The Milwaukee Brewers Are Locked And Loaded For A Trade Deadline Splash

[Brian]

52 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

Over the last two years there are 252 players with at least 500 PA. 

Ortiz ranks 204th with an 88 wRC+, he ranks 18th in defensive value at +17.7 runs, and his 3.6 WAR is tied for 106th.

One of the guys he is tied with at 3.6 WAR is fellow infielder Jake Cronenworth who has made $18M the last two years (with another $60M yet to be paid out), versus something like $1.5M for Ortiz. 

Colt Keith is just below Joey on the leaderboard with 3.5 WAR, he signed a $28.6M extension last year.

Oft mentioned Brewers trade target Brandon Lowe is just above Joey at 3.7 WAR, but Brandon has made $19.25M the last two years.

Another infielder just ahead of Joey is Andres Gimenez at 3.8 WAR. He's made $15M the last two years with another $86.5M still on his contract.

People want to give up value for Ryan McMahon and he's only at 2.7 WAR since 2024 and has cost $24M the last two years with another $32M still pending.

There is no need to sugar coat anything, Ortiz has produced similar value to a number of well compensated infielders while making league minimum.

I never looked into what he gets paid.  I just said a .205 avg isn't that good. 

[Bratwithspecialsauce]

Some good thoughts throughout this thread. I think Vaughn needs to play every day until the deadline. I liked him with the White Sox, he plays good defense and there's a good chance he just needed a change of scenery.  I think 1st base is covered. 

Third base is the land of opportunity for the Crew.  I'm not as sure about Suarez as most.  At his age, a second half tailing off  isn't hard to imagine. More importantly, his defense is bare minimum on a team that relies on solid defense to maintain its great pitching. Not saying no to him, but not my first choice.

Bregman is a stellar fielder but has been injured with a quad pull, so he is iffy.

He just got activated, and he's seeking a big contract ala Willy in '24. Boston is less than enamored with what they've seen in the time they've had him and are considering offers. He's absolutely a short term rental. Boros is his agent so you know we'd be a stepping stone at best.

But, he does have the best combination of pop and defense available and could likely be had for a reasonable price.  Risky but has playoff experience and success.

Lastly, McMahon of the Rockies is the biggest offensive risk. Like Suarez, he's a 200 strikeout type of guy with power, although his is from the left side, where we have] a need. His upside is that he is a gold glover and we're a team that puts high value on defense. Comes down to the  best deal for us.

I'd be happy with any of those three with a leaning towards Bregman and McMahon, for their defense.  That would allow Tur ang to move to short and Durbin to 2nd    (he's earned it).

All three have warts,   but all three possess power ..

[gregmag]

This is a good article, and I really like your point about the value of clearing logjams, but I always feel like “who can we trade” discussions are putting the cart before the horse. Everything should start with “who do we want to get.” I’m still not sure I see much in the way of real upgrades out there. Even O’Hearn is an older guy having a career year who could easily come back to Earth. Sometimes I think teams at the trade deadline get shiny object syndrome, spurred on by listening to fans who are clamoring for the team to “do something!“ I hope the Brewers can tune out that noise at the deadline.

[SF70]

38 minutes ago, gregmag said:

This is a good article, and I really like your point about the value of clearing logjams, but I always feel like “who can we trade” discussions are putting the cart before the horse. Everything should start with “who do we want to get.” I’m still not sure I see much in the way of real upgrades out there. Even O’Hearn is an older guy having a career year who could easily come back to Earth. Sometimes I think teams at the trade deadline get shiny object syndrome, spurred on by listening to fans who are clamoring for the team to “do something!“ I hope the Brewers can tune out that noise at the deadline.

O’Hearn has been a good hitter going on 3 years in a row, with OPS+’s of 120-125-140 respectively. 

He would be an upgrade at 1B and wouldn’t break the bank being a rental acquisition.

[Jim French Stepstool]

21 hours ago, Brian said:

Bottom Line is: Joey Ortiz is a below average hitter and probably a little above avg fielder no matter how you want to sugar coat him. 

I enjoy your posts, but you lost me there.

[wiguy94]

The whole fantasy of trading for Jose Ramirez gives off similar vibes to non-Milwaukee NBA fans fantasizing about trading for Giannis. Ramirez both has a no trade clause and is fiercely loyal to Cleveland with multiple cheap extensions signed to keep him in Cleveland.