Brewers Acquire Jesse Winker and Abraham Toro from Mariners for Wong

[StearnsFTW]

7 minutes ago, mtrebs said:

Winker is the guy that killed the Brewers when he was on the Reds right?

Yes.  He killed a lot of people when he was on the Reds.

 

This was what I proposed when Wong to the Mariners was first rumored, so I'm very pleased with the deal.

Wish he had more than one year left though.  I think he'll be much better than Renfroe at $3MM less salary.

 

[brewmann04]

Jesse should do well especially at AFF

[Brewcrew82]

 

[DR28]

Ok, now here we go!! I feel much better about this team now!

Love getting Winker's bat... Now go sign Anderson or Turner to play 3B, let Urias/Turang platoon at 2B.

[markedman5]

 

[Soupbone]

Where does Toro play?

Where does Urias play?

Where does Turang play?

[Lathund]

Winker is a career 126 wRC+ hitter even after his 2022. His 108 wRC+ would still be an upgrade at DH, and looking at the peripherals it seems far more likely to get better rather than worse going forward. Turang is ready to step in. Toro has yet to find his stride in MLB, but he crushed it in the upper minors and is only 25. And if he doesn't find it he has an option and will be this years Pablo Reyes at least. 

Personally I'm not a fan of having a DH on a a roster and prefer to have it be a rotational thing, but even with that in mind it seems a decent enough deal. 

[JohnBriggs12]

Toro essentially replaces Jace.  Winker gives them a needed second LH power bat to pair with Tellez.   I think Turang gets first shot at replacing Wong, but there's now depth to compete behind him and at 3b 

[StearnsFTW]

Winker's top 2 similarity scores through age 28:

1.  Kevin Mench

2.  Jeffrey Hammonds

 

:/

[DR28]

Seems like Frelick is odd man out... Unless Mitchell/Taylor platoon in RF.

Yelich - LF

Frelick - CF

Mitchell/Taylor - RF

Winker - DH

And then Urias at 3B, Turang at 2B? Unless we find dude to play 3B then Urias/Turang platoon at 2B.

[DoubleSwitch]

2 minutes ago, Soupbone said:

Where does Toro play?

Where does Urias play?

Where does Turang play?

Are we gonna do this every year when the Brewers aquire some roster depth? You don't use nine players for the whole season.

[StearnsFTW]

Toro was a pretty good hitter in the minors and is only 25.  Could be a little something there yet.

 

[Patrick425]

9 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

 

That is a bit concerning.  From this article it sounds like the neck is more of a concern than the knee:

https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/mariners-jesse-winker-has-knee-surgery-will-need-neck-surgery/

[bensheeps]

Quote

On 12/10/2020 at 10:19 AM, bensheeps said:

In searching for a young, cheap alternative at 3rd base, I mentioned Abraham Toro of the Astros in another tread as a possibility. Switch hitter, blocked by Bregman, good AAA numbers that haven't translated as of yet in limited time in the majors.

 

Patience is the key!  Only 2 years out from getting Toro to the Brewers.

[Redd Vencher]

Winker had a 108 wRC+ last season in a down year with a career 126 wRC+. Seattle is a pretty extreme pitcher's park. He makes contact (career 17.1% K%) and walks a lot (career 12.9% BB%). He should see almost no time in the field because he's bad defensively, but the potential is there for a middle of the order bat.

[wibadgers23]

4 minutes ago, DR28 said:

Seems like Frelick is odd man out... Unless Mitchell/Taylor platoon in RF.

Yelich - LF

Frelick - CF

Mitchell/Taylor - RF

Winker - DH

And then Urias at 3B, Turang at 2B? Unless we find dude to play 3B then Urias/Turang platoon at 2B.

I'd agree with that projection of the OF.  There will be plenty of AB's to go around between those 4 guys.

[JimH5]

Meh.  

Wong is a great guy and a good player on offense and defense.

Winker seems like a tool and has been a good bat in the past and a terrible outfielder.

Toro is a AAA roster filler to this point.

I was hoping for a better return.

[Lathund]

6 minutes ago, Soupbone said:

Where does Toro play?

Where does Urias play?

Where does Turang play?

Bench, backing up 2B/3B

3B, with some 2B platooning and backing up SS

2B, and backing up SS/CF

Rowdy plays 1B only, and Willy is entrenched at SS (Though he certainly has the skillset to play 2B and 3B should he need to), but they now have 4 versatile infielders to go with them (Brosseau has played all infield positions, even if SS would be more of an emergency thing). 

Depth and versatility are good things, there will always be injuries. Brosseau, Turang, Toro and Urias all have minor league options remaining (Adames too, but that's not happening), so it doesn't create any roster issues or prevent them from finding further upgrades either. 

[DoubleSwitch]

I don't think Frelick plays center over Mitchell. If I had to guess, I bet Frelick gets moved for a catcher this winter. If they see him and chourio as primary left fielders in the bigs it might be a smart time to sell high.

[Matt Breen]

48 minutes ago, wibadgers23 said:

So Winker in a mostly DH role I'm assuming?

I hope. Only against right-handers, please.

[Brewcrew82]

1 minute ago, JimH5 said:

Meh.  

Wong is a great guy and a good player on offense and defense.

Winker seems like a tool and has been a good bat in the past and a terrible outfielder.

Toro is a AAA roster filler to this point.

I was hoping for a better return.

A 32 year old Wong at $10 mil isn't going to get you much more. 

[Brewcrew82]

Just now, DoubleSwitch said:

I don't think Frelick plays center over Mitchell. If I had to guess, I bet Frelick gets moved for a catcher this winter. If they see him and chourio as primary left fielders in the bigs it might be a smart time to sell high.

Frelick is a plus defender in CF himself. And Chourio was one of three gold glovers in the entire minors this year for his work in CF. He's currently projected as a 60-grade CF. Mitchell has a cannon for an arm, which is why he would play in RF until Wiemer is called up. 

[Brock Beauchamp]

I feel like the Brewers have made a lot of lateral moves lately but nothing that immediately improves their 2023 product on American Family Field.

Which may turn out great in 2024 and beyond but I'm not seeing a lot of upside in the here and now, which is kinda needed given the clock is ticking on Burnes, Woodruff, and Adames.

[JimH5]

6 minutes ago, Brewcrew82 said:

A 32 year old Wong at $10 mil isn't going to get you much more. 

Maybe not.  I just want no part of low character guys, and Winker has that label.

[DoubleSwitch]

2 minutes ago, Brewcrew82 said:

Frelick is a plus defender in CF himself. And Chourio was one of three gold glovers in the entire minors this year for his work in CF. He's currently projected as a 60-grade CF. Mitchell has a cannon for an arm, which is why he would play in RF until Wiemer is called up. 

Again this is a rose tinted view. Garrett Mitchell is a lock defensively and Chourio and Frelick are more fringy according to every neutral prospect evaluation I've seen.

People also need to accept that Frelicks lack of power is a concern. Big league defenses are better and you can't slap singles and run out grounders like you can in the minors. Frelick propped up his average with that. I think he's a nice prospect, but he's no sure thing.