need a “good, constructive reason” to like, dislike, or not care either way.
If I think she’s good at her job, I’ll say so. I don’t. And I don’t care that she’s bilingual since I rarely if ever listen to interviews with players who speak Spanish (or English either), by her or anyone else
I’ve never been on Twitter, never will be.
What’s “whack” is you throwing a hissy fit at the writer’s “HEAVY speculation” regarding the idea of Rowdy being a trade candidate (because, you know, Twitter didn’t say anything about it..), then going completely off the deep end making assumptions about me, AND being dumb enough to bet on it.
Yes, you do need a constructive reason to dislike someone. Like I don’t like you, because you clearly have some misogynistic and racist tendencies. You don’t care that someone can speak Spanish? Think that’s not notable?
Assumptions my rear end. This is all obvious and an easy bet. You getting all defensive when someone points out your biases because—gasp—they show how garbage your true character is…. that proves my point. You insulting a woman who is way more successful, knows more about baseball, and just generally is smarter than you proves that you have zero to offer in life and have deep insecurities about being inadequate as a man. Typical stuff. You’re just like millions of slobs.
Enjoy your white incel bubble. Meatloaf is ready upstairs kid.
“Hissy fit” lmao as if I’m the only one in here who thinks this speculation about Rowdy is misplaced.
Honestly I wonder if this writer has some other agenda in trying to start Rowdy trade rumors.
The title of the article quite literally is Trade **Candidate**. They are speculating that Tellez could potentially be a piece who could be moved, and if so, which teams ge could be a fit for. So congratulations on picking up that they are speculating, not reporting.
You clearly don’t think Tellez should be moved, that’s fine. Doesn’t mean the author doesn’t bring up points that make one consider whether or not a Tellez trade is feasible given roster construction and salary. Which clearly was the intention of their article.
But you’re right. No trades are ever made without it first being written about by “team’s voices” or rumored about on Twitter. Never any surprise trades that people didn’t see coming. That doesn’t happen in baseball…
We found the author’s burner.
Seriously how thirsty are you that you feel the need to white knight for the author just because I said it was “speculation?” It’s not like I insulted his family or something.
By your logic, any player is a trade candidate because they can just speculate baselessly. The fact that there’s no buzz around someone is more likely to mean they aren’t a trade candidate than they are. Yes, players are traded out of the blue, but the situation you’re referring to is the exception, not the rule.
When do you think they should write the “Julio Rodriguez: Trade Candidate” piece?
It’s just really funny how omniscient you are making yourself out to be.
The author’s goal was just to provide a player who could be traded that we might not otherwise be thinking about. Idk why that’s such a bad thing to write about.
I don’t believe anywhere did the author claim Tellez is the Brewers’ player most likely to be traded. Nor is it bad to write about such a thing.
Idk why you always feel the need to be “right” on almost every thread you comment in.
Have a great day, Ben.
I think it’s odd to write something like this where there’s little basis, especially when there are better trade candidates.
You decided to make this into a toxic issue when you started going after me. Cut this holier-than-thou attitude out: I can disagree with an author. I never attacked the author’s character. You did for some reason. Must be something up with you personally and I wish you luck with that.
lmfao. Reading your convo above with another commenter affirms what I’m trying to explain to you. Can’t tell me to not have this “holier than thou” attitude when you do the exact same thing above. Can’t have your cake and eat it too. Try having some humble pie instead.
Clearly this has no longer been productive to the original article, so I’m moving on. Take care.
Again, you parade around in here like your farts don’t stink. You prove that point further by for a second time saying “I’m moving on. Take care.” after you already told me “have a great day.” You just have to have the last word and try to gaslight me into believing that I’m pulling the self-righteous crap when it’s actually you.
You’re the lowest common denominator. Look at yourself in the mirror and recognize your shortcomings. Or just throw your computer and phone out the window so the world is better off.
All these points you refer to about a trade for Rowdy being feasible given roster construction and salary are way more applicable to Burnes and Woody, anyhow. The Brewers lack offense and depth at 1B, so the roster construction argument for trading Rowdy is a bad one. Meanwhile they have a pitching surplus and their two best starters are getting more expensive in arbitration. Roster construction and salary, as you suggest, but a lot stronger of an argument to be made in those aspects with Burnes and Woody that Rowdy.
PS. No one, probably not the author, would disagree about the likelihood of Woody or Burnes being moved compared to Tellez. But again, not the author’s point.
Brewers need LH offense and Tellez gives them that. If they don’t like his defense use him as a DH and sign a better defensive First Baseman but i wouldn’t trade affordable power with nothing to take his place
The Brewers are a money conscious team so the chances of them trading Tellez or very low given his production and expected salary next year.
That said, IF they were to consider trading him it would make more sense for a team like the Marlins or Royals who could use a cheap power infusion.
The Giants and Astros have more resources and can look at Josh Bell or Jose Abreau; they’re also loathe to trade from their prospect capital.
And lastly, why would the Brewers create a hole in their lineup and have to fill it with another unknown first baseman? They wouldn’t and they won’t.
I think this is spot on for why they won’t trade him. What do they do for less than or around $5M to replicate that production?
If they were in the market for Abreau, Bell, or Mancini, then it makes some sense because you’re upgrading and have a little surplus with Tellez, but I think financially if they flip him they would be limited to reclamation projects. I don’t really see the point in trading Tellez just to go out and sign someone like Colin Moran or Jesus Aguilar. Saves a few million but just makes the team worse.
Would he be a good fit for Cleveland?
They’re gonna non-tender Hiura, and it won’t be a tough call for them. They sent him down to AAA when he was the team’s hottest hitter. No way they’d move Rowdy to then put him in at 1B.
There is absolutely zero chance Tellez is traded this offseason. To make room for Hiura? Please. Look at the Brewer roster. Where would the LH power come from? Yelich? He has 23 HR in the last two seasons. A prospect? Both Mitchell and Frelick are good hitting prospects but neither is known for his power. There might not be anyone in baseball who could benefit more from the new shift rules more than Tellez. Are the Brewers too dumb to realize that. I think Tellez’ BA goes up 30 points just on that.