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  • Milwaukee Brewers Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

    The latest Milwaukee Brewers free agent and trade rumors, along with notes and tidbits about the team.
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    Brock Beauchamp
    Todd Rosiak of the Journal-Sentinel mentioned on Twitter that the Brewers have an offer out to manager Craig Counsell that will make him the highest-paid manage in Major League Baseball.
    Rumors have been circulating that if the Brewers match the best offer to Counsell, it's likely he remains in Milwaukee to manage the team.
    Now the real question is "how invested is Steve Cohen in this situation?" The Mets owner has shown an unrivaled willingness to shove money in the direction of players he likes and there's little reason to believe he won't do the same for a manager should he decide Counsell is a must-have person in the Mets organization.
     
    Brock Beauchamp
    This comes out of left field but makes a lot of sense upon further examination. Terry Francona, long time Guardians manager, has retired and Cleveland is looking for a capable replacement, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic.. Francona has long been regarded as one of the best managers in the game, an attribute now shared by Counsell.
    Initially, what surprised me most about this is that the Guardians are notoriously cheap... what I didn't realize is that the one place they haven't been cheap is manager. Counsell is one of the more highly-paid managers in the sport and the departing Francona actually made more money.
    It's still unclear whether Counsell is actually interested in leaving Milwaukee - his childhood home town - or if he's trying to leverage other teams into a better paycheck from the Brewers.
    Brock Beauchamp
    This is something of a shock. While Counsell-to-Mets rumors have been swirling all year, the Brewers still have their manager under contract through the end of the World Series. Teams will often grant permission for their employees to be interviewed by other MLB clubs but often only if the job opening is a step up the ladder for the employee.
    Obviously, this is not the case with Counsell, who is interviewing for a lateral position in New York.
    Counsell is already one of the highest-paid managers in the sport but when it comes to pure spending power, no one in the sport can compete with the Cohen-owned Mets.
    More to come as the situation develops.
     
    Jim Goulart
    Carlos Santana was instrumental in the Brewers' second half run to the postseason, posting a 109 OPS+ after being traded to Milwaukee on July 27th. Santana is a free agent the moment the World Series ends and 2024 will be his age 38 season.
    William Contreras, the breakout catching star acquired last offseason in a three-way trade, posted a cryptic tweet. Could it mean the Brewers and Santana are interested in running it back for 2024?
     
    Brock Beauchamp
    Well, the Craig Counsell rumor mill has begun churning in earnest, thanks to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
    In the end, it feels like no one has any idea what Counsell is thinking or where he will end up in baseball, if he remains in baseball at all. One aspect of this story stuck out to me. I knew Counsell's situation in Milwaukee is rare but I didn't realize it was this rare:
    "Counsell is believed to be the only one of 30 managers who lives year-round in the city he manages, so there’s a definite home-field advantage for Milwaukee."
    That's crazy. Ultimately, it might come down to money though Counsell may not be swayed by a small pay raise. He made roughly $21 million as a player and his salary as a manager is reported to be around $3.5 million, which puts him near the top of manager salaries in baseball.
    Would Counsell risk the bright lights and cut throat media presence in New York to leave his home town team? Only Craig knows for sure and it feels really weird to be talking in this context about a manager instead of a player or even a front office executive.
    Brock Beauchamp
    Ken Rosenthal rounded up a few rumors on trade deadline day and one of them caught my eye: the Milwaukee Brewers have been in contact with the Arizona Diamondbacks about left-handed reliever Andrew Chafin.
    The Brewers have had a rather active trade deadline thus far, headlined by the acquisitions of Carlos Santana and Mark Canha. But they're still in need of bullpen help, particularly left-handed pitchers.
    This rumor is particularly interesting because, as of this writing, the Diamondbacks and Brewers are tied in the standings for the final Wild Card berth. The Brewers likely have their eye on the division title - not the Wild Card - but there's a good chance Arizona and Milwaukee are competing in a zero-sum game at season's end.
    Chafin's stats are, at a glance, underwhelming. The 33-year-old's 4.19 ERA is quite bad... but his 3.13 FIP and 12.8 K/9 look great (though he walks too many). He has a club option for 2024 so he's not a rental.
    I'm kind of rooting for this to happen because take a gander at the guy... he looks like a Milwaukee Brewer. And that counts for something, at least to me.
    Brock Beauchamp
    Ken Rosenthal reported this morning that the Brewers are still in search of a bat, even in the wake of trading for Carlos Santana.
    No specific names are mentioned but it's likely the Brewers are looking for a right-handed bat that plays in a corner position or at designated hitter.
    Two names drawing a lot of interest are the White Sox's Eloy Jimenez and the Nationals' Jeimer Candelario, the latter of whom has become something of a darling of the 2023 trade deadline. At least eight teams are reportedly pursuing the player, according to the Nationals' general manager.
    Who should the Brewers pursue in the next 30-ish hours?
    Seth Stohs
    What does it mean? Justin Jarvis has had a nice season between AA and AAA and is in the category of "nearly MLB ready" starting pitcher. So, is it possible that the Brewers are including him in a deal we will hear about soon, or in the coming days? Maybe he's sick, but at this time of the year (and with so many trades happening already), stuff like this gets noticed... 
    H/T to @Smichaelis9: 
     
    Brock Beauchamp
    Congratulations, you've unlocked trade deadline weekend! Up to this point, the deadline has been rather quiet, as there are many teams still on the fence about selling and few selling teams have have clear upgrades at positions. MLBTR's Anthony Franco runs through the best remaining trade targets heading into the final 72 hours before the trade deadline, many of which should be of interest to the Brewers.
    Of particular interest to the Brewers:
    Mark Canha: RH OF, New York Mets Tommy Pham: RH OF, New York Mets Teoscar Hernandez: RH OF, Seattle Mariners Josh Hader: RP, San Diego Padres Who are your favorite trade targets and why?
    Brock Beauchamp
    Will Sammon of The Athletic is reporting the Brewers have expressed interest in first baseman and outfielder Mark Canha.
    Canha fills several needs for the Brewers by being both a capable first baseman and corner outfielder that bats right-handed. He has a 104 wRC+, slightly above league average but slightly below average for a corner position.
    Canha fits General Manager Matt Arnold's stated goal of prioritizing run prevention, as well. According to both DRS (Defensive Runs Saved) and OAA (Outs Above Average), he's neutral or slightly better than average at both positions.
    Canha is not a rental and the price will be reflected in that, should the Brewers choose to trade for him. He has a $11.5 million option for 2024 with a $2 million buyout.
    Brock Beauchamp
    Bruce Levine of 670 The Score in Chicago mentioned that the Brewers and Marlins are expressing interest in White Sox slugging DH Eloy Jimenez.
    Pursuing Jimenez makes a lot of sense, as was argued by our own Tim Muma yesterday.
    Jimenez checks almost every box imaginable for the Brewers: he's still only 26 years old, he is cost-controlled through the end of the 2026 season with multiple option years, he bats right-handed, and he has an OPS over .800 on the season.
    The White Sox have been very active at the deadline but have only moved expiring contracts; over the past couple of weeks, they've reiterated that they will not move pieces they consider to be cornerstones of the 2024 season and beyond.
    The White Sox are also 20 games under .500 and have the 26th-ranked farm system according to MLB.com. It's possible they come to their sense in the next 72 hours and start moving players that will actually bring back significant prospect capital.
    HarveysWBs
    Job Heyman reports that Soto is kind of, sort of, halfway on the block.
    As a caveat, the report indicates that a Soto trade seems unlikely, that the Padres haven’t yet given up on the season, and that they aren’t even in any hurry to deal Snell or Hader.  Of course, this could all amount to a signal to the league to try harder, since they’re further away from a playoff spot than the Chicago Cubs are at the moment.
    I’ll put my cards on the table and say I’ve wanted Soto on the team for a long, long time.  I may fairly be described as a “prospect hugger” by some, but for a year and a half of Soto, I might be willing to send almost anybody to San Diego.  In the apparent absence of Ohtani, I can’t imagine a more impactful hitter available, which means, the price would surely be high.  The Padres don’t need to trade him,  and they just paid a kings ransom for him last season, so I’d imagine they’d hold out for Chourio, and quite possibly more.  That would hurt, indeed, but I’d at least think about it for a few days as the calendar keeps marching to August…
    What say you?
    Brock Beauchamp
    MLB Trade Rumors collected a handy Brewers rumor roundup today, which is useful because while the Brewers have been their typically tight-lipped selves, there are still things to talk about.
    The Brewers are looking at middle infielders, though the names are a little strange Willy Adames and Brice Turang have underperformed offensively, which is driving the front office to pursue middle infield help Matt Arnold mentioned that any middle infield help would prioritize and preserve run-prevention Though no rumors are directly linked to Milwaukee, it's hard to envision them not acquiring a first base or DH bat Because the Brewers prioritize and hold their prospects in such high regard, it's possible they deal from a position of surplus such as Victor Caratini There's a lot to unpack here and many options open to the Brewers. What do you target first and why?
    Brock Beauchamp
    Jon Morosi tweeted that the Brewers are one of four teams looking for middle infield help.
    Curiously, the names mentioned are Tim Anderson, Paul DeJong, and Vidal Brujan.
    Tim Anderson of the White Sox is having an abysmal year by his standards. The former batting champion has an average around .240 and a sub-.300 on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
    Paul DeJong could be an upgrade but he plays for the Cardinals and teams are reluctant to trade within the division, though it does happen.
    The third name, Vidal Brujan, has a OPS under .500 in 2023. He's a consensus top 100 global prospect with very little experience against MLB pitching.
    Frankly, I'm not sure any of these names make sense for the 2023 Brewers stretch run. 
     
    Brock Beauchamp
    Trade deadline season is starting to heat up after the Rockies broke the seal by making a deal to move some lower-tier pieces to the Braves and Rangers. In this piece for MLB.com, Mark Feinsand lists the 17 players most likely to be traded and has the Brewers listed as potential suitors for several of them.
    We've already covered CJ Cron in this section so I'll ignore his mention.
    There are two really interesting names that stand out on this list, and for very different reasons.
    Randal Grichuck is a right-handed outfielder for Colorado who is having a solid season for the Rockies. Before anyone brings up road splits (which are often exaggerated for Rockies hitters but the altitude penalizes them, just as it does pitchers, though the inverse), Grichuck has a very respectable .792 road OPS in 2023.
    The most intriguing name on the list is Tigers left-handed starter Eduardo Rodriguez, who is under contract at a very reasonable rate through the 2026 season. The 30-year-old is having a breakout season, posting a 2.69 ERA in Detroit. The cost would be considerable but if there's a National League team that can extract additional value from a pitcher, it's the Milwaukee Brewers.
    Who on this list intrigues you?
    Brock Beauchamp
    This shouldn't be news but remember, we're talking about the Colorado Rockies here. This franchise has seen multiple trade deadlines come and go without moving key pieces that are approaching free agency, including last year when they made no trades and instead extended reliever Daniel Bard despite being well out of contention by the beginning of July.
    Unfortunately, and in a very Rockies-esque move, the quotes about activity did not come from General Manager Bill Schmidt but instead were from dugout manager Bud Black, speaking to the hosts of Power Alley on SiriusXM Radio.
    The Rockies have a few pieces that could interest the Brewers. While some are skeptical of 2023 CJ Cron, I believe he could be a nice piece at first base and has a chance to return to his career norms without facing the back-and-forth of trying to hit in Coors Field, followed by trying to hit outside of Coors Field.
    More intriguing - and more costly - is third baseman Ryan McMahon, who the Rockies have under contract through the 2027 season... though that hasn't stopped the Rockies from trading a guy in the past.
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