Which Diamondbacks Infielder Would Be Right Fit for Brewers as Possible Willy Adames Replacement?

While the Mets and Atlanta slipped past them at the finish line to deny the Diamondbacks a second straight trip to the postseason, they remain a fairly deep and talented team, with a chance to reach the postseason in 2025 and in several seasons thereafter. The backbone of the team is its lineup, featuring quiet MVP candidate Ketel Marte and not-so-quiet young superstar Corbin Carroll, plus supporting cast members Eugenio Suárez, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and Gabriel Moreno. Next season, the team hopes they'll be able to integrate a new face into the group: shortstop prospect Jordan Lawlar.

Injuries wrecked Lawlar's 2024 season, or else he'd probably have established himself already. Next season, though, he still profiles as a high-impact rookie. The depth he represents is tremendously valuable, but it also poses a minor problem. With Suárez and Marte already ensconced at third and second base, respectively, the only role Lawlar could realistically take over is shortstop—where the team has played Geraldo Perdomo for most of the last three seasons, with gratifying returns.

Perdomo, 25, has three years of team control remaining. He's steadily improved at the plate and acquitted himself nicely in the field, and he runs the bases well, to boot. He's not quite a superstar, but Perdomo is a slightly less toolsy reflection of Marte: switch-hitting, well-rounded, and dynamic.

Though his overall line (.273/.344/.374) for 2024 doesn't suggest a great deal of offensive value, Perdomo really did stand out at the plate this season. He was one of the 20 most efficient hitters in baseball last year, according to successful plate appearance rate (SPA%), which is the percentage of all trips to the plate that ended in a hit, walk, hit-by-pitch, reach on an error, or catcher interference, or that resulted in the advancement of a lead runner in scoring position. Obviously, it doesn't capture the value of power, but it's a succinct way to measure the ability of a hitter to advance the cause of scoring runs on a consistent basis. Perdomo excels at it, thanks to his strong plate discipline and contact skills.

As you can see, Perdomo would fit in nicely with the Brewers, who tend more toward that capacity for passing the baton and getting on base than toward creating runs with power in short sequences. Both Sal Frelick and Brice Turang have skill sets that lean hard that direction, though not to the same extreme as Perdomo does.

Obviously, though, Perdomo would come with a very high acquisition cost. Maybe, given that fact and the fact that Perdomo would be slightly redundant for them, it makes more sense for the Brewers to pursue Lawlar, instead. The 22-year-old is something closer to the type of prospect Joey Ortiz was a year ago, when the Milwaukee front office targeted him in the Corbin Burnes trade. He hasn't yet demonstrated plus power, but there's a chance he will. He could end up a star, but because the last two years have left some uncertainty about his long-term outlook, he might be available—for instance, in a trade for an elite short-term talent like Devin Williams or Freddy Peralta.

Perdomo is an established, above-average player whose lack of power prevents him from being a true star. Lawlar is a much higher-ceiling option, but could turn out not to even be an average regular on the infield. The good news is that either could slot fairly easily into any of the three open positions around the Brewers' infield. The question hinges on how the Brewers view their own roster, and what they want to do with it. Do they consider themselves to be short on power and in need of a shift in approach, with Adames leaving via free agency? Or do they want to lean even more into what was their offensive identity for much of the last two years?

It's not totally clear how open the Diamondbacks are to trading either player. They have clear needs and an identifiable overflow of talent, though, and the Brewers have their own. There's a good trade fit between the two teams. Be it Perdomo or Lawlar, the Brewers should at least engage Arizona in discussions to replace Adames for the next few years.