Brewers Acquire Reliever Nick Mears From Rockies for Bradley Blalock, Yujanjer Herrera

The Brewers joined the increasing flurry of trade deadline action on Saturday afternoon, acquiring right-handed reliever Nick Mears from the Colorado Rockies for prospects Bradley Blalock and Yujanyer Herrera.

"It came together really quickly," General Manager Matt Arnold said of the deal. "We had a lot of conversations over the last several days, and Nick Mears kept coming up in conversation. The ability to access that kind of arm, we felt like it made a lot of sense."

Mears has split his five-year career between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Rockies, posting a 4.93 ERA (93 ERA+) in 95 innings. He carries an unsightly 5.56 ERA (81 ERA+) in 45 ⅓ innings for Colorado this year, but that mark does not accurately characterize the caliber of his stuff, nor how he has thrown the ball in 2024.

The 27-year-old possesses a power fastball that averages 96.7 mph, with 17.3 inches of induced vertical break. It's frequently crossed the 20-inch threshold of elite ride. Due to Mears' near seven-foot extension, its average perceived velocity is 98 mph. Both his slider and curveball feature exceptional depth, and the former has induced whiffs on 52.6% of swings while holding opponents to a .253 wOBA.

FanGraphs’ Stuff+ metric assigns Mears’ arsenal a 130 rating, which ranks 16th among 181 qualified relievers this year. That stuff has played better than his ERA would indicate. Mears has struck out 28.1% of hitters faced while allowing hard contact on just 29.6% of batted balls. His 2.59 FIP, 3.00 xERA, 3.37 SIERA, and 86 DRA- all indicate that he’s pitched like an above-average reliever.

Mears is due for positive regression, but there is also room for the Brewers to channel even more of his upside.

"Ultimately, we need real performance, not just underlying performance," Arnold said, "but we think there are a lot of ingredients to tap into here. He’s got electric stuff with a lot of upside."

The Brewers could unlock that potential by optimizing Mears' secondary pitches. Because both of his breaking balls feature above-average depth with minimal lateral movement, there is a case to be made for consolidating the two into one pitch. Trevor Megill ditched his slider and turned his curveball into a shorter and harder breaking ball, and it became one of the driving factors behind his breakout as a high-leverage weapon.

Mears is under club control through the 2027 season via arbitration, so he could be a long-term asset in the bullpen should things transpire how Milwaukee is hoping.

"We’re excited about him hopefully helping us for the next several years," said Arnold, who added that Mears' precise role in the bullpen is yet to be determined.

In return, the Brewers parted with Blalock, who worked as a starter in Double-A Biloxi but profiled best as a reliever in the long run. The 20-year-old Herrera made it to High-A Wisconsin while working in a hybrid role, posting a 2.91 ERA in 68 minor-league innings.

It’s a solid acquisition for a Brewers team in need of innings. If Matt Arnold and company do not find the prices for starting pitching to their liking, it would not be surprising to see them load up the bullpen for the stretch run.