Harold Hutchison

Where are they? We'd have some options at AAA and/or AA if that is the case. I'm not sure I see then outside Small and Glasser, and the former had control issues. The last two years are team options, incidentally. So if we do have a glut of pitchers, we can always decline the option. And yes, ideally, extend Burnes and/or Woodruff - work something out and go the full Bobby Bonilla if necessary. but failing that, at least score some stability with Houser and/or Lauer as a fallback.

I like the idea, especially on some topics.

A Houser as an external candidate will be more expensive than extending the Houser we have. I was thinking something like this: 2023: $4.5 million 2024: $4.5 million 2025: $4,5 million 2026: $4.5 million 2027: $6 million (team option ($2 million buyout) 2028: $6 million team option ($1 million buyout)

Put it this way... if you could get him signed to a reasonable extension (4/$18 million or 5/$23 million), it could open a wealth of options. A solid back-end guy at a fixed cost is not bad. Or, if there is an explosion of talent, he could fetch a decent return from another team. The Crew acquired Yelich precisely because he was on a (reasonable) contract extension, and the Marlins got two high-ceiling OF prospects, a decent pitching prospect, and a good IF prospect. Maybe make that dynamic work for the Crew. Houser's the type of pitcher who should be reasonably reliable.

I think he isn't dealt. I think they roll for the title, and the Hader deal happens in the offseason.

I think he isn't dealt. I think they roll for the title, and the Hader deal happens in the offseason.

Maybe Small's role isn't the rotation, but out of the bullpen. Could he be a (if not the) Hader replacement the Crew is looking for?

Wong and Renfroe are probably the easiest savings on the roster. There are replacements (Turang and Taylor/Frelick/Wiemer) at AAA, and the combined savings is about $18 million, give or take. It's a bet on the prospects, but if you want to either extend one or two of Burnes/Woodruff/Adames, that's probably how it happens.

I wonder if a longer-term deal might not be a good idea. 2023: $4 million 2024: $4 million 2025: $4.5 million 2026: $4.5 million 2027: $5 million (team option, $2 million buyout) 2028: $5 million (team option, $1 million buyout) For a #4/#5 starter, not a bad option.

If the Brewers want to keep talent like Yelich (who came off a 2018 MVP campaign and a 2019 MVP runner-up), you pay big bucks. Now, they could try to alleviate that hit by going the Bobby Bonilla route, which could save them a bit more cash up front, but for a team like the Brewers, this is the way.

Taylor in RF short-term, Wiemer probably by the end of 2023.

The three players in the Renfroe deal are A-ball position players, all pretty young.

Very nicely done, Brock!

I did. And I also see a 36-year-old 1B whose power output dipped by 35 points of SLG, fueled by the HR total going from 30 to 15. He had 19 in 2020 in 361 fewer ABs. The good news on this, if you want to look that way, is his profile is more Cirillo-esque - ,300 average, lots of doubles, but will that doubles power fade? Maybe a one-year deal with a team option for a second year to give Wiemer time to season in AAA, at about $10 million max, But after McCutcheon burned the Crew this year... I'd rather bring up Wiemer, or give Hiura, who is a decade younger, a full season at DH for about $10-15 million less than what Abreu would cost.

Would he be that much better than Keston Hiura at DH?

Burnes signed to 8-year, $200 million deal with $60 million deferred (paid out over 20 years) - went full Bobby Bonilla. Woodruff signed to 6-year, $90 million deal. Willy Adames signed to 5-year, $67.5 million deal. Hunter Renfroe to Seattle for UT Bryant Mendez, OF Jonatan Clase, 2B Hogan Windish. C: Victor Caratini ($2.80M) 1B: Rowdy Tellez ($5.50M) 2B: Brice Turang ($0.70M) 3B: Luis Urias ($4.50M) SS: Willy Adames ($13.5M) LF: Christian Yelich ($26.00M) CF: Garrett Mitchell ($0.70M) RF: Tyrone Taylor ($2.00M) DH: Keston Hiura ($2.00M) 4th OF: Sal Frelick ($0.70M) Utility: Mike Brosseau ($1.00M) Utility: Jace Peterson ($2.5M) Backup C: Mario Feliciano ($0.70M) SP1: Corbin Burnes ($17.50M) SP2: Brandon Woodruff ($15.00M) SP3: Freddy Peralta ($3.50M) SP4: Eric Lauer ($5.00M) SP5: Adrian Houser ($3.00M) RP: Brent Suter ($2.5M) RP: Aaron Ashby ($1.2M) RP: Matt Bush ($2.00M) RP: Ethan Small ($0.70M) RP: Hoby Milner ($1.00M) RP: Devin Williams ($4.00M) RP: Justin Topa ($0.70M) RP: Jason Alexander ($0.70M) Payroll is 8.15% under budget

Even if you keep Wiemer in AAA, how big a gap is there between Renfroe and Tyrone Taylor? Taylor may give up some OPS points, but his defense in right would be better than Renfroe's.

Why not try to move Renfroe in some sort of trade (see Adam Lind) and roll with a Frelick-Mitchell-Wiemer OF with Taylor as the 4th OF? As for the right-handed DH spot... I'm disinclined to go for a big-name FA. I'd rather try to keep one (or both) of Burnes-Woodruff if possible. Maybe use Wiemer/Taylor/Urias for that in a rotation. Is Yelich that bad vs. lefties?

A power-hitting prospect who can play 3B, and who will be in his prime years (26-33) relatively cheap/controlled? Devanny could have outsized value for the Crew on that basis alone.

Yelich is not going anywhere. We just have to hope that he is more like the leadoff Yelich (or career-average Yelich) than 2021 Yelich. By the way, is anyone having trouble getting baseball-reference to load?

If anything, he could be due for a rebound in 2023. They could probably work something out - say, 4 years, $9 million with some incentives. Get some cost certainly.

The question: Was the move to leadoff responsible, or was it the fact his back wasn't giving him as much trouble as it did in 2021? That is something the Brewers need to figure out.

Analytics can only go so far. There are forces other than WAR and OPS at work in baseball. Fundamentals and clubhouse chemistry matter, too, and that is probably the lesson that Stearns and Counsell are taking from this season.

Yelich at 1B + the return from a Tellez trade might make for a better team.

Probably "platoon" wasn't the right word, but I'd consider Taylor the "veteran" option in terms of splitting time in right. I also would anticipate Taylor splitting time with Mitchell in center. In essence the starting three would be Yelich-Mitchell-Wiemer, with Taylor as 4th OF, and Ruiz as 5th OF. I'd have Frelick at AAA, getting some work in at 3B and 2B, maybe even shortstop - he played those positions at the summer league in college, and perhaps he could be an answer at the hot corner. https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=frelic000sal Think Ryan Freel with much better offense. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/freelry01.shtml