3 William Contreras Trade-Style Moves the Brewers Could Make

A little over a year ago, the Milwaukee Brewers pulled off a true heist, acquiring All-Star catcher William Contreras from the Atlanta Braves as part of a bigger deal wherein the Braves received Sean Murphy from the Oakland Athletics. In that same trade, the Brewers got Joel Payamps from the Athletics.

What did the Brewers have to give up for these key role players? They surrendered outfield prospect Esteury Ruiz; that was all. Ruiz went on to be a regular starter for the A’s and lead the American League in stolen bases, with 67. The Crew, on the other hand, got a Silver Slugger-winning catcher and a quality setup man for Devin Williams. It's hard to imagine Matt Arnold can pull off a move with a similar magnitude, but what if he can? The Brewers have the pieces to make a trade. Why not go out there and do it again?

Brewer Fanatic writer Harold Hutchinson recently wrote about small moves that can benefit the team in the long term. In this piece, let's look at the Brewers trying to swing for the fences. Here are some trade ideas where the Brewers get a decent return by giving up little to nothing.

Ty France from the Seattle Mariners
With Carlos Santana being a free agent and Rowdy Tellez non-tendered, the Brewers need a regular first baseman. They could use recently-acquired Jake Bauers as a replacement, but he might not be a long-term solution with no minor-league options left.

Enter Ty France, for whom the Seattle Mariners were fielding offers prior to the trade deadline. France is coming off what he could consider a down season, having posted a .250/.337/.366 slash line. His numbers weren’t as impressive as they were during his 2022 All-Star season, in which he hit a career-high 20 home runs, 83 RBI and a had .274/.338/.436 line. The Brewers could use a power bat in the lineup to platoon with Bauers. France's career batting average against LHP (.278) speaks to an ability to get on base. He also has experience playing third base, giving the team some versatility when facing a right-handed pitcher.

The Mariners have shown interest in trading for Cleveland Guardians first baseman, Josh Naylor. The Guardians are already intending to sell starting pitcher Shane Bieber but may not be willing to sell Naylor. If a third team joins this deal, perhaps they could all find common ground.

The Mariners already sold Jarred Kelenic, Marco Gonzales and Evan White to the Braves for two pitching prospects. This opens some holes in the corner outfield and infield spots for them. The Brewers can give one of their young outfielders (in Joey Wiemer) to the Mariners to replace Kelenic. As for the Guardians, they can cash in on some of the prospects the Mariners are willing to provide for them to acquire their new first baseman.

Both France and Naylor are projected to make the same money in arbitration this season. This trade will give the Guardians a replacement at the corner infield positions, while also providing some pitchers with MLB experience that can help build the starting rotation once Bieber is gone. The Mariners get an upgrade at first, plus a young corner outfielder with all the tools to become an impactful player. As for the Crew, they get their first baseman and a couple of low-level prospects who can develop and grow in the system overtime.

Isaac Paredes from the Rays
Yes, Randy Arozarena has been the subject of trade rumors and would look great in a Milwaukee Brewers uniform. As much as we’d appreciate an upgraded bat in the outfield or DH spot, though, there are more pressing needs that the organization should worry about. One of those needs is at third base.

Isaac Paredes was another player the Tampa Bay Rays were listening to offers for. He's coming off his best season in the major leagues. At just 24, the third baseman hit 31 home runs, drove in 98, and averaged .259 against left-handed pitching. The Brewers struggle to hit southpaws, hitting only .229/.314/.357 as a team.

Paredes has four years of club control left, with his first year of arbitration beginning this offseason. He is expected to make $3.2 million this season, according to MLB Trade Rumors. Even though the Rays are trying to shed payroll, Paredes would cost a pretty penny in trade. Matthew Trueblood wrote about the prospect of a Paredes deal earlier this month.

The Brewers could offer one of the outfielders and one of their young arms. If the Rays are that desperate to lower their payroll, the lowest offer the team would make is Wiemer, pitching prospect Robert Gasser and a lower-level prospect. The Rays don’t have to trade away Paredes, though, so the value would have to be higher than that.

It’s hard to imagine calling this trade “giving up little to nothing,” when Sal Frelick is involved. But, out of all the young outfielders, Frelick has the most value. He still has six years of club control, has seen major-league pitching, and will only make $740,000 this season.

Aaron Ashby was considered to replace Gasser in this trade. Either way, if he will be ready by Opening Day, his value remains high. Both the Brewers and the Rays are known to develop pitchers well. At the age of 26, Ashby can still become a great back-end starter for any rotation.

Ashby signed a five-year, $20.5 million extension prior to the 2023 season. He’s set to make $1.45 million in 2024, making him an affordable option for the Rays. However, Arnold seems confident in Ashby and is expecting him to be a “part of the mix” for the rotation.

With this trade, the Rays will add a cheaper player to their outfield, giving them the flexibility to part ways with one of their expensive contacts in the outfield. The addition of Gasser gives the team an MLB-ready arm who can replace Tyler Glasnow in the rotation, assuming he gets traded this offseason. They can also elect to move young infielders Curtis Mead to shortstop and install Junior Caminero at third base throughout the 2024 season.

The Brewers land their new regular third baseman, who won’t be a free agent until after the 2027 season. Parting ways with Frelick will give Wiemer and Jackson Chourio more playing time--giving them a chance to develop. The Brewers may need to invest in left-handed pitching after such a move, though, as Hoby Milner would be the only lefty hurler coming out of the pen.

Eloy Jimenez AND Andrew Vaughn from the White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are reportedly listening to offers for anybody on their roster not named Luis Robert. That could open the door for the Brewers to check in once again on outfielder and designated hitter Eloy Jiménez. The team was, reportedly, talking with the White Sox on potentially adding Jiménez at the trade deadline last season. Who’s to say they've lost interest?

Hitting .272/.317/.441 with 18 home runs and 64 RBI, Jiménez is one of the (now) six players to sign a contract extension with a team before making their MLB debut. He was expected to be a long-term solution to their outfield before the injuries started to add up. Jiménez has never played more than 122 games in a season and has been used as the White Sox's regular DH for the last year-plus. If the Brewers add the outfielder to their roster, he is owed around $13 million this season and has two club options beyond that. Adding a slugging right-handed bat could work wonders for the lineup, if they are willing to pay the money.

Another player the Brewers could use from the White Sox is first baseman Andrew Vaughn. In 152 games this season, Vaughn slugged 21 home runs and had 80 RBI. Vaughn can play the corner outfield positions in a pinch, but is best defensively at first base.

Vaughn is expected to make $3.7 million via arbitration this year, and won’t be a free agent until the end of 2026. Whether in a platoon role with Bauers that shifts him to DH occasionally or as an everyday starter at first, Vaughn will put up consistent numbers and could be a fixture for years to come.

If the Brewers were already having discussions about Jiménez, maybe there’s a way they can get Vaughn in the mix too.

This trade with the White Sox finds a way to get two voids filled on the roster, while giving up a couple of prospects and an outfielder. The White Sox are in need of some experienced outfield help. With Garrett Mitchell under club control until late 2028, they land a cheap long-term option to build around while they are undergoing a rebuild.

Prior to his left shoulder subluxation injury in April, Mitchell was putting up a .259/.307/.466 line, with three home runs in 62 plate appearances. The injury kept him out for almost the rest of the season. He played three games upon his return, but they were only used to give Mitchell a chance to swing the bat at the MLB level before the end of the season. He has five years of club control left, and would be a great long-term solution alongside Robert in the outfield.

Honestly, any outfielder could fit here. Mitchell is probably the second valuable asset to trade with the same amount of control as Wiemer, but he’s a left-hitting outfielder who gets on base like Frelick. The Brewers can part ways with any young outfielder and still be comfortable with filling their depth chart on the 26-man roster.

Eric Brown, Jr. was the Crew’s first-round pick in the 2022 draft. He doesn’t have a ton of experience in Double A yet: it's been just seven plate appearances. With top prospect Colson Montgomery hoping to make his MLB debut next season, Brown would be a great addition to build up the infield on the White Sox farm. His .265/.362/.347 stat line with the Timber Rattlers last season shows signs of good things to come.

Carlos F. Rodriguez was one of the Brewers' 2023 Minor League Pitchers of the Year. Drafted in the sixth round of the 2021 draft, Rodriguez was utilized as a bullpen weapon for the Low-A Carolina Mudcats before joining the starting rotation in 2022.

Last year, Rodriguez had a 2.77 ERA, a 1.09 WHIP and an opponent batting average of .189 as part of the Double-A Biloxi Shuckers. He struck out 152 batters in 25 starts before being called up to Triple-A Nashville for one start. He’s just starting to touch the mid-90s with his fastball and has shown improvement in his curveball. All signs point to him starting for a major-league team within the next year or so. With the White Sox hearing offers for starting pitcher Dylan Cease, the team might use a young pitcher to eventually replace the ace.

The Brewers might be more comfortable parting ways with these players if the White Sox agree to pay some of Jiménez's contract for the 2024 season, like what the Mets did when the Brewers acquired Mark Canha at the 2023 trade deadline. The Brewers would then pay for Jiménez’s 2025 and 2026 salaries, assuming the Crew exercises his club options. If this trade happens, they kill two birds with one stone by solidifying their DH and first base spots in the starting lineup. 

The William Contreras trade of 2022 was a deal that will go down in Brewer’s history. If Arnold can pull any trade like the ones listed above, the heist of the century will have a sequel only a year later. What do you think of these deals? What alternatives would you propose? Jump into the comments and let us know.