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MLBTR Podcast: The Mets Sign Jorge Polanco, And The Braves, Blue Jays And Royals Make Moves

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Check out our past episodes!

  • Winter Meetings Recap – listen here
  • An Agent’s Perspective with B.B. Abbott – Also, Cease, Williams, Helsley, And Gray – listen here
  • Some “Classic Baseball Trades,” Nimmo For Semien, And Ward For Rodriguez – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro, Imagn Images

Royals Continuing To Explore Outfield Market

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The Royals entered the offseason in pursuit of two outfielders — ideally adding one apiece via free agency and trade. They accomplished that last week, signing Lane Thomas to a $5.25MM deal and bringing in Isaac Collins in a trade with Milwaukee.

Collins played mostly left field for the Brewers. He’s loosely penciled in there for now, while Thomas provides a right-handed hitting complement to Kyle Isbel and Jac Caglianone in center and right field, respectively. It’s better than it was at season’s end but still not a great group on paper. Thomas is coming off an injury-riddled season. Caglianone struggled mightily in his first 62 MLB games and could benefit from more time at Triple-A. Isbel is a glove-only center fielder, while Collins’ breakout season came as a 27-year-old rookie.

Unsurprisingly, the Royals haven’t closed the door on the possibility of adding another outfielder. Collins has plenty of minor league infield experience — mostly at second with a handful of starts at third base as well. President of baseball operations J.J. Picollo indicated that while the Royals expect him to play mostly outfield, he has enough defensive versatility for the front office to keep their options open (link via Anne Rogers of MLB.com).

The switch-hitting Collins has a very patient approach. Kansas City ranked 22nd in on-base percentage (.309), and only the Rockies had a lower walk rate than their 7.2% clip. Collins provides a different skillet and generally raises the lineup’s floor, but his limited power means he doesn’t have a huge ceiling as an everyday left fielder. The Royals aren’t going to be in the market for a star outfielder in free agency, yet they’re kicking the tires on a more impactful trade possibility.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes that the Royals could still be a factor for Jarren Duran. Rosenthal suggests that Kansas City has balked at putting star southpaw Cole Ragans in a Duran trade. Whether the Red Sox would insist on Ragans’ inclusion isn’t known, as The Athletic report indicates that Boston executives view the teams’ talks to date as preliminary.

That said, it’s clear the Red Sox are putting a lofty price on their top outfielders. Tim Healey of The Boston Globe writes that chief baseball officer Craig Breslow is telling interested teams that the Sox don’t feel any pressure to trade an outfielder. They’ve taken calls on Duran and Wilyer Abreu at least dating back to the summer. Between Abreu, Duran and Roman Anthony, they have three above-average to star caliber left-handed hitting outfielders. (Anthony signed an eight-year extension in August and certainly isn’t getting traded.) Ceddanne Rafaela hits from the right side and has the ability to play the infield, but much of his value comes from his elite center field defense.

Keeping all four players limits the Sox’s flexibility a bit. They can find at-bats for them all by rotating them through the designated hitter role and getting Rafaela occasional infield work. Boston has considered swapping one of Duran or Abreu for controllable starting pitching, though they’re less motivated to do so after acquiring Sonny Gray.

The Royals have been on the opposite end. Picollo said a few weeks ago that they were open to trading a starter for outfield help. He essentially took Ragans out of that mix, though. The 28-year-old lefty finished fourth in AL Cy Young voting two seasons ago. He missed a good chunk of ’25 battling a rotator cuff strain. He’s signed for a combined $12MM over the next two years and will be eligible for arbitration in 2028. He’s a potential ace whom the Royals control for three seasons at what’d likely be no more than $25MM in total.

“We’re in a really good spot (with rotation depth), so if the right trade comes along, and it costs us a starting pitcher, we have to look at it,” Picollo told Rogers at the Winter Meetings. “It’s just not going to be Cole. … We have to ask ourselves: Is this his max value right now? Probably not. If Cole pitches like he did in ‘24, who knows what his value is going to be? We just think right now, three years of control on a really good starting pitcher, it would have to be something crazy, something that’s like, ‘How can we pass this up?'”

Kansas City has gotten hits on controllable arms like Noah Cameron, Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek. Lefty Kris Bubic might be their likeliest rotation trade candidate, but he suffered a season-ending rotator cuff injury in July and is headed into his final arbitration year. No one from that group is valuable enough to headline a trade for Duran, who is coming off his third straight well above-average season. Duran is set for a $7.7MM salary and is under arbitration control through 2028.

Even if the sides can’t line up value on Duran, the Royals will evaluate other outfield possibilities. They’re also known to be searching for left-handed relief. That was more of a luxury buy around the Winter Meetings but takes on added importance after they traded Angel Zerpa to the Brewers for Collins and righty reliever Nick Mears.

Kansas City is down to Daniel Lynch IV and swingman Bailey Falter as lefty relievers on the 40-man roster. Lynch managed a 3.06 earned run average over 67 2/3 innings but did so with a well below-average 15.6% strikeout rate. There are a few one-year deal candidates available in free agency (e.g. Drew Pomeranz, Caleb Thielbar, Caleb Ferguson, Danny Coulombe). They could also explore the trade market, with St. Louis’ JoJo Romero known to be available as he enters his final year of arbitration.

Brewers Trade Isaac Collins To Royals For Angel Zerpa

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December 14: Both teams have officially announced the trade.

December 13: The Brewers are sending outfielder Isaac Collins and right-hander Nick Mears to the Royals, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. Left-hander Angel Zerpa is heading to Milwaukee in the swap, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN.

Kansas City entered the offseason with a plan to add outfielders. The club made good on those intentions this week. After signing Lane Thomas on Friday, the Royals now add the switch-hitting Collins to the outfield mix. The cost is a controllable lefty reliever, though they get a bullpen piece back in return. Milwaukee clears some of its outfield glut while adding a hard-throwing reliever who is just now hitting arbitration.

The 28-year-old Collins went from relative obscurity to an integral part of Milwaukee’s offense last season. He made the team out of Spring Training and emerged as the club’s primary left fielder. Collins delivered a 122 wRC+ across 130 games. He finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting, just behind teammate Caleb Durbin.

The Brewers were reportedly looking to move some of their outfield depth, with Collins and Blake Perkins mentioned as potential candidates. Jackson Chourio and Sal Frelick are entrenched as everyday options, with Christian Yelich factoring in when he isn’t DHing. Collins, Perkins, Garrett Mitchell, and Brandon Lockridge were in the mix behind that trio. Milwaukee also added Akil Baddoo on a split deal.

Zerpa popped up in trade discussions last offseason, but ultimately remained in Kansas City. He reached 60 appearances for the second straight season, posting a 4.18 ERA over 64 2/3 innings. Zerpa pushed his solid ground ball rate to league-leading levels in 2025. He’d always been more of a grounder-getter than a strikeout guy, but his 63.7% ground ball rate ranked in the 99th percentile last season.

The 26-year-old Zerpa’s 3.97 career ERA doesn’t jump off the page, though his underlying numbers paint a better picture. The lefty posted a career-best 3.38 SIERA in 2025, bringing his career mark down to 3.67. He had a solid 3.50 xFIP this past year. Zerpa has recorded a BABIP above .320 in back-to-back seasons. His ground ball approach can lead to some batted ball variance, but that number could regress in future seasons.

Mears came to Milwaukee in a trade from Colorado in July 2024. He struggled mightily in his first partial season with the team, but provided solid results as a middle relief option in 2025. Mears faltered down the stretch, allowing five earned runs in five September appearances. He also missed time with back tightness that month. Mears tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings in the NLDS but was left off the NLCS roster.

Kansas City has been linked to several outfielders in the trade market, including Teoscar Hernandez, Jake Meyers, and Brendan Donovan. They were connected to Jarren Duran earlier today. Harrison Bader and Austin Hays have been mentioned as free agent possibilities for the Royals. They entered the offseason with an unproven group of  Jac Caglianone, Kyle Isbel, and John Rave in the outfield, with Tyler Tolbert and Dairon Blanco as bench options.

Thomas and Collins aren’t Duran-level additions, but they’re improvements on the in-house choices. The former Brewer should help in particular against right-handed pitching. Collins slashed .280/.390/.415 over 295 plate appearances from the left side. He showed some power as a righty, but hit just .232 with a pedestrian .324 OBP. Thomas will likely grab playing time against lefty starters.

Zerpa is an intriguing fit in what projects to be a lefty-heavy bullpen. Milwaukee already has Jared Koenig and Aaron Ashby locked into leverage roles, with Rob Zastryzny in a middle relief gig and DL Hall as the long guy. Trevor Megill and Abner Uribe should soak up the majority of the save opportunities, with Koenig as the situational closer if multiple lefties are coming up. Zerpa might need one or two of those relievers to get dealt to factor into a late-inning job.

Photo courtesy of Benny Sieu, Imagn Images

Brewers Open To Trading From Outfield Depth

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The Brewers are exploring trades involving their depth outfielders, report Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic. The report lists Isaac Collins and Blake Perkins as the two likeliest candidates to move.

Jackson Chourio certainly isn’t going anywhere. Christian Yelich is owed $84.5MM over the next three seasons (including a 2029 option buyout), so they’re unlikely to line up any kind of trade there. There’d be significant interest in Sal Frelick, but Milwaukee is unlikely to move him when he’s under club control for another four seasons. Frelick and Chourio should have two outfield spots secure, while Yelich is ticketed for primary DH work with occasional left field playing time.

That leaves one opening for a handful of players. Collins, Perkins and former first-round pick Garrett Mitchell would battle for playing time if they’re all on the roster. The Brewers have speedster Brandon Lockridge as a fifth outfielder and took a flier on Akil Baddoo on a split contract. They all have minor league options, so it’s not necessary to force a trade. There’s enough depth that they’re willing to move someone for help elsewhere on the roster. Rosenthal and Sammon write that Milwaukee could target a relief pitcher with minor league options who’d provide additional flexibility for a team that leans heavily on its bullpen.

Collins is coming off a breakout season in which he finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting. The switch-hitting Collins batted .263/.368/.411 across 441 trips to the plate. He hit 22 doubles, three triples, and nine home runs. Collins stole 16 bases and walked at a 13% clip. He was Milwaukee’s primary left fielder and graded as a solid defender in a little over 800 innings.

That season was worth between two and three wins above replacement. Collins is under club control for five seasons and won’t qualify for arbitration for two more years. It’s fair to wonder whether he’ll be able to repeat that kind of season. Collins is already 28 and didn’t have particularly strong batted ball metrics. It’s a bit of a tweener profile since he’s not really an option to play center field. Yet the disciplined approach, contact skills, and solid glove in the corner should provide a reasonably high floor.

Perkins, 29, is a prototypical fourth outfielder. He’s a switch-hitter who has a middling .232/.314/.339 batting line in 773 career plate appearances. Perkins runs well and plays a plus center field. He also takes a lot of pitches and works a decent number of walks, albeit with more swing-and-miss than Collins has to his game. Perkins fell a little shy of the Super Two cutoff and will play next season for around the league minimum. He’ll be eligible for arbitration in 2027 and is under club control for four seasons.

Collins is probably the better all-around player, yet Perkins might hold broader appeal on the trade market. There are plenty of teams in need of center fielders and few options available in free agency. It’s unlikely many clubs would view Perkins as a regular, but teams like the Guardians, Angels and Giants should look for defensive upgrades up the middle.

A lot could depend on how the Brewers feel about Mitchell. He’s going into his age-27 season and still unproven at the MLB level. Mitchell is a fantastic athlete with plus speed, power and arm strength. He has the physical tools to be an impact center fielder. There’s also significant hit tool and health risk. Mitchell has punched out in more than a third of his 443 career plate appearances. He has gone on the 60-day injured list in three consecutive seasons: left shoulder surgery in 2023, a broken hand in ’24, an oblique strain and renewed shoulder pain this year. He underwent a second shoulder surgery in June and missed the rest of the season.

Mitchell is expected to be ready for Spring Training. If the Brewers remain confident that he’s their long-term answer in center field, that’d push Frelick and Chourio into the corners. Collins would make sense as the odd man out in that case because he’s stretched in center (though he has plenty of minor league second/third base experience). If they have more trepidation about Mitchell, they could pencil Frelick in as the center fielder with Collins back in left. That’d leave Mitchell and Perkins competing for playing time as the fourth outfielder with the latter potentially on the trade block.

Jackson Chourio Day-To-Day After “Inconclusive” MRI

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Right hamstring tightness forced Jackson Chourio out of Game 1 of the NLDS in the second inning, though Chourio had already logged three hits by that point in the Brewers 9-3 win over the Cubs.  In the aftermath, Chourio told reporters “I feel good, and I feel I’m in a position where I’m ready to keep going and ready to keep competing,” though he underwent an MRI to check for any sort of serious injury.

That MRI didn’t come back entirely clean, as Brewers manager Pat Murphy told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Curt Hogg and other media that the MRI was “inconclusive. It’s not a serious hamstring strain, but it’s not necessarily something that won’t limit him.  We’re going to kind of see how he feels. He’s going to go through some testing, and if he feels anything, we’re going to shut it down.”

As Hogg describes it, Chourio’s work today was limited to some runs from home plate to first base, with the outfielder moving “at roughly 50 percent.”  Chourio “appeared to move gingerly but did not seem to be in any pain during or after the running,” Hogg writes.

The off-day between Game 1 and Game 2 of the series gave Chourio and the Brewers extra time to monitor the situation, and kept alive the chance that Chourio might yet be able to play in the next contest.  There is also an off-day between Game 2 and Wednesday’s Game 3, so the Brewers could conceivably rest Chourio for Monday and then not make a final determination on his status until prior to Wednesday’s game.

Isaac Collins took over for Chourio in Game 1, and Murphy said Collins will remain as the Brewers’ left fielder if Chourio indeed can’t play.  As Hogg noted, Collins cooled off drastically over the last six weeks of the season, bringing a quiet end to an otherwise strong rookie season that saw Collins finish with a .263/.368/.411 slash line and nine homers over 441 plate appearances (122 wRC+).

If Chourio has to be removed from the NLDS roster for injury purposes, the Brewers would get to add a replacement to their roster, but Chourio wouldn’t be eligible to return to action until the World Series (if Milwaukee advanced through both the NLDS and NLCS).  Outfielders Blake Perkins and Brandon Lockridge are already on the 26-man roster, so the Brew Crew wouldn’t necessarily summon another outfielder in Chourio’s place.

Poll: NL Rookie Of The Year Check-In

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Within the last few years, the Rookie of the Year award has grown to have more meaning than it had in the past. Changes in the most recent collective bargaining agreement allow the award to bestow a full year of MLB service time on the top two finishers, even if they would have otherwise entered the offseason with less than that. Beyond that, any player who was a top-100 prospect on a pair of prominent preseason lists (Baseball America, MLB.com, ESPN) can net his club an extra pick by winning the award if he breaks camp with his club or was called up less than two weeks into the season. That’s raised the stakes on the two Rookie of the Year races, but who will ultimately come out on top?

Here’s a look at this year’s candidates in the National League, listen in alphabetical order by last name:

Drake Baldwin, C, Braves

The 24-year-old Baldwin is having a banner rookie season for Atlanta after an injury suffered by Sean Murphy during Spring Training opened up the Opening Day catcher job. Baldwin took the reins and never looked back. Through 96 games, he’s hitting .276/.347/.454 with a wRC+ of 126. He’s smacked 14 homers in 337 plate appearances, but more impressive is Baldwin’s plate discipline. The youngster is striking out just 16% of the time while walking at a solid 8.9% clip. That production has been enough to get the lion’s share of time behind the plate in spite of Murphy’s status as a former All-Star and Gold Glove award winner on a hefty contract. If there’s an issue with Baldwin’s profile, it’s that he’s a merely pedestrian defender behind the plate. Scouts expected him to be no more than average behind the plate, and so far the metrics have played that out as he has -1 Catching Runs this year according to Statcast. Baldwin and Murphy are now splitting the workload between catcher and DH, so Baldwin should see regular at-bats down the stretch. If he wins the award, he’ll net the Braves a PPI pick.

Isaac Collins, OF, Brewers

Collins celebrated his 28th birthday last month, making him by far the oldest player on this list. He’s been a game changer for an excellent Brewers club in left field, however, with a .270/.368/.421 (125 wRC+) slash line in 109 games. Collins has chipped in 28 extra-base hits and 15 steals and drawn walks at an excellent 12.3% clip. That penchant for drawing walks fuels an on-base percentage that sits just barely outside the top 20 among hitters with at least 300 plate appearances this year. Collins’ age and lack of a premium defensive position could hold him back in the eyes of some voters, but the switch-hitter does have one big thing going for him: he’s doing his best work now. Since the All-Star break, Collins has hit .288/.377/.475 with a wRC+ of 139.

Cade Horton, RHP, Cubs

The Cubs’ first rounder in the 2022 draft, Horton came up to fill out the rotation in a pinch back in May and has generally looked the part of a quality big league starter. He’s pitched to a 2.88 ERA and 3.71 FIP in 93 2/3 innings of work. That’s by far the best ERA among all rookie pitchers with at least 80 innings, and he’s been on the shortlist for the best pitcher in baseball since the All-Star break with a microscopic 0.49 ERA, a 2.61 FIP, and 24.8% strikeout rate. Horton’s season-long strikeout rate of just 20.1% isn’t all that impressive, and his relatively limited innings may hurt him with some voters. Even so, the 24-year-old should get plenty of attention with the way he’s pitched in the second half so far, and a big final month could further cement his case. Horton was a consensus top-100 prospect prior to the season but wasn’t called up early enough to net the Cubs a pick based on this year’s Rookie of the Year voting (though he could still garner them a pick with a top-3 Cy Young finish before reaching arbitration).

Chad Patrick, RHP, Brewers

Patrick might be overlooked by some voters who could be attracted to the strong second half numbers of Collins and Horton. Even so, he’s a legitimate contender for the award. Patrick’s 105 innings across 21 appearances (20 starts) lead NL rookies. He’s posted a 3.60 ERA with a nearly identical 3.68 FIP while striking out 23.9% of his opponents. Perhaps the biggest flaw in Patrick’s case is that the Brewers optioned him to Triple-A for just over a month. He didn’t pitch in the majors between July 5 and Aug. 19. He’s also worn down as the season has gone on, with a 5.09 ERA and 4.45 FIP in his last seven starts. Patrick will need to turn things around in September if he’s going to make a play for the award, but a strong start to his big league career in April and May could be enough to keep him in the conversation.

Other Options

That aforementioned quartet appear to be the likeliest candidates for the award, but they aren’t the only names to consider. Playing time will be a factor for Miami’s Jakob Marsee, but if the 24-year-old can keep hitting the way he has in 26 games since his Aug. 1 recall (.356/.422/.667, 195 wRC+), his otherworldly performance will get some attention anyway. Teammate Agustin Ramirez leads NL rookies in home runs (18) and plate appearances (463), but he’s posted awful defensive marks behind the plate and is sitting on a .287 on-base percentage (.228/.287/.424 overall). Brewers righty Jacob Misiorowski was the talk of the game after his first few starts, but he spent two weeks on the injured list after being clipped by a comebacker and has been tagged for 13 earned runs in his past 14 1/3 innings (four starts). He’s only at 43 2/3 innings on the season, too, which hurts his candidacy.

Hyeseong Kim has been an above-average hitter for the Dodgers and contributed defensive versatility, but he’s been on the injured list for a month and is unlikely to get enough playing time to merit consideration. Nationals righty Brad Lord is in the midst of a solid season as a swingman, but a 5.47 ERA in August does him no favors. Third basemen Caleb Durbin and Matt Shaw have both had decent enough years but are sure to be overshadowed by their teammates when it comes to balloting.

Who do MLBTR readers think will ultimately come out on top in the NL’s Rookie of the Year balloting? Have your say in the poll below:

Who will win NL Rookie of the Year?
Drake Baldwin 45.56% (2,241 votes)
Cade Horton 25.68% (1,263 votes)
Isaac Collins 20.25% (996 votes)
Someone Else 7.32% (360 votes)
Chad Patrick 1.20% (59 votes)
Total Votes: 4,919

Brewers Place Sal Frelick On Injured List

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The Brewers will open the second half without their starting right fielder. Milwaukee placed Sal Frelick on the 10-day injured list, backdated to July 15, due to a left hamstring strain. Blake Perkins was recalled from Triple-A Nashville to take his spot.

Frelick suffered the injury in Milwaukee’s final game before the All-Star Break. He first showed some discomfort on a stolen base and came out of the game after making a sliding catch in the following half-inning. Isaac Collins finished the game in right field and gets the start tonight against Dodgers righty Emmet Sheehan. The switch-hitting Collins has a solid .259/.363/.389 line with five homers in 228 plate appearances. He’d mostly been playing left field, where Jake Bauers and potentially Perkins could get more playing time.

This interrupts an excellent season for the 25-year-old Frelick. He has seven home runs and is hitting .294/.354/.404 across 385 trips to the plate. Frelick has stolen 17 bases in 21 attempts and is playing his usual plus defense in right field. The Brewers haven’t provided a timetable on his return, though it’s perhaps encouraging that they waited a few days to monitor his progress before making the injured list decision.

Milwaukee concluded the first half on a seven-game win streak. They’re a season-high 16 games above .500 and have pulled within a game and a half of the Cubs in the NL Central. The Brewers hold the first Wild Card spot in the National League and are 4.5 games clear of the Giants, the top non-playoff team in the NL.

Jose Quintana Agrees To Optional Assignment; Jake Bauers Makes Brewers’ Roster

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The Brewers are wrapping up their final decisions on the Opening Day roster. Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports that veteran lefty Jose Quintana has consented to be optioned to Triple-A Nashville to finish building up. The 36-year-old signed midway through spring training and has thus far only pitched five official spring frames (in addition to side sessions and work on the back fields). It’s a largely procedural move; Quintana will join the big league rotation in early-to-mid April, though it’s not yet clear how many starts the Brewers want him to make in Triple-A.

Beyond that, the Brewers will have to clear at least one 40-man spot. McCalvy further reports that first baseman/outfielder Jake Bauers has made the roster. He’d been in camp as a non-roster invitee and will take a bench spot in Milwaukee. He held a similar role last year. Bauers, 29, appeared in 117 games with the Brewers and hit .199/.301/.361 with a dozen homers. He was far too strikeout-prone, fanning in 34.1% of his plate appearances, but he also drew walks at a stout 11.3% clip, went 13-for-14 in stolen base attempts and played 553 innings of solid defense at first base.

The Brewers non-tendered Bauers rather than pay him a projected $2.3MM salary. He returned on a minor league deal and has mashed his way onto the roster with a big Cactus League performance. In 42 turns at the plate, he’s logged a .263/.333/.605 slash with three homers, four doubles and a pair of stolen bases. He’ll presumably need to outpace last year’s production to stick around for the long haul, but he’s off to a nice start this spring.

Right-handers Chad Patrick and Elvin Rodriguez and utilityman Isaac Collins have all made their first Opening Day rosters as well. All three are already on the 40-man roster. Rule 5 southpaw Connor Thomas is also breaking camp.

Per McCalvy, Milwaukee will open the season with only three true starting pitchers: Freddy Peralta, Nestor Cortes and Aaron Civale. Quintana will be a fourth once he’s ready. Righty Brandon Woodruff is still on the mend from 2023’s shoulder surgery but could be an option in the season’s first month or so as well. In the meantime, the Brewers have Rodriguez, Patrick, Thomas and veteran swingman Tyler Alexander stretched out for multiple innings to piece things together at the back end of the staff.

Patrick, 26, is not only making his first Opening Day roster but will make his MLB debut the first time he takes the mound. Milwaukee acquired him from the A’s in exchange for Abraham Toro in November 2023. Patrick spent the entire 2024 season in the Brewers’ Triple-A rotation, turning heads with 136 1/3 innings of 2.90 ERA ball. He fanned 26.1% of his opponents against a 7% walk rate.

Thomas, also 26, will also make his debut the first time he throws a pitch for the Brewers. Milwaukee plucked him from the Cardinals’ system in December’s Rule 5 Draft, and he posted 11 1/3 frames with just three runs on nine hits and five walks against 11 punchouts this spring. He spent 2024 as a multi-inning reliever in Triple-A Memphis and logged 90 1/3 innings with a tidy 2.89 earned run average. Thomas logged a below-average 20.6% strikeout rate but notched plus walk and grounder rates of 6.3% and 53.5%, respectively.

The 26-year-old Rodriguez is a former Angels and Tigers prospect who very briefly pitched with Detroit earlier in his career. He drew a big league deal from Milwaukee after spending the past season and a half pitching with Japan’s Yakult Swallows. In 78 NPB innings, Rodriguez recorded a sharp 2.77 ERA, albeit with a sub-par 20.4% strikeout rate. He was tagged for nine runs in 10 2/3 innings this spring, but his 15-to-2 K/BB ratio offers more encouragement.

Collins, 27, made his MLB debut last year and went 2-for-17 in a quick cup of coffee. The Brewers claimed him off waivers from the Rockies back in 2022. He spent the majority of the 2024 season in Triple-A Nashville, where he hit .273/.386/.475 with 14 homers, 24 steals and a gaudy 14.2% walk rate. He has significant experience at second base, in left field and in center field in his pro career, in addition to more sparse work at third base and in right field. He’s a switch-hitter with good speed who can back up at nearly any position on the diamond.

Brewers Select Isaac Collins

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The Brewers announced this morning that they’ve selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Isaac Collins. In corresponding moves, outfielder Brewer Hicklen was optioned to Triple-A and outfielder Christian Yelich was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Collins, 27, was a ninth-round pick by the Rockies back in 2019 and has yet to make his major league debut. The Brewers plucked him from Colorado in the minor league phase of the 2022 Rule 5 Draft, and he’s spent the past two seasons in the upper levels of Milwaukee’s minor league system. He’s performed well in his first full season at Triple-A this year, with a .273/.386/.475 slash line in 500 trips to the plate. He’s supplemented that solid production at the plate with impressive baserunning (24 steals in 29 attempts) and the versatility to play second base, third base, and all over the outfield.

He’ll now get the opportunity to prove himself at the big league level with the Brewers as the regular season winds down. Milwaukee has little to worry about in terms of making the playoffs, as their ten-game lead over the Cubs and Cardinals is all but insurmountable at this point, though the club still does have something to play for as they’re three games back of both the Phillies and Dodgers for a bye through the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Even so, the Brewers’ cushion in the NL Central race and September’s expanded 28-man rosters provides the club with an opportunity to get potential future contributors exposure at the big league level while also shoring up their overall depth.

Making way for Collins on the club’s roster is Hicklen. The 28-year-old outfielder had a brief cup of coffee with the Royals in the majors back in 2022 but his time with the Brewers this year has been his second foray into major league action. Hicklen’s .247/.364/.484 slash line at the Triple-A level isn’t too dissimilar from that of Collins, and his slightly less valuable offense is more or less outweighed by a fantastic 42-for-47 record on the basepaths this year at Triple-A. That said, replacing Hicklen on the roster with Collins offers the Brewers the opportunity to roster a hitter with a similar skillset who can back up the infield alongside Andruw Monasterio as well as filling in around the outfield when necessary.

As for Yelich, his placement on the 60-day IL is hardly a surprise given the fact that his season came to an end when he underwent back surgery last month. The 32-year-old enjoyed his best offensive season in years when healthy enough to take the field this year, slashing .315/.406/.504 in 73 games while stealing 21 bases in 22 attempts. He’s currently expected to be ready to return to the middle of the club’s lineup in time for the 2025 season.

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