Rotation help looked like a potential area of deadline focus for the Brewers even heading into the season, and that was before a veritable avalanche of injuries left their starting staff in shambles. Milwaukee currently has Wade Miley, Jakob Junis, Robert Gasser, DL Hall and Joe Ross on the big league injured list alongside Brandon Woodruff. Miley (Tommy John surgery) and Woodruff (2023 shoulder surgery) won’t pitch again this season.
That series of health woes has left Milwaukee with a patchwork rotation comprised that features only three set members at the moment: staff ace Freddy Peralta, journeyman Colin Rea and swingman-turned-starter Bryse Wilson. The Brewers announced earlier today that righty Tobias Myers will start tonight’s game and has since optioned lefty Aaron Ashby to Triple-A (clearing way for the selection of righty James Meeker’s contract). They’ll feature plenty of “TBA”s in the near future when looking at upcoming pitching matchups.
Incredibly, the Brewers are not only still in first place but have a relatively commanding 5.5-game lead over the division at the moment. Still, it’s wholly unsurprising to see FanSided’s Robert Murray suggest that starting pitching will be a major point of focus for Milwaukee’s front office in the weeks leading up to next month’s trade deadline. Murray writes that the Brewers “considered” righty Mike Clevinger in free agency before the 33-year-old re-signed with the White Sox on a one-year deal.
Milwaukee’s level of interest in Clevinger following four shaky White Sox starts and an IL placement for elbow inflammation isn’t clear, but he’d be a reasonable low-cost pickup — both in terms of salary ($3MM base) and cost of acquisition. Clevinger has pitched 16 innings with a 6.75 ERA, a 19.2% strikeout rate and an 11.5% walk rate. He did not complete five innings in any of his four starts with the Sox prior to being placed on the 15-day IL in late May. There’s still seven weeks for him to get healthy and get back to his 2023 form, when he tossed 131 1/3 innings of 3.77 ERA ball (4.28 FIP, 4.81 SIERA). If Clevinger can indeed right the ship, the offseason interest from Milwaukee will be an interesting point to keep in mind, but for now the Brew Crew is surely trying to find more immediate upgrades.
Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel also writes within his latest mailbag that Milwaukee is likely to pursue pitching depth at the deadline. That’s only natural, but Hogg also fields multiple questions on the trade candidacy — or lack thereof — of Willy Adames. Milwaukee’s shortstop is just months from reaching the open market, and the Brewers have in the past been willing to trade from the big league roster in the midst of contending pushes as a means of stockpiling future talent. Their 2022 trade of Josh Hader, in particular, is the most prominent instance of this.
That said, Hogg paints a trade of Adames as unlikely, citing a recent interview with Brewers owner Mark Attanasio wherein he acknowledged that the team has not only received trade offers but compelling ones for Adames in the past — as recently as this offseason. “…[T]here may have been some merit to build for the future,” Attanasio said of the offers received for Adames. The club’s owner also touted Adames as one of the heartbeats of the clubhouse, however. And, as Hogg rightly notes, Adames is a slam-dunk qualifying offer candidate at season’s end — one who’ll surely sign a large enough contract to net the Brewers a comp pick at the end of the first round — if he indeed signs elsewhere.
The previously mentioned injury problems for the Brewers don’t stop in the rotation. Milwaukee has been without outfielder Garrett Mitchell and, even more critically, star closer Devin Williams all season. Young fireballer Abner Uribe took over some of Williams’ closing duties early in the season and had a strong start, tossing 12 1/3 innings with a 3.65 ERA, a 27% strikeout rate and three saves to begin the season. Uribe was torched for five runs in two-thirds of an inning against the Yankees in late April and gave up another run against the Rays three days later before being sent to Nashville to work shaky command that had led to a glaring 18.2% walk rate.
Now, however, Uribe is also on the shelf. He recently sustained a knee injury and was placed on the minor league injured list, general manager Matt Arnold revealed to MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. Uribe is slated to undergo an MRI next Tuesday, at which point the club will surely have further updates on his status.
Trading for a currently injured, and previously shelled starter seems like a typical Brewers move.
Brewers take on struggling players and make them serviceable. We have very good coaches who can tweak a players release point for a pitcher or approach at the plate and make them a contributing part of a perennial playoff team. I don’t see why you’re hating, Bruh. Oh wait I do, you hate on every team and troll every freaking post across the boards on Trade Rumors.
It’s hating that I don’t think acquiring an already injured pitcher to supposedly help a depleted pitching staff is a wise move?
Wait, this isn’t about the Reds–still ignoring them, eh?
Northern Midwest Bias!!
Frankly I like what the Brewers are doing. They are seeing if the young guys are capable. For everyone of these young pitchers work out it saves us 2 or 3 young players in trades
If the Brewers can keep Peralta, Rea, Wilson and Ashby healthy and promote Rodriguez, that’s not a bad staff.
No reason to pick up some garbage acquisition.
Trading Adames for a quality arm and moving Ortiz to SS seems like the smart move.
UPDATE: Ashby was sent to the minors today for a 29 year old MEEKER who has no pro record.
Meeker has been pitching professionally since 2018.
WARNING WARNIG WARNING: Brewers running out of ML stating pitching. Time to trade for a couple of Starters for Willy!. Sorry for stealing the robot line on Lost in Space from the 1960’s
Trevor Bauer is still available…
Thankfully…
Simp
Get Jose Quintana or Sean Manaea and reacquire Adrian Houser from the Mets for a mid-range prospect and a lottery ticket.
On the reacquiring Houser. The guy is not only struggling 6+ ERA but he is also essentially a one pitch pitcher. His sinker that he throws almost 50% of the time has lost velocity this year and grades out as below average this year. Unfortunately for him it was the only pitch in his arsenal that has ever graded out as above average. So now he has all be low average pitches and the stats back it up. Would rather not bring him back unless the Brewers can magically add like 1.2mph back on his sinker.
I feel like trading Adames for a plethora of top prospects would exceptional. Slide Ortiz over to short and give Black some time at 3rd. If we could say get with the Dodgers for Rushing, Frasso, and Ferris. By all means, let him go.