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Brewers Sign Brian Bruney

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The Brewers signed Brian Bruney to a minor league deal, according to Jen Royle of MASN.com (via Twitter). The deal has an opt-out in a month, so Bruney could be a free agent again before long. The Brewers seemed like a natural landing spot for Bruney when the Nationals released him last week. The righty refused a minor league assignment after being designated for assignment. 

Bruney, 28, walked more than a batter per inning in 19 appearances for the Nationals this year. Though he has never been a control pitcher, he had an acceptable walk rate as recently as 2008, when he posted a sub-2.00 ERA for the Yankees. For what it's worth, Bruney's fastball hasn't had as much pep as usual this year; he's averaging 92 mph, down from 94 mph last year.

Odds & Ends: Trembley, Konerko, Oswalt, Athletics

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Links for Tuesday, as Scott Rolen's big season continues…

Melvin On The Brewers’ Search For Pitching

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Brewers GM Doug Melvin told reporters that he asked his staff about Dontrelle Willis, but did not pursue the lefty, who the Tigers just sent to Arizona. Left-handers Chris Narveson, Chris Capuano and Randy Wolf make up three fifths of the team's rotation, so the club had minimal interest in Willis, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.

The Brewers are looking for pitching, however. McCalvy suggests Brian Bruney, who is now a free agent, could be an option for the club. The Brewers spent big on Doug Davis, Randy Wolf, Trevor Hoffman and LaTroy Hawkins last winter, but they still don't have enough pitching. Melvin told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he believes the team's signings can only be evaluated in context.

"What people don't understand is you have to look at availability," he said. "Not everybody wants to come here. Some players have no-trade clauses."

The Brewers contacted a number of teams about Claudio Vargas after designating him for assignment over the weekend, but have yet to receive trade offers for him, according to Haudricourt.

Four Teams Interested In Dontrelle Willis

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3:24pm: The Marlins will have to trade for Willis if they want to acquire him, according to Clark Spencer and Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald. Willis would prefer to play closer to the West Coast, so it seems unlikely that he would sign with the Marlins if he becomes a free agent.

12:52pm: At least four teams are interested in recently-designated Tigers lefty Dontrelle Willis, tweets Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post: the Diamondbacks, Mets, Brewers, and Marlins.

Arizona's interest was reported yesterday by Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, with agent Matt Sosnick noting that Willis would like to play there.  Andy Martino of the New York Daily News wrote that the Mets were not interested in Willis, while Capozzi termed the Marlins' interest in a reunion as "mild."  Today is the first we've heard of the Brewers.  At any rate, it appears that the 28-year-old southpaw will be traded rather than released.

Brewers Designate Adam Stern For Assignment

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The Brewers designated outfielder Adam Stern for assignment to make room for Kameron Loe, tweets MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.  The 30-year-old only appeared in six games.  Last year at Double and Triple A, Stern had a combined .285/.349/.377 line in 546 plate appearances.

Stern was chosen in the '05 Rule 5 draft by the Red Sox from the Braves, but injuries limited his playing time and he didn't fulfill his big league commitment until April of '06.  The Sox attempted to send him to the Orioles for Javy Lopez in August of that year, but the Rays put in a claim and forced Boston to wait until after the season.  The O's ultimately released Stern and the Brewers signed him in January of last year.

Brewers Will Call On Kameron Loe

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The Brewers are looking to improve their pitching staff, so they aren't about to let a potential solution hit free agency. They will call Kameron Loe up from the minor leagues tomorrow, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy. Loe had a clause in his contract that would have allowed him to ask for his release if he wasn't in the majors by Saturday, June 5th. 

The Brewers have yet to announce corresponding roster moves, but it looks like they'll cut a pitcher to make room for Loe. Jeff Suppan, in the midst of a disappointing season, could be the odd man out for the Brewers.

Loe, 28, last appeared in the majors in 2008 with the Rangers. He has a 3.16 ERA as a starter in Triple A this year with 5.6 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9. The Brewers signed Loe to a minor league deal this winter after he spent 2009 pitching in Japan.

Oliver Perez Trade Ideas

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After a look at our Bad Contract Swap Meet post, let's put on our speculating cap and try to find a trade that would work for the Mets and Oliver Perez.

Perez is owed $20.2MM through 2011.  He refused the Mets' minor league assignment and isn't helping the big league team.  Not only is he a project, he's one that must be tinkered with in the Majors.

Gary Matthews Jr.'s contract qualifies as equally bad, but he's already on the Mets.  A couple of Perez trade ideas:

  • Perez and $8.8MM to the Brewers for Jeff Suppan.  Suppan has $10.6MM left on his contract.  The Mets save $800K here, about $500K beyond what they'd get back if they released Perez and he signed elsewhere.  From the Brewers' point of view Perez at least has more upside than Suppan.  The lefty would be reunited with pitching coach Rick Peterson, who was Perez's guide during the pitcher's initial Mets resurgence.  The Brewers might require assurance that Perez would accept a minor league assignment in 2011 if necessary.
  • Perez and $10.5MM to the Royals for Jose Guillen and Kyle Farnsworth.  Guillen is owed $8.2MM, Farnsworth $3.6MM.  This scenario has the Mets taking on $2.1MM to acquire Guillen and Farnsworth, about $550K of which covers what the Royals might get after releasing the two players. 

Rosenthal On Diamondbacks, Hart, Rangers

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Let's dive into the latest edition of Full Count from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..

  • While Dan Haren's trade value isn't exactly peaking, the D'Backs have internally discussed moving the 29-year-old hurler.  Another option would be to move No. 2 starter Edwin Jackson.  The combined salary of the two pitchers is set to jump from roughly $12.8MM this season to $20.5MM in 2011.  That increase could be too much for Arizona to handle, even with Brandon Webb's salary coming off of the books.
  • The Brewers are once again drawing interest in outfielder Corey Hart.  The Giants, Padres, and A's are among the teams that could use a boost in the outfield and Milwaukee will seek starting pitching in return.  Rosenthal doesn't see the Giants as a fit because they won't part with any of their starters and their outfield situation has recently improved.  Meanwhile, the A's and Padres want to be comfortable with their overall health and chances before they make any moves.  If Jim Edmonds and Jody Gerut get healthy, Hart could be dealt.  Hart is under team control through 2011, should his team choose to tender him a contract.
  • The Rangers still believe that either Justin Smoak or Chris Davis will be their long-term answer at first base, but they could seek a veteran stopgap for the second half of the season.  Paul Konerko is likely too rich for their blood.  Cleveland's Russell Branyan would be a more economical solution.

Brewers Designate Claudio Vargas For Assignment

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Milwaukee has designated righthander Claudio Vargas for assignment, according to the Brewers' VP of Communications Tyler Barnes (via Twitter).  The move was made in order to accommodate the arrival of Chris Capuano, who was recalled from Triple-A Nashville.

In 19.2 innings this season, Vargas has a ERA of 7.32 with 8.2 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9.  For his career, the soon-to-be 32-year-old has a 4.83 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9.

Vargas, who has thrown his fastball at an average of 91.3 mph throughout his career has seen his velocity dip to just 86.5 mph this season.

Brewers Recall Chris Capuano

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The Brewers have summoned lefthander Chris Capuano to the big leagues, according to Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel. Capuano had an out clause in his contract that would have allowed him to become a free agent if was not in the big leagues by today.

The 31-year-old last pitched in the majors at the end of the 2007 season. He suffered an elbow injury in Spring Training of 2008, and eventually underwent the second Tommy John surgery of his career. In the three years prior to his injury, Capuano posted a 4.28 ERA with a 7.3 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in close to 600 innings for Milwaukee. He struck out 33 and walked just four while putting up a 1.59 ERA in seven minor league rehab starts this year.

The Brewers will have to make a 40-man roster move to accommodate Capuano's arrival, though they could slide Gregg Zaun to the 60-day DL given his torn labrum.

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